Prior research underscores the pivotal role high school freshman grade-point averages (FGPA) play in college enrollment, with a focus predominantly on urban settings. This study broadens this perspective, employing a diverse Arkansas sample (n = 33,207), spanning rural, suburban, and urban high school students and filling a notable literature gap.…

This paper examines whether there is an association between participation of the international African students at the University of Arkansas in extracurricular activities (ECAs) and their grade point average (GPA). With the increase of study abroad programs, numerous Africans at college age travel to the US to pursue their degrees. A considerable…

The El Dorado Promise program is a universal, first dollar Promise program that guarantees a full tuition scholarship to students who attend the El Dorado School District from grades K-12, and a partial scholarship for those enrolled for at least 9th through 12th grade. We use a difference-indifferences framework to examine the impact of the El…

Current observations from the National Center for Education Statistics demonstrate the dramatic increase in college student employment over the past few decades. Not only are more students employed than in previous decades, students are working more hours. This could lead to declines in academic performance as hours worked increase, resulting in…

In fall 2005, the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas authorized the optional use of a plus/minus grading system. Since 2005, approximately one-half of courses have been graded using plus/minus and one-half using the straight letter grade system. This study examined student (n = 338) and…

"I don't know that many kids that have done coke, none that have tried crack, and only a few that have dropped acid. I can't even count all of the ones who've taken Adderall" (Stice). This statement made in an interview by a freshman art history major at the University of Maryland, College Park, in 2007 effectively highlights a still…

The goal of an educational system or degree program is to "educate" students. This immediately raises the question of what does it mean to "educate" students. All academic institutions, degree programs and content areas are typically expected to answer this question and establish appropriate academic expectations both within…

Since SAT and ACT tests have been long-suspected and then shown to contain class and race biases while not accurately predicting retention, the Schedler Honors College at the University of Central Arkansas (UCA) shifted to a holistic, multi-criterion selection process, de-emphasizing standardized tests, and then analyzed the outcomes. This essay…

Since the passage of Proposition 48 (NCAA, 1984), African-American student-athletes entering National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) major colleges and universities have meet new challenges in their future as student-athletes. This major change altered the landscape of the future of college athletics particularly for students of color.…

This study covers the effects that social media use has on the daily lives of college students. More specifically, the current study focuses on college students' academic success, study habits, social interaction, and family interaction. Social media is a source of online tools that allow people from across the world to communicate with others.…

This article tests a relationship between class attendance and final grades in several political science courses that I taught at the University of Georgia, University of Vermont, and University of Central Arkansas between the Fall 2000 and Spring 2006 semesters. The study employs ordinary least square estimators to test the foregoing hypothesis.…