REPORT ON THE GRAD NATION ACTION TEAM COLLABORATIVE CONVENINGS · Report on the Grad Nation Action Team Collaborative Convenings ... completion of a degree or certificate; ... a major

REPORT ON THE

GRAD NATION ACTION TEAM

COLLABORATIVE CONVENINGS

College Readiness, Access & Completion

Written by Elizabeth Molina Morgan, PhD

JANUARY 2013

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Due to the efforts and awareness initiatives of

organizations like America’s Promise Alliance, a

national conversation has developed around

ensuring high school graduation, access to

college, and college completion. Based on expert

opinions that the definition of success in a

global, interconnected world has broadened to

include the need for a quality education for all

citizens, increasing high school and post-

secondary graduation completion rates has

become a national priority. President Obama has

set a goal for the nation of attaining

the highest proportion of college

graduates by 2020. Yet, despite

aggressive goals set nationally by

various influential organizations

and individual states and school

systems, challenges remain in

achieving them.

Through the generous

support of the Bill and

Melinda Gates and Lumina

Foundations, facilitators from

America’s Promise Alliance

joined with “Practitioner-

Experts” in four cities to

explore issues and

challenges pertaining to

college readiness, access and

completion, and to form an

Action Team Collaborative for

future collective action focused

on the common goal of

ensuring that young people

are prepared to attend college and have

opportunities to achieve postsecondary success.

The project also sought to deepen understanding

of the issues by capturing testimony from those

in the field who are doing the work on a daily

basis. To that end, during 2012, four convenings

were organized across the country in diverse

communities to help fill the gap between

research and practice, and to discover successful

innovations, programs and best practices that can

be brought to scale. Each convening followed a

similar format to elicit optimum discussion.

Participants were asked to describe their best

practices, barriers they have encountered, and

solutions regarding college readiness, access, and

completion. In addition, the participants were

asked to reflect on current issues and challenges

they face and how to resolve them.

The cities visited - Baltimore, Miami, Louisville

and Denver - vary in demographics and

community cultures, however, all are grappling

with similar challenges of how to increase the

proportion of their citizens who have attained a

high school diploma and postsecondary degrees

or credentials. The expert participants in each

city represented a wide cross-section of business

and community leaders, elected officials,

P-20 educators, students, and non-profit

organizations, and provided testimonials to

the progress that is being made in their

settings toward improved readiness, access,

and completion.

Report on the Grad Nation Action Team Collaborative Convenings

E X E C U T I V E S U M M A R Y

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What they had in common were conscious

efforts toward increased rigor; implementation of

innovative programs; revision of curriculum and

courses; the implementation of a P-20 structure

with involvement of all major educational

institutions in the pipeline; and the formation of

school-university-community partnerships that

have led to success in their cities and states.

They cited research and gave rich descriptions of

effective practices, offering many examples of

successful programs. They agreed that “readiness”

is defined as students not needing academic

remediation, who have been sufficiently exposed

to rigorous courses and have acquired content

knowledge, cognitive strategies, learning and

goal-setting skills, and the motivation to enable

them to be successful when dealing with college

work. A number of participants expressed that

through the creation of cross-sector partnerships

and collective strategy, programs have been

created that support high school and college

completion for an increasing number of

students.

The groups in all four cities were adamant that

the psycho-social factors that impact college-

readiness and contribute to success in school and

college, are equally as important as academic

skills. Those factors include academic mindsets,

attitudes, aspirations and behaviors, as well as

independence, social awareness, knowledge of

college culture, and an ability to integrate into

the college community. It was also noted that

these non-academic factors, including cultural

and financial barriers, can significantly affect a

student’s college-going and completion rates.

Also discussed were the challenges facing the four

cities in realizing success toward increasing high

school and post-secondary graduation rates.

They were listed as: the need to provide effective

supports and initiatives for high-poverty,

minority and ELL students in order to accelerate

readiness for the college experience and reach

completion of a degree or certificate; the need to

effectively remediate academic deficits before

students enter college; the need for college

faculty to become more sensitive to diverse

cultural and economic backgrounds among its

students; the need for awareness of the growing

Hispanic population and the implications of this

growth for change in programming and policy;

and the financial burdens of post-secondary

education that remain a major obstacle to college

completion for many students.

