We conducted a study of predictive analytics (PA) applied to state data on post-school outcomes (PSO) of exited high-school students with disabilities (SWD). Data analyses with machine learning Random Forest algorithm and multilevel Bayesian ordered logistic regression produced two key findings. One, Random Forest models were accurate in…

The purpose of this Equity Tool is to provide insights to/about Students of Color, student mentors, school guidance counselors, and community college/university advisors, towards understanding current/future higher education endeavors.

Colleges and universities spend billions of dollars each year to enroll a shrinking population of college-bound students. However, relatively little is known about the high-ability, high achieving students whose enrollment decisions can have positive effects on retention, graduation, faculty satisfaction, alumni giving, and overall institutional…

A significant percentage of youth are not pursuing any form of post-secondary education (PSE). Using a mixed-method approach, I sought to understand what barriers youth experienced to access PSE. My research confirmed that barriers to access PSE for youth from family income groups of less than $80,000, identified in early research by Corak (2013),…

A new module designed to ease the transition from school to university was devised and implemented at Cardiff University School of Chemistry. Two iterations of the module are described, both of them conducted under restrictions imposed by COVID-19 pandemic regulations. Over a two-week period, students attended 15 different sessions, each designed…

Because Black males have consistently enrolled in college at lower rates than other racial groups, it is critical to continue researching reasons for this racial gap in higher education. In this phenomenological study, participants shared their lived experience, which revealed the following themes: guidance counseling - supportive yet lacking,…

This qualitative study explored the processes utilized by secondary special education teachers as they plan and execute transition planning and/or goal setting for college-bound students with high incidence disabilities (HID), including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and specific learning…

This qualitative case study identifies the systemic and explicit barriers that impede the progression from high school to college for first-generation college students (FGCS) at a Small Catholic Secondary School in Cincinnati, Ohio. Evidence indicates that FGCS experience more barriers in progressing from high school to college than their non-FGCS…

College education plays a crucial role in upward social mobility. However, despite applying to and being accepted by colleges, students often fail to matriculate -- a phenomenon known as "summer melt". The summer after high school graduation is a vulnerable period for these students due to limited counseling support from both high…

Education improvement has become a national imperative. Low graduation rates, standardized test failures, and overall success rates falling significantly behind in global competition have forced the dialogue towards alternatives to public education (Stewart, 2012). As the United States continues to trail other countries in educational success, it…

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic upended the U.S. education system in spring 2020, another persistent, pernicious pathogen had long plagued American society: inequitable educational outcomes on the basis of income, race, and ethnicity. This is especially true for postsecondary access and attainment. Research shows the benefits of postsecondary…

Black and Latinx adolescent boys from economically stratified communities face pervasive societal inequities and, therefore, deserve more responsive school supports to determine and actualize postsecondary pathways. For insights into how such students conceptualize their futures and their school's role in facilitating this process, this…

This study reports a qualitative grounded-theory investigation that explored school counselor trainees' experiences engaging in psychoeducational group lessons with first-generation college-going (first-in-family) high school students. As part of this semester-long, group-based experiential training, counselor trainees developed and implemented…

The study examined whether providing college application coaching to high school seniors increased postsecondary enrollment. The program was aimed at students whom school counselors believed were on the verge of not applying to college, despite having tenth-grade test scores that were high enough to warrant applying.The research described in this…

Background/Context: Schools have attempted to address stratification in black and Latino students' access to higher education through extensive reform initiatives, including those focused on social supports. A crucial focus has been missing from these efforts, essential to improving the effectiveness of support mechanisms and understanding why…