When asked to identify the greatest challenge he faces as the leader of the country's largest system of higher education, the author, a chancellor of California State University, states that the challenge is the urgent need to reach students from traditionally underserved populations--to prepare them and get them into college and then to make sure…

Florida's Bright Futures program is one of the nation's largest merit-based scholarship initiatives. This study used high school transcript and college enrollment data to examine the program's impact on high school course-taking patterns, school grades, college entrance exam scores, and rates of college attendance over time. The study indicates…

Using multilevel models, the authors tested the hypothesis that high schools, through their curricular policies, operate as mechanisms that help members of privileged groups to take better advantage of postsecondary opportunities. The analysis was based on a 7-year follow-up study of 44,666 Israeli students who graduated from 385 high schools in…

From the 3rd grade to the 11th grade, Jorge Martinez walked out of his front door each day hating the prospect of going to school. For most of those days, Martinez, now 17, was a target of bullies. But that was only half of it. There was discord at home. He says he was lazy and unmotivated, preferring to spend his time in front of the television,…

Previous research on differences in civic engagement between young people with some college experience and those without suggests that college attendance is positively associated with some measures of civic engagement. This Fact Sheet presents new evidence, but largely supporting the findings of other researchers, on the correlation between a wide…

This report provides an update on the Illinois public high school class of 2002 and its progress through the higher education system. Three years after graduation, who has persisted, who has stopped out, who has transferred, and who has completed a two-year program? (Contains 16 tables and 5 footnotes.) [This publication was produced by the…

This working paper announces a report proposed by the California Postsecondary Education Commission to conduct a further statistical study on the factors affecting college-going rates in California. These factors would include school demographics, neighborhood characteristics, and regional labor market forces. Such a study could reveal insights…

The enrollment of high school students in postsecondary courses, called "dual enrollment," has grown dramatically in Kentucky in recent years, focusing attention on dual enrollment and its potential benefits. This study presents an overview of dual enrollment in Kentucky from the postsecondary perspective, examining dual enrollment…

In April 2006, the Consortium on Chicago School Research (CCSR) released a report on college enrollment, preparation, and completion by students in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). This was the first endeavor in the nation to use data from the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) to track the progress of a large district's students following…

Inside High School Reform: Making Changes that Matter (WestEd) shares the critical lessons and compelling successes of 28 California Academic Partnership Program school reform efforts. In this interview, lead author Jordan Horowitz, WestEd's senior project director in evaluation research, recently shared some of the book's findings, and answered…

Over the last two decades, there has been a significant change in the financing of higher education in the United States. A decrease in student and institutional support in real terms, tuition increases at all types of institutions, along with the view that students are the primary beneficiaries of higher education has resulted in policies that…

This report provides early estimates of Fall 1990 enrollment and academic year 1989-90 completions for all postsecondary institutions in the United States (excluding outlying areas), irrespective of their accreditation status. The estimates are derived from data received from 1,158 postsecondary institutions involved in the Integrated…

Research on the impact of higher education on the individual and society is reviewed, and the strengths and weaknesses of the research are identified. Attention is directed to the impact of higher education on individual students, the national economy, local and regional economies, and society in general. The best documented area is the effect on…

The paper explores the question of why young people go on from school to higher education in Australia, viewing the decision as a function of individual attributes and situational characteristics. A theory to explain young people's decisions is developed, proposing that young people choose to go because they find higher education to be both…

Research in the area of student attrition in junior colleges is fairly limited; however, the findings of studies conducted at 4-year colleges, where more extensive research has been done, often have relevance for 2-year colleges. This survey of the literature from both areas points to several student-related and college-related factors that appear…