A successful freshman year of high school lays the foundation for the path to college: ninth-grade grades are powerful indicators of high school graduation, college access, and college degree attainment. However, the transition from eighth to ninth grade is a time when students' academic performance often declines. This report explores how Chicago…

Like other major school districts throughout the country, the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE) has shifted its focus over the last decade from holding high schools accountable for graduation rates to holding them accountable for rates of college and career readiness. There are two major challenges facing both research and policy…

As educational priorities have changed, so have the standards for success. New York City has made dramatic progress reducing high school dropouts and boosting on-time graduation rates, which rose from 47 percent in 2005 to 70 percent in 2016. At the same time, changing priorities and expectations have led to an increased emphasis on graduating…

As educational priorities have changed, so have the standards for success. New York City has made dramatic progress reducing high school dropouts and boosting on-time graduation rates, which rose from 47 percent in 2005 to 70 percent in 2016. At the same time, changing priorities and expectations have led to an increased emphasis on graduating…

As educational priorities have changed, so have the standards for success. New York City has made dramatic progress reducing high school dropouts and boosting on-time graduation rates, which rose from 47 percent in 2005 to 70 percent in 2016. At the same time, changing priorities and expectations have led to an increased emphasis on graduating…

This report from the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research and the To&Through Project examines two- and four-year college enrollment patterns among Chicago Public Schools (CPS) graduates over the last 10 years. CPS graduates' immediate college enrollment rates increased over the decade, with 63 percent of 2015 graduates enrolling…

Black and Latino young men may face a number of barriers on their pathway to college, including a belief that college is not for them, difficulty navigating the college search and application process, financial obstacles, and insufficient academic preparation. Expanded Success Initiative (ESI) schools are working to prepare students for college…

This document presents the technical appendices that accompany the full report entitled:"Focus on Mentee-Mentor Relationships: The 10th Grade Implementation of iMentor's College Ready Program." The appendices include: (1) Mentor Survey Construct Items; (2) Qualative Data Collection and Analysis Methods; and (3) Methods for Estimating the…

The Chicago Public Schools' (CPS) vision is that every student graduates from high school prepared for success in college, career, and life. To help the city reach that goal, the To&Through Project is providing data that track the progress of students in Chicago and identify where students are falling off the path to college degree attainment.…

New York City's specialized high schools have a long history of offering a rigorous, college preparatory, public education to some of NYC's highest-achieving students. Despite enrolling only a small fraction of the City's high school students, the specialized schools have become a powerful symbol in a larger public debate about educational equity.…

The iMentor College Ready Program is a model that combines school-based mentoring with technology and aspects of whole school reform. The program aims to create strong relationships between low-income youth and college-educated mentors--and to leverage these relationships to help students develop the mindsets, skills, and knowledge necessary to…

The iMentor College Ready Program combines school-based mentoring with technology and aspects of whole school reform. The program strives to create strong relationships between low-income youth and college-educated mentors--relationships that it hopes to leverage to help students develop the mindsets, skills, and knowledge necessary to enroll and…

Whether or not to sort students by incoming skills has been a contentious issue. This brief shows that there are potential costs and benefits to both approaches. Even with the same curriculum, the consequences of sorting depend on students' incoming skills and the outcomes being considered. This brief highlights a critical role skill-based sorting…

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…

Over the past 15 years, in New York City and across the country, expectations for high schools--and high school students--have changed dramatically. Increasingly, high schools are being asked not only to reduce dropout rates and boost graduation rates, but also to impart knowledge, skills, and experiences that will prepare students to succeed in…