This year the Center on Education Policy analyzed data on the achievement of different groups of students in two distinct ways. First, it looked at grade 4 test results to determine whether the performance of various groups improved at three achievement levels--basic and above, proficient and above, and advanced. Second, it looked at gaps between…

Nearly one-quarter of students in community colleges leave school during the first year of enrollment for reasons other than transfer or credential completion. Generally, nontraditional community college students drop out within their first year at higher rates than do traditional students. Using data from Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges…

Using data from Achieving the Dream: Community College Count, this issue of Data Notes compares students in the 2002 Achieving the Dream cohort in terms of achievement and persistence over three academic years based on Pell Grant receipt. The results reveal a complicated relationship between Pell Grant receipt and measures of student success.…

This study utilizes observation, survey and interview methodologies to investigate the impact of student race on participation in discussion in introductory sociology courses at a large Midwestern US university with a minority enrollment of approximately 15 percent. While results are mixed there is some evidence that white students participated at…

This paper examines racial and ethnic achievement disparities in places where schools are reputedly excellent, reporting on the 2000-2001 Ed-Excel Assessment of Secondary School Culture, which collected data on black, white, Hispanic, Asian, and mixed race students. Questions covered family characteristics, opinions about instructional quality,…

This report presents trends in national and statewide test performance for North Carolina's public school racial/ethnic subgroups. It is intended to help policymakers gauge the progress and status of minority student achievement in the state's public schools; facilitate the comparison of the academic achievement of racial/ethnic students in North…

This review of racial issues in American higher education identifies the quest for community amid diversity as the major challenges facing colleges and universities today. The literature reviewed is organized into three parts: (1) the demographics of equity and access in higher education; (2) the legacy of racism in higher education; and (3) the…

The research on college student suicide is discussed, with emphasis on variability in base rates, the operating assumptions regarding reported base rates, and methodological difficulties in studying suicide. Variability in suicide among schools and among different types of students is examined, and the effects of changing demographics and cultural…

The expectations, self-perceptions, past academic behaviors, and attitudes of transfer students were examined in this study. Participants were 2,492 incoming transfer students (53% female, 14% African American, 14% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 6% Hispanic/Latino/a, and 65% White, and had a mean age of 21.8) at a mid-Atlantic doctoral…

This is the first comprehensive study to examine Advanced Placement (AP) course-taking patterns and subject test results in the nation's urban schools. This study investigates both Great City Schools' (GCS) AP scores and scores for a national sample of test takers. The GCS data set includes 58 large urban public school districts. The primary…

This paper describes a comparative study to measure differences in the levels of career indecision for high school seniors (N=113) who are African American, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, White, or mixed race, and are involved in activities in a School-to-Work (STW) program of an urban high school. A demographic survey and the Career Decision…

This report presents retention and graduation patterns of full-time undergraduate students at Maryland's public four-year colleges and universities from 1979-98, and specifically the number and percentage of students who were retained at their original public four-year campus and those who graduated from any senior college or university in the…

Studies predicting success in college for students graduating since 1980 are reviewed. SAT scores and high school records are the most common predictors, but a few studies of other predictors are included. The review establishes that SAT scores and high school records predict academic performance, nonacademic accomplishments, leadership in…

Using data from Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count, this issue looks at changes in cohort composition. The analysis addresses the changing composition of the Achieving the Dream student cohorts from 2002 to 2005. The data show that at Achieving the Dream colleges, the percentage of Hispanic students increased over the four cohorts…

The annual report on the State of Higher Education in New Mexico has been enhanced to include more analysis as well as data. Compared to previous years, higher education in New Mexico is educating more New Mexicans and a broader spectrum of New Mexicans than ever before. Of particular importance given the mission to educate all of the citizens of…