These challenges are multi-faceted and inter-

connected; to address them will require a great

deal of focused effort and resources. Through

cross-sector collaboration and collective strategy,

new programs can be created, and effective

programs expanded in order to support

successful completion for more students.

Several speakers and others in the various groups

reported that institutions of higher education are

focusing on improving their completion rates by

shifting to a “culture of success” on their

campuses. Each city has focused on college

access with good results, but the emphasis must

now shift to completion. All expressed a sense of

urgency that this be accomplished at a greatly

accelerated rate. Initiatives such as Lumina

Foundation’s Goal 2025 are evidence that

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emphasis has already begun to shift from “access”

to “completion.” Organizations such as America’s

Promise can collaborate with schools, students,

parents, and communities to develop college-

completing awareness, and help increase efforts

toward ensuring that students are not just

entering college, but that they are attaining a

degree or certificate that will lead to a better

career. This will bolster the success of

individuals, local communities, and the nation as

a whole.

The issues surrounding readiness, access, and

completion have been explored by researchers

and practitioners alike. Reform leaders such as

the Gates Foundations and Lumina, along with

educational researchers, practitioners, and non-

profit organizations have made significant strides

in identifying both empirical and practical

evidence of the challenges and solutions involved

with increasing the number of high school and

college graduates in America. The Action team

Collaborative project not only corroborated the

existing research, but also shed light on new areas

for exploration.

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Introduction

The Grad Nation campaign of America’s Promise

Alliance has dedicated its work to stemming the

tide of a national crisis that is undermining the

welfare of the nation’s youth, as well as the

strength of our nation itself. One out of four

students does not graduate high school with his

or her peers.1 The global leader after World War

II, the United States had the highest high school

graduation rate in the world, reaching the peak

in 1969.2 We now rank near the bottom for high

school completion (22 out of 27), seven

percentage points below the OECD average,3

with more than one million secondary school

students dropping out every year. For African-

American and Hispanic students, approximately

40 percent do not graduate. Of those students

who do graduate, too many lack basic skills they

need to succeed.4

Today, the definition of success in our global,

interconnected world has broadened to include

completion of postsecondary education. Our

national education goals must now encompass

ensuring high school graduation, college access,

and college completion. The Grad Nation goals

include achieving a 90 percent high school

graduation rate by 2020, with no high school

graduating less than 80 percent of students; and

regaining America’s standing as first in the world

in college completion. Attaining these

benchmarks is essential to strengthening the

nation’s competitiveness, reducing educational

inequities, and decreasing poverty.

While much has been written about successful

college readiness, access, and completion,

America’s Promise, with the support of the

Lumina and the Bill & Melinda Gates

Foundations, has sought to broaden and deepen

understanding of the issues by capturing

testimony from the “practitioner experts” in the

field doing the work on a daily basis. To that

end, during 2012, four convenings were

organized across the country in diverse

communities to help fill the gap between

research and actual practice, and to discover

successful innovations and programs which can

be brought to scale. It was also the desire to

gather implications for future collective action

and policy changes, and to establish

collaborations toward the common goal of

helping prepare young people to achieve

postsecondary success.

Lumina Foundation, one of the sponsors of the

Grad Nation work that this report addresses, has

defined as its mission “Goal 2025 – to increase

the percentage of Americans who hold high

quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by

2025.”5 The Foundation is committed to

enrolling and graduating more students from

college and is the nation’s largest foundation

dedicated exclusively to increasing students’

access to, and success in, postsecondary

education. Current data show that Goal 2025

faces significant challenges. Forty percent of

entering college students require remedial

courses in math or English. Only sixty-one

percent of freshman entering a four-year college

program finish a college degree within six years;

for two-year programs, the figure is thirty-two

percent.6

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Landscape Review

A scan of relevant research both affirms the

importance of issues of college readiness, access,

and completion and reveals useful strategies and

initiatives that can address these issues. To be

ready for college,7 high school students need

rigorous coursework that aligns with college

curriculum. A rigorous high school curriculum,

supplemented if necessary by academic readiness

programs such as summer bridge classes, has

been found to increase a student’s likelihood of

both attending and completing college, and can

reduce the need for remedial courses at the

college level. However, students need more than

academic support in the journey to

college admission. A survey of the

Greater Louisville community

revealed that students’ and parents’

misconceptions and confusions

about college academics, financial

planning, and the college

experience, in general, may present

serious obstacles to both college admission and

success.

