Doctoral education in the United States had been scrutinized because of high-attrition rates reported as an average of 50 percent. Emerging from Lovitts (2001), this research examined students' attendance at Mock Orals (MO) and its relationship to their academic and social integration, cognitive maps, goals, rates of attrition, and retention in a…

When President Barack Obama unveiled his plans this summer for a $12 billion federal investment in the nation's community colleges, he said he wanted the initiative to yield an additional 5 million community college graduates by 2020. Research suggests that reaching that goal may be a tall order. Community colleges have abysmal graduation rates:…

This bimonthly newsletter provides information about the progress of the Honor States Grant Program, a governor-led effort to improve college- and work-ready graduation rates. This issue explores strategies for dropout prevention and recovery. Progress of three states is highlighted. Suggested resources for policymakers are provided. Contents…

Federal law mandates that all teachers, including special educators, must be highly qualified by meeting standards for licensure in the academic content areas they teach. This provision has an impact on prospective and practicing teachers, on schools and school systems, and on colleges and universities, especially those in rural areas. This study…

This study examines if and how holistic, person-centered academic advising, based on an integrative framework of educational psychology (Bronfenbrenner), sociology (Weber), and counseling (Rogers) theories, can be fostered, implemented, and assessed at a research university. The study design uses the coding of qualitative data and its translation…

In a time of growth in secondary education online programs, there have been few studies directed at understanding secondary online programs and the students they serve. That is particularly true for large, inner-city public school districts with a diverse student body. This is a mixed methods case study which identified that students' primary…

Students with disabilities are entering colleges and universities across the nation in ever-increasing numbers, with the greatest percentage being students with learning disabilities (LD). Yet, students with disabilities often do not graduate from college at the same rate as students without disabilities. Self-determination is an important skill…

The central message of this report is that some states and school districts are raising their high school graduation rates with scalable solutions in the public schools, showing the nation they can end the high school dropout crisis. America made progress not only in suburbs and towns, but also in urban districts and in states across the South.…

This study examines the number of credits earned at graduation for two groups: those who graduated with a baccalaureate degree and who were admitted as transfer students and those admitted as secondary school students to one of the four BC research universities [Simon Fraser University (SFU), University of British Columbia, Vancouver (UBC),…

High school dropouts adversely impact the state of Tennessee each year--financially and socially. Dropouts' lower incomes, high unemployment rates, increased need for medical care, and higher propensity for incarceration create a virtual vortex that consumes Tennesseans' tax dollars at a vicious rate. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on…

This qualitative study examined the lived experience of eight individuals attending a four-year college who were all part of a campus support program for former foster youth. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand and explore the lived experiences of these unique college students that have gone through the foster care system.…

Since the early 1990s, the federal government has required colleges to track and report graduation rates for all first-time, full-time degree- or certificate-seeking students. The most widely used figure tracks students for 150 percent of the time they expect to take to graduate. For bachelor's degree programs, students are considered graduates if…

Tennessee Code Annotated 49-5-108 requires the state to develop a report card or assessment on the effectiveness of teacher training programs. This report includes data on the performance of each institution's graduates in the following areas required by state statute: placement and retention rates, Praxis results, and teacher effect data based on…

This study addressed the problem of poor attendance adversely affecting grades and learning. Current school policies do not address problematic attendance for all school-aged children, perpetuating trends of academic failure. The research objective was to determine if unexcused absences had a greater negative impact on a high-stakes test compared…

Nearly all high school seniors today aspire to pursue higher education because they know that a college degree offers them the best opportunity to realize the American Dream. Indeed, college-going rates are up considerably for all students over the last 30 years. At the same time, however, racial gaps in degree attainment actually have grown, even…