This article presents an exploratory case study examining the effects of different early college credit programs on time to baccalaureate degree attainment at a metropolitan Midwestern United States land grant university. We developed a Cox proportional hazards regression model of a students' time to degree attainment as a function of their…

This study examined the current roles and practices of American high school counselors in relation to the ASCA [American School Counselor Association] National Model. Expectations for student success by high school counselors were also examined and compared to those of teachers' and school administrators'. A nationally representative sample of 852…

In this brief, we describe the distribution of college prep course offerings across Texas and determine which school characteristics are associated with higher and lower numbers of course offerings. We also examine how college prep course offerings are related to student-level college prep course-taking and, in turn, how course-taking behaviors…

This study examines the relationships between school funding and students' college preparation, postsecondary enrollment, and postsecondary degree attainment, adding to the literature on how money matters in education. The author addresses how past school funding levels among Illinois public high schools may have been associated with students'…

Homeschooling in the United States has grown considerably over the past several decades. This article presents findings from the Factors Influencing College Success in Mathematics (FICSMath) survey, a national study of 10,492 students enrolled in tertiary calculus, including 190 students who reported homeschooling for a majority of their high…

The existence of a gap in academic performance between various groups of students, such as minority and non-minority students or socioeconomically disadvantaged and advantaged students, has been the subject of public discourse and research for many years. Research has indicated numerous reasons for the existence of this gap and its impact on…

Distance learning has been used as one method to increase access for students who have otherwise been underrepresented in college preparatory courses like Advanced Placement (AP). This study evaluated the impact of a statewide Virtual Advanced Placement (VAP) program on access to AP courses for students from underrepresented populations. Survey…

The number of jobs in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) is growing rapidly and is expected to increase by approximately 1 million in the United States between 2012 and 2022 (Vilorio, 2014). People of many racial/ethnic minorities, however, including Hispanic people, are underrepresented among recipients of STEM degrees and among…

Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest conducted this literature review to identify malleable factors that can be measured in K-12 settings and that predict students' postsecondary science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) success (defined as enrolling in, persisting in, and completing a postsecondary STEM major or degree), particularly…

The goal of this research study has been to develop, implement, and evaluate a school reform design experiment at a continuation high school with low-income, low-performing underrepresented minority students. The complexity sciences served as a theoretical framework for this design experiment. Treating an innovative college preparatory program as…

In recent decades, there has been an increasing emphasis placed on college graduation rates and reducing attrition due to the social and economic benefits, at both the individual and national levels, proposed to accrue from a more highly educated population (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). In the United States in particular, there is a concern…

Retention and graduation rates of an entire cohort of 1,913 first-time full-time college students are analyzed. The effects of participation in a first year experience (FYE) course and of entry level academic preparation (ELAP) on retention and graduation are examined, both descriptively and with discrete-time survival analyses. Although…

Preparation for college and careers begins when students are young, yet, it can be difficult for middle grade educators to know how best to prepare these students for future success. Middle grade practitioners need to know what to pay attention to and who needs additional support. Without knowing how to identify students who are on-track for high…

One of the most important questions in education research is whether the gains from interventions for which perceived short-term success can be sustained. The possibility of short-lived impacts is especially relevant for research on charter schools, where charter operators who face high-stakes assessments have an incentive to "teach to the…

How well are our nation's high schools preparing students for college and career? Recent analyses by ACT show low rates of college and career readiness among United States high school graduates. Data from postsecondary institutions reveal high remediation rates and low second-year retention rates among first-year college students. Employers lament…