This study reveaed the disparity between what

high school students think about college and

what college life really entails; 11 percent believe

it will be difficult, 49 percent believe that it will

not be difficult, and 70 percent anticipate having

no trouble balancing the social and academic

components of college. First-generation college

attendees, particularly, lack exposure to college

culture and demands, and experience a degree of

alienation as freshman due to lack of familiarity

with the college environment.8 Parents, too,

need help to understand the financial and

academic demands of college. Better preparation

in all arenas will lead to higher levels of success.

School-college partnership programs can address

academic, social, and financial needs, thereby

increasing preparedness, providing more

opportunities for access, and easing the

transition to post-secondary education.9 Early

intervention is key, since the students who hear

about college at a young age are more likely to

believe that it is important.10 Better preparation

and increased awareness will not only improve

students’ readiness levels, but will also increase

college completion rates.

A key component to increasing the number of

college graduates is increasing the attainment

rates of minority and low income students.

Experts recognize the vulnerability of

underserved populations when it comes to issues

of higher education access and completion, and

at the same time see the critical role these

students will play in our nation’s future. For

example, an initiative by Lumina Foundation,

the Latino Student Success effort, recognizes the

rapidly growing Latino population and seeks to

increase college attainment for Latino students

“for reasons of equity, economic stability and

national competitiveness.”11

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To be ready for college, highschool students needrigorous coursework thataligns with collegecurriculum.

“School-college partnership programs canaddress academic, social, and financialneeds, thereby increasing preparedness,providing more opportunities for access, andeasing the transition to post-secondaryeducation.”

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Minority and low income students are in

particular need of support both before and

during college to ensure success, since the

opportunities and pathways traditionally

available to them have been limited.12 Early

immersion in college-going culture, scholarships

and other financial support, and mentoring

initiatives are conducive to the post-secondary

success of minority students.13 Promising work

is being done through programs such as the

Achieving the Dream, the Equity ScorecardTM,

and the Pathways to Results initiative led by the

Office of Community College Research and

Leadership, all of which offer models of

improving both access and completion rates for

underserved populations.14 The current research

and data also point to the critical nature of the

work of America’s Promise/Grad Nation and its

more than 400 partners, and confirms that the

need for early intervention, strong academic

preparation, financial assistance, and ongoing

social support are the keys to assuring as many

students as possible achieve the goal of a post-

secondary degree or certification.

Increasing high school and post-secondary

graduation rates has become a national priority.

President Obama set a goal for the nation of

attaining the highest proportion of college

graduates by 2020. States like Maryland,

Kentucky, and Texas have set similar goals and

enacted policy and legislation to support that

end. Individual colleges and universities have

followed suit, developing programs and

initiatives that will support students to be ready

for the college experience, gain access to post-

secondary education, and attain a diploma in the

field of their choice.

Corporations, nonprofits and communities are

helping to advance the President’s goal. Many

programs, policies, and initiatives that align with

empirical data are being implemented. Though

many challenges remain, increased efforts,

research, and collaboration hold great promise.

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The Convenings

Between January and August 2012, convenings

took place in four cities: Baltimore, Miami,

Louisville, and Denver. A wide cross-section of

key leaders, including political leaders, higher

education officials, P-12 school superintendents,

teachers, and administrators, state education

officials, business leaders, college professors,

representatives from non-profit organizations,

and students, as well as other decision-makers,

and practitioners, participated in each event.

The sessions were developed, coordinated and

facilitated by Elizabeth Molina Morgan, PhD,

Chief Education Advisor to America’s Promise.

