We document patterns and trends in school segregation in North Carolina between 1998 and 2016, a period of rapid immigration in this racially diverse state. As in other states of the South, the period of court orders enforcing racial balance has given way not only to tacit acceptance of residentially based school segregation but also to policies…

In the spring of 2016 and 2017, a sample of juniors across all Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) high schools was administered a survey of financial literacy concepts as part of the College and Work Readiness Assessment (CWRA). The district administered this survey as education stakeholders have become increasingly interested in--and…

This study examines state- and county-level data for the 13 Appalachian states from the 2013-2017 American Community Survey (ACS) and from U.S. Census Bureau population estimates on topics including population, age, race and ethnicity, housing occupancy and tenure, education, labor force, employment and unemployment, income and poverty, health…

Based on growing evidence of the long-term benefits of enriched early childhood experiences, we evaluate the potential for addressing gender disparities in elementary school through early care and education programs. Specifically, we explore the community-wide effects of two statewide initiatives in North Carolina on gender differences in academic…

Whether students of color are more or less likely to be identified as having disabilities than similarly situated students who are White in U.S. states with histories of de jure and de facto racial segregation is currently unknown. Unadjusted analyses of large samples of students attending elementary and middle schools in the U.S. South yielded…

This update to "SAT Wars" provides new evidence in the case against standardized college entry tests, including the experiences of test-optional colleges. "The Scandal of Standardized Tests" sheds significant light on key problems such as: (1) Are the tests stronger proxies for race and family income today than they were 20…

This report presents state- and county-level data for the Appalachian Region. The 12 chapters focus on: (1) Population Basics; (2) Age; (3) Race and Hispanic Origin; (4) Housing Occupancy, Tenure, and Type; (5) Education, Device Ownership, and Internet Access; (6) Labor Force, Employment, and Unemployment; (7) Transportation and Commuting…

Background: Over the past two decades, inclusive STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) high schools have emerged as one strategy for increasing and broadening participation in STEM majors and careers, particularly for currently underrepresented students in those fields. However, limited research has examined whether strategies…

In the United States, a postsecondary education is significant for economic success. The future job markets require advanced certifications in order to compete in the global market. The federal government emphasizes this importance with the completion goal to increase the number of college graduates by the year 2020. Community colleges have been…

This technical appendix provides additional information about the sample, data, and estimation strategy used for a series of American Educator Panels (AEP) Data Notes published by the RAND Corporation in 2019. The Data Note series is intended to provide brief but incisive analyses of teacher and school leader survey results that may be of…

Many studies have investigated whether students in charter schools differ systematically from those in traditional public schools with respect to prior achievement, special education, or English Language Learner status. None, however, has examined gender differences in charter school enrollment. Using data for all U.S. public schools over 11…

This report examines the status of women in North Carolina in terms of their employment, earnings, and occupations. The report includes an Employment & Earnings Composite Index comprised of four indicators--women's median annual earnings, the gender wage ratio, women's labor force participation rate, and the share of employed women in…

This report looks at graduation rates for Latino students and the completion or graduation rate gap between Latino and White students at four-year colleges and universities across the country. Data come from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. The bulk of this analysis focuses on 613 public and nonprofit private nonspecialized…

We analyze longitudinal data from students who spent their academic careers in North Carolina (NC) public secondary schools and attended NC public universities to investigate the importance of high school racial composition and opportunities to learn in secondary school for choosing a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) major.…

Decades of research have showcased the inequitable exclusion of Black students in urban middle schools via out-of-school suspensions. Black students exhibit the highest rates of suspensions when compared to their White peers according to the 2013-2014 Office of Civil Rights database. Urban middle school teachers are typically placed in high-stress…