The cost of a college education continues to trend upward and state funding for higher education has trended downward, shifting more of the financial burden to students through student loans. About half of all 2010-2011 financial aid originated from student loans, and total federal student loan borrowing rose 319% between 1990 and 2010.…

African American male students have a high risk of not completing high school and not going to college. Students receive some college preparation as early as middle school, yet it is not enough to increase the number of African American male high school or college graduates. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe what…

Despite roughly 21.2 million veterans living in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012), only 2 million service members and their families were eligible for benefits under the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008 (American Council on Education [ACE], 2008). Furthermore, less than 1 million beneficiaries received education…

National trends show that college academic readiness and subsequent graduation rates continue to decline despite added attention being paid to advanced curriculum while in high school. This study utilized existing data to determine the relationship between completing or taking Advanced Placement® course(s) during high school and subsequent college…

Extracurricular activities have been an important part of adolescents' lives for generations (Kremer-Sadlik, Izquierdo, & Fatigante, 2010). Extracurricular activities take place outside of the classroom and result in several benefits to students (National Federation of State High School Associations [NFHS], 2010). With the recent recession in…

The low success rates of increasing numbers of underprepared students taking developmental mathematics classes--often minority and economically disadvantaged--are challenging community colleges across the United States. These students, who must start in the lowest levels of precollege mathematics courses, are unlikely to pass the first course and…

This study explored the key factors that had the greatest impact on their decision to attend a particular HBCU. Forty to 60-minute semi-structured interviews were conducted with 4 focus groups. The results indicated that cost, campus environment, academic majors, and family were the 4 key factors that influenced their decisions to attend the…

Sound Business Inc. (SBI) has worked to improve college access for Black and Latino students at A. Philip Randolph (APR) High School in New York City for over twenty-five years. This Case Study provides an in-depth look at the relationship between an in-house non-profit organization and an NYC public high school. How does this non-traditional…

Latino/as are the fastest growing population in the United States and have the second lowest graduation rate among all demographics. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to gain a better understanding of the barriers affecting Latino/a success as well as exploring self-identified engagement strategies leading to Latino/a student first…

The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between early career and college interventions and college-going self-efficacy of suburban fourth and fifth grade students. This study further explored how a suburban school district addressed challenges and evaluated the perceptions of the system's strategies and implementation of a…

Research has shown that Latino males have some of the lowest collegiate completion rates compared to their racial and ethnic peers (Saenz et al., 2016). Further, individuals from rural communities continually lag behind in educational attainment than those from other geographic areas. Taken collectively, addressing this current problem becomes an…

School administrators are in the best position, but often lack the knowledge, to help low-income, minority youth transition to college. Consequently, some youth are not meeting their full potential and there are long-term, deleterious consequences on local economies as wage earning potential stagnates. Using Aslanargun's, Farmer-Hinton's, and…

A college-going high school program called Rise Up has enjoyed years of success with its program participants but has yet to demonstrate why the program alumni have entered college at such high rates (91.6% of alumni enter college upon high school graduation). Through interviews and focus groups with 46 college-going alumni, this research examined…

Throughout history, the United States has symbolized a place of opportunity, viewed as a place where achieving a better life is possible. This viewpoint still holds true for Latino immigrants, who currently account for more than half of the country's population growth since 2000. Latino families and students specifically see higher education as a…

Despite improvements in college access, college completion rates remain low among students from low-income and otherwise vulnerable families. Over the past three decades, college prices rose dramatically, the real income of most families stagnated, and the purchasing power of need-based financial aid declined. To make up for substantial unmet…