Each convening followed a similar format to

elicit optimum discussion. Participants were

asked to describe their best practices, barriers

they have encountered, and solutions regarding

college readiness, access, and completion. In

addition, the participants were asked to reflect

on the following four issues: areas that needed

more attention or different strategies to make

Pre-k to 20 education successful in their

respective cities; where their cities lacked

necessary supports; in which areas their cities

need more collaboration; and what local, state,

or federal policies are needed to accelerate

student success (see attachments for convening

agendas and related documents).

Recurring Themes

Many common themes emerged from the

discussions, and it was apparent that all

participants hold the view that the social and

economic wellbeing of our country can best be

addressed by educating many more people

beyond high school. All expressed a sense of

urgency that this must be accomplished at a

greatly accelerated rate. There was agreement

that gaps and challenges among high poverty and

minority students must be eliminated, and that

there is a need to share and implement strategies

that have proven successful. Despite the

challenges expressed, the four convening groups

expressed a firm belief that given the right

supports, received at just the right time,

students, regardless of background, can be

successful and complete college.

The Grad Nation goals of 90 percent high school

graduation rate by 2020, and regaining America’s

standing as first in the world in college

completion, as

well as Lumina

Foundation’s goal

of increasing the

proportion of

Americans with high

quality degrees and

credentials to 60 percent by 2025 were embraced

by participants.

A striking common denominator among the

four cities was how dynamic leadership has

created progress. In each, it was evident that

strong, committed leadership from top officials

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…Given the right supports…students, regardless ofbackground, can besuccessful and completecollege.

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who communicate the need for college

completion and its benefits to the community,

who have the ability to harness and galvanize

multi-sector support, engagement, and

collaboration, and who can impart a sense of

urgency to act now are essential to building a

college-going culture. The cities visited had at

least one strong leader and advocate for higher

education attainment.

The “Practitioner-Experts” at the four

convenings provided testimonials to the progress

that is being made in their settings toward

improved readiness, access, and completion.

What they had in common were conscious

efforts toward increased rigor; implementation of

innovative program; and the formation of

school-university-community partnerships that

have led to success in these cities and their states.

All participants cited research and gave rich

descriptions of effective practice, offering

examples of successful programs.

It was noted that in three of the four cities,

there was concern expressed about the growing

Hispanic student population and issues of

language competence and immigration status.

While Hispanic students are growing in

numbers, lower high school graduation rates,

coupled with lower college entry and exceedingly

low completion rates put this population at

risk, and could compromise America’s future if

not addressed.

Five basic themes indicated a shared view of

current thinking, implications, challenges, and

solutions which are summarized here:

1. Students need to acquire the necessary

academic and non-academic skills to enter

into and successfully complete post-

secondary education programs.

A key idea, emphasized at each convening,

was that students need to be provided with

the necessary tools to enter into and

successfully complete post-secondary

education programs. Participants agreed

that “readiness” means, in part, that

students are prepared to enter college

remediation-free and ready to succeed in

credit-bearing courses. This goal can be

addressed through increased rigor in the K-

12 curriculum, which will be bolstered by

wide adoption and implementation of the

Common Core State Standards (CCSS).

Increasing the offering of, and success in,

AP courses, and opportunities to take

college courses during high school will also

improve academic readiness, as will the

alignment of high school and college

curricula. Remediation, beginning in

middle school or earlier, as needed, along

with summer bridge and other programs for

high school students, will help ensure that

students are ready for the academic

demands of college.

In each city, participants also noted that

“readiness” entails more than just academic

preparation. Non-academic factors

including cultural, social and financial

barriers can affect a student’s college-going

and completion rates. Students must be

provided ways to develop social and

emotional tools that will help them

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succeed. It is important that they are

exposed to a “college-going” attitude

beginning in elementary school. Students

must develop readiness skills such as

maturity, independence, perseverance, self-

confidence, study skills, and time

management; many experts and leaders

agreed that these skills can be taught

throughout the school experience, and

perhaps in specially designed college-

readiness courses. Additionally, students

and parents must be aware of college

culture and the importance of credentials

for future success. This can be facilitated

through campus visits, seminars, and

information sessions; additionally, guidance

counselors can serve as college coaches.

