Objective: The process by which students decide to stay in college has been primarily based on models that are independent of geographic context. This article describes the local labor market in which community college students are situated and discusses the multiple and complex ways these labor markets impact student decisions to persist and…

Objective: States increasingly create promise programs to increase college enrollment and degree attainment. The objective of this study was to understand the experiences of adult learners using the Tennessee Reconnect Grant (TN Reconnect) as they transitioned to becoming college students. Methods: Drawing upon interviews with 23 adult learners,…

Objective: The study assesses the impact of dual enrollment participation on remediation and completion for traditional first time, full-time freshmen at a community college in Northeast Tennessee. Method: This study began with the full population of 1,232 students who enrolled between 2008 and 2012 at a community college in northeast Tennessee…

Objective: Despite the fairly substantial body of literature devoted to understanding whether dual enrollment programs are related to academic success in college, less is known regarding how dual enrollment transmits its potentially positive influence, especially among two-year college students. In this study, we fill this gap by delving into the…

In an era when college completion dominates the policy agenda, matters of access and equity are critically important. The allure of raising completion rates by reducing access for students thought unprepared for college and incapable of finishing is too attractive to deny. This article discusses the importance of linking access and completion to…

Community colleges enroll nearly half of the students enrolled in public undergraduate programs and a disproportionate number of first-generation, low-income, underprepared and minority students. The new national completion agenda has brought both visibility and pressure to these open-access institutions, which have completion rates of less than…

This analysis explores student outcomes related to taking developmental English (i.e., reading and/or writing) and math classes in three community colleges in three different states, using institutional data from 7,898 students who began college in the fall of 2009 (Cohort 1) or fall 2010 (Cohort 2). We examine the outcome trajectories of students…

Objective: Colleges have increased postsecondary educational access for youth, including individuals with disabilities, but completion rates remain low. This study tests the hypothesis that health conditions that reduce social integration predict lower educational attainment among college students. Method: The sample from the nationally…

Objective: Excess credits earned by college students, over and above those required to complete their programs of study, have become increasingly a subject of interest and concern. There has been almost no research on the extent of these credits. This study focuses on all of the associate degree programs within one state's community college system…

Objective: This study examined to what extent differences exist in pre-college characteristics and academic performance between Black male student-athletes and their student-athlete peers. Method: Data provided by the Florida Department of Education's PK-20 Education Data Warehouse (EDW) were analyzed as a function of group membership (gender and…

This study examines how interactions with institutional agents (faculty and academic counselors) and select student support programs influence success (i.e., grade point average) and intentions to persist to degree completion for Latino/a community college students. Using social capital theory and college impact models, the study controls for the…

This study explored whether community college websites are a useful medium for providing knowledge relevant to degree completion. Ten community students used one of three community college websites to answer 10 questions about occupational degree programs. A facilitator asked participants to think aloud while using the website to answer these…

This essay canvasses selected studies undertaken by economists on the community college. Key authors and journals are noted, followed by an examination of what economists contribute to our understanding of the community college in terms of costs, price and financial aid, economic and social benefits, and the institution's role in furthering…

In 2007-2008, approximately 42% of community college students who were eligible to receive Pell grant funding did not file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Using data from the Beginning Postsecondary Student Study, this study examined the relationship between FAFSA filing status and persistence from the fall to spring…