Parenting students work hard every day to pursue their goals, often juggling work, classes, and caregiving responsibilities. Public systems and programs can provide critical support, but frequently create additional hurdles for parenting students and their families-- especially those with low incomes. In 2022, the Center for the Study of Social…

While research on Asian American students has overwhelmingly emphasized family ties as an important contributor to student success in high school, what it neglects is how family ties can constrain students in their educational endeavors. Based on a study of 30 low-income Hmong American high school students, I argue that poverty can create…

Evaluating a school system requires benchmarks of success. In order to know whether it is successful we need to know not only what is happening, but what should be happening. This paper interprets, and comments on, the aims California has for its public school system, and offers ways of thinking about the evidence in the light of those aims, and…

Using data from a multi-year study of eleven low-performing high schools, Cooper and Davis examine the academic aspirations and motivations of urban African American high school students in California. Situating their discussion within the context of neoliberalism and its manifestation in urban school reform and community cohesion, the authors…

The University of California, Berkeley sends more undergraduate students to economics PhD programs than any other public university. While this fact is surely a function of its size, there may be lessons from the Berkeley experience that others could adopt. To investigate why Berkeley generates so many economics PhD students, the author convened…

Since the mid-20th century, the standard U.S. high school and college math curriculum has been based on two years of algebra and a year of geometry, preparing students to take classes in pre-calculus followed by calculus. Students' math pursuits have been differentiated primarily by how far or how rapidly they proceed along a clearly defined…

Economic strains play an important factor in students not only dropping out of school but also for not being able to attend college. As the cost of college tuition increases, many youths may perceive that the possibility of attending college may be out of their reach for financial reasons. Using data drawn from the savings for education,…

Bolstered by the recommendations of the 1998 Boyer Report, US federal agencies have put significant resources into promoting opportunities for undergraduates to engage in research. American universities and colleges have been creating support programs and curricular opportunities intended to create a "culture of undergraduate research."…

In 2009, the authors surveyed a population of 1,588 persons who work in three types of early childhood infrastructure organizations in California--child care resource and referral programs, local First 5 commissions and as child care coordinators. All of these infrastructure organizations receive public dollars and at least one of each type is…

This study examined how the academic aspirations of Asian Pacific Americans (APAs) attending community colleges are influenced by their demographic and educational background, reasons for attending, and obstacles they expect to encounter. The sample consisted of 846 APAs out of a total student sample of 5,000 in an urban community college…

Research suggests that low-income high school students may opt out of preparing for college, because they believe a postsecondary education is more than they or their parents can afford. At the same time, federal agencies and some state agencies have indicated that every year available student aid goes unused. In response to these misconceptions…

A study of F-1 visa students in the Los Angeles Community College district, this study compares the academic success of international students with respect to GPA, course completion, and other measures. In addition, the study looks at the age of students, and how long they remain enrolled. In addition, the study provides details on the types of…

This study examined the progress of nine collaborative student academic development programs in California which focused on improving the preparation of secondary school students for college and university study. The programs were selected for inclusion on the basis of commonalities along the following dimensions: a goal of increasing the number…

A survey of 7% of all students attending classes in the Los Angeles Community College District during Fall, 1978, was conducted to determine educational and career goals and interests, levels of college preparation, commuting patterns, employment while attending college, personal or parental income, attitudes toward tuition, marital status,…

"Minding the Gap" argues that in today's highly competitive, global economy, all young people need a postsecondary education. Yet only one in ten students from the lowest economic quintile in the United States currently earns a postsecondary credential. This timely and instructive book from Jobs for the Future explores policies and…