"Dual enrollment" programs allow high school students to take college courses and earn college credits while still attending high school. Such programs, also referred to as "dual credit" or early college programs, are designed to boost college access and degree attainment, especially for students typically underrepresented in…

This paper contends that, although there is much to commend in the remediation reform movement, it is unlikely to attain its goals. These goals include the Lumina Foundation's target of having 60% of Americans attain a degree or certificate, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's goal of doubling the number of low income students who earn a…

There's an emerging trend in the national college completion movement. A group of small but powerful Student Success Centers is creating statewide impact in states traditionally devoid of a strong centralized tradition of community college governance. Growing directly out of a decade of hard work to dramatically boost student completion rates in…

This is the final report of a large-scale independent evaluation of the Building Assets and Reducing Risks (BARR) model in ninth grade in eleven high schools in Maine, California, Minnesota, Kentucky, and Texas. This sample of schools included large and small schools in urban, suburban, and rural areas, serving students from a wide range of…

Despite widely shared aspirations, the vast majority of community college students do not continue their studies at four-year colleges. In November 2013, "Jobs for the Future" convened higher education leaders and researchers to explore state-level policy strategies for restructuring community college in ways that enhance student…

"Student Success Center Toolkit" is a compilation of materials organized to assist Student Success Center directors as they staff, launch, operate, and sustain Centers. The toolkit features materials created and used by existing Centers, such as staffing and budgeting templates, launch materials, sample meeting agendas, and fundraising…

A study of low-income rural mothers in four states investigated the differences in demographics, school experience, social support, and school involvement for mothers with children with and without special needs. Forty percent of the mothers reported having at least one child with special needs. Twice as many mothers who did not complete the…

The examination of historical trend data on the number and percent of students lost from public school enrollment prior to graduation from high school is becoming increasingly important since distinct trends are emerging on a regional basis. This study examines regional trends in Texas on the number and percent of students lost from public high…

In enacting the 1998 Amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, the Congress changed Section 435(a)(5) of the act to lift the exemption for cohort default rates that were established for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Navajo Colleges in 1990. The new provisions became…

The experiences of 10 states described in this paper illustrate how higher education can be a constructive force for change in the schools, and how the changes taking place in school-based curriculum and assessment provide valuable lessons for collegiate reform. The 10 states profiled are California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, New…

Discusses the shortage of minority teachers in the United States and in Texas. Recruitment and retention in teacher education can be improved with financial aid, partnerships between two- and four-year institutions, articulation between universities and public school systems, and establishment of a university climate that rewards minority…

The Transfer Success Work Group was established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) and the Texas Association of Junior and Community College Instructional Administrators to investigate the effectiveness of the state's public community college transfer function and make recommendations for improving transfer efficiency. The…