This study examines the need for and proposes the establishment of the BRED FIRST Center of Transformation, specifically for first-generation college students at Kentucky State University (KSU). According to FirstGen Forward (n.d.-a), first-generation students are those whose parents do not have a college degree. In this proposal, student success…

Background: In response to the effort to increase minority enrollment in college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors, STEM summer bridge programs were created to help minorities with the transition from high school to college with the long-term goal of increasing the diversity of professionals in STEM. The goal of this…

Purpose: This study estimates the effect of the Truth-in-Tuition policy on the enrollment of first-year students, minority students and all students (total enrollment) in Illinois universities. Design/methodology/approach: Econometric models yield robust estimates using state- and time-fixed effects. This research uses the nonparametric…

This essay examines the importance of student success in higher education, particularly for underserved and disadvantaged student populations. This essay provides a review of contemporary trends in national postsecondary completion and strategies to enhance student success outcomes which will provide thriving economies and a talented workforce.…

As the number of minority K-12 students continues to rise it is pertinent that minority teachers are present in classrooms across the United States. There are many benefits associated with the presence of minority teachers. Minority teachers often teach in hard-to-staff schools and possess a familiarity with the cultural assets that minority…

Enrollment in high school dual credit has risen 75% in the last five years, but participation has not increased equally among all demographic categories. This brief examines the underrepresented minority, gender, and income status of dual credit participants who subsequently enrolled in a Kentucky public university between 2014-17. This is the…

This research brief examines the impact of dual credit participation on second-year persistence and first-year GPA among low-income and underrepresented minority (URM) students. The brief also explores whether dual credit opportunities help close outcome gaps affecting these student groups. Low-income is defined by a student's federal Pell grant…

Strategies to recruit and hire faculty and staff of color to the Commonwealth of Kentucky's population levels have continued for 57 years. From Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the Kentucky Plan in 1982 to the Strategic Plan for Kentucky Higher Education from 1982 to 1995, to the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education's 2010-2015…

College preparation resources to support academic and college success have the potential to decrease challenges students often face when preparing for college. TRIO programs, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, were introduced in the 1960s as part of the fight on the war on poverty to make the college experience more accessible to low…

Whiteness is more than a racial identity. It is a concept that is deeply embedded into the structures and histories of many institutions of higher education. Due to the pervasiveness of Whiteness, institutions are likely to have campus climates that are hostile and unsupportive of students who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.…

The Pell Grant is the foundational need-based student aid program in the United States, providing students of lower socio-economic status a pathway to afford college costs and educational expenses. Currently, over one-third of all U.S. undergraduate students receive Pell. This paper examines federal Pell assistance and institutional costs for…

This brief examines the varied effects of dual credit on second-year persistence and first-year GPA for underrepresented minority undergraduate students (URM), compared to white or Asian, non-Hispanic undergraduate students. The first brief (ED611821) showed a substantial gap in dual credit between URM and non-URM students, and this brief provides…

The University of Kentucky (UK) and University of Michigan (UM) present very different patterns in terms of black student enrollments and completions from 2000 to 2012 because of a structural explanation, a qualitative explanation, and a statistical explanation. Unfortunately, the patterns at the University of Western Ontario (UWO) are partial due…

Background/Context: The transition from high school to college marks a critical juncture for students planning to pursue higher education, particularly those from historically marginalized backgrounds. Unfortunately, many of these students are left to navigate complex financial aid requirements, registration processes, and academic placement with…

This study adds to the currently limited evidence base on the efficacy of interventions targeting non-college-ready high school students by examining the impact of Kentucky's Targeted Interventions (TI) program. We focus on interventions that students received under TI in the senior year of high school based on their 11th grade ACT test scores.…