Such events and resources can also serve to

educate parents and students about the cost

of college and make them aware of financial

aid opportunities, including scholarships

and grants. Financing a post-secondary

education can be daunting and may deter

some students from pursuing or completing

a degree. Parents and students need

support to navigate the financial aid

process, including help completing forms

and applications. College students need

on-going financial counseling and support

to promote both college readiness and

completion.

2. Students need to be provided with

opportunities that will allow them to access

and complete higher education.

The work of preparing students to succeed

in college needs to continue into the

freshman experience. At the college level,

the creation of student interest groups,

living and learning communities, and

cohort study groups help students form

networks and connections; through these

supportive networks, they are more likely to

remain engaged and refine their study and

social skills.

Each of the four convenings examined the

topic of college access; students need to be

provided with opportunities that will allow

them to access and

complete higher

education.

Improving access

begins in the P-12

grades with

increased exposure

to college culture

and academic preparedness, including AP

and early college courses, which start

students on the path of earning college

credits. Additionally, bridge programs,

workshops, campus visits, and other

information sessions expose parents and

students to the college environment and

educate them about the social, academic,

and financial elements of higher education.

Participants noted critical issues at the very

heart of access—increasing high school

graduation rates and eliminating the

achievement gaps among ELL and minority

students. Addressing them will ensure that

students will have better opportunities to

enter college.

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Participants noted criticalissues at the very heart ofaccess—increasing highschool graduation rates andeliminating the achievementgaps…

In addition to addressing issues of readiness

and access, participants said that it is

essential that initiatives and reforms be put

in place to address college completion. Too

many students drop out before earning

their degrees. Living and learning

communities and cohort study groups, such

as those mentioned above, can foster

community and help college students feel

more connected. Careful academic

counseling and on-going financial

counseling can help ensure that students are

on a path to completion. Additionally,

two- and four-year colleges need to work to

ease the transfer process, and create

universal reciprocity for credits earned.

3. Increased collaboration and

communication between P-12 and post-

secondary institutions will support student

success.

An overarching theme that emerged in

relation to each of the key areas of

readiness, access, and completion was the

need for increased collaboration and

communication amongst stakeholders.

First, a strong P-20 initiative can create

collaboration throughout the education

continuum to strengthen readiness, access,

and completion. School-university

partnerships can improve academic

alignment, implement bridge programs,

organize campus visits, create remediation

programs, and provide financial incentives

and opportunities for students. School-

community partnerships also offer promise.

Business organizations can create financial

incentives, internships, and other

opportunities for students, providing them

with experience, resources, and motivation

to succeed. Communities can also support

school choice and the development of

alternatives such as charter and magnet

schools, which can meet the needs of

students in innovative ways.

4. Institutional reform at all levels of the P-20

continuum will increase success along the

educational pipeline.

In order to achieve improvements in

readiness, access, and completion,

continued reform is needed at all levels of

the P-20 continuum; this was a theme that

undergirded the discussion

at each convening. P-12

schools must adopt an

attitude of innovation to

meet the academic and

social needs of students, including the

elimination of the achievement gap and the

implementation of coherent, rigorous

curricula. Teachers and school counselors

need to be evaluated and held accountable

for their work with students. Districts

should be encouraged to develop publicly-

chartered and magnet schools, career

academies, themed programs, and

alternative school models so that families

and students can select the best fit for

students’ interests, skills, career aspirations,

and learning needs, thus increasing the

likelihood that students will graduate.

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... Continued reform isneeded at all levels of the P-20 continuum.

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Post-secondary institutions must also

reform their policies and programs to meet

student needs. They should develop ways

to track students’ progress and intervene at

critical junctures; they must also provide

strong academic and career advising.

College faculty and staff must have time

and resources to develop strategies that

support completion, including effective

teaching strategies for high poverty,

minority and ELL students. Additionally,

courses and programs must be revised to

align with marketplace needs. Colleges