The NLSY97 data were used to explore the patterns of developmental trajectories of body weight in adolescence and how they affected the likelihood of college completion in young adulthood among 2,275 youths aged 13 and 14 in Wave 1. A strong weight trajectory gradient was found for rates of college completion. The study further explored the role…

The authors examined the predictive nature of attentional biases and initial grade point average of ninth graders dropping out of high school. Attentional biases are cognitive shifts in focus that are linked in both time and context toward stimuli perceived by an individual as threatening. Data were collected from 68 high school freshmen (45.6%…

Disparities exist among Latinos in educational attainment. These disparities are magnified when comparing their access, persistence, and degree attainment to their Caucasian and Asian American counterparts. The purpose of this quantitative study is to discover the impact of cultural competence among academic advising professionals as it relates to…

Retention and student graduation rates are a major concern for community colleges nationwide. As student dropout rates continue to climb and graduation figures languish, many studies have been conducted to investigate the causes of student attrition. Numerous reports have found faculty advising to be a contributing factor in student retention,…

The Adult High School (AHS) program enables an adult no longer enrolled in public high school to complete the required courses and state assessments to earn a standard high school diploma. Course requirements are in accordance with standards established by the state. A program of instruction for both traditional and co-enrolled AHS students shall…

Over 40% of undergraduates in the United States attend a community college; however, fewer than 50% complete a degree or certificate within 6 years. As a result, national and state leaders have endorsed completion agenda initiatives, including performance-based funding (PBF). Texas implemented a form of PBF for the 2014-2015 Academic Year (AY)…

In September 2016, following the release of 2015 student data by the Department of Education and Training (the department), media reports suggested that high attrition rates are symptomatic of poor admission standards; the lower a student's Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) the greater the risk of non-completion; and as a result of the…

While preparing students academically for vertical transfer to four-year colleges has traditionally been viewed as the major responsibility of the home institutions, there is a growing consensus that the receiving institutions play a critical role in facilitating the transfer process and in supporting students' academic success after transfer. The…

College graduation rates are a source of concern; many students fail to complete degree programs and therefore miss out on the socioeconomic benefits accruing to college graduates. Some have proposed that colleges be evaluated based on their graduation rates, with financial aid dollars directed away from poor performers. However, none of these…

The Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) has synthesized key data on English learners (ELs) into short PDF sheets, by topic, with graphics. The topics for this report students with disabilities who are ELs include: (1) Percentage of students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21, served under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act…

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching's Math Pathways seek to improve outcomes for community college students who take remedial math courses. The Pathways include two comprehensive instructional systems--Statway® and Quantaway® and are described in this report. They are designed to support students to achieve the necessary math…

The California Community Colleges serves more than 2.1 million students each year and is the largest system of higher education in the nation. The state's 113 community colleges are charged with providing workforce training, basic skills education and preparing students to transfer to four-year postsecondary institutions. Seventy-seven California…

The National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) is a national nonprofit that works with K-12 districts and teacher preparation programs to better prepare new teachers for the expectations they will face in classrooms. NIET also supports school leaders to build strong instructional skills across the faculty and to support educators in…

The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) collects institution-level data from postsecondary institutions in the United States (50 states and the District of Columbia) and other U.S. jurisdictions (see appendix A for a list of other U.S. jurisdictions). This "First Look" presents findings from the preliminary data of the…

This report contains ratings of effective practices used to improve student success, retention, and completion, based on a Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) electronic poll of undergraduate officials at U.S. colleges and universities in June of 2017. The report includes: (1) effectiveness rankings for 28 general strategies and tactics, such as one-on-one…