A new analysis of party identification, based on more than 10,000 interviews of registered voters conducted by Pew Research Center in 2017, finds that 37% of registered voters identify as independents, 33% are Democrats, and 26% are Republicans. For decades, women have been more likely than men to identify as Democrats or lean Democratic. But…

This dissertation is comprised of three essays, all of which focus on various impacts of economic recession. The first two essays utilize county-level data to examine differences between rural and urban response to economic downturn, while the final essay makes use of individual-level data to examine the impact of recession on enrollment in higher…

This article paints a comprehensive portrait of the demographic, financial, and educational characteristics of Pennsylvania postsecondary students who are adult learners, and identifies rural-urban differences within this group. The study analyzed data from the 2010-11 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (n = 610,925), supplemented by…

Transitions to postsecondary education for GED graduates are a growing concern for educators and policy makers. This article analyzes the educational, demographic, and financial characteristics of Pennsylvania postsecondary students with a GED credential compared with traditional high school graduates, and identifies rural-urban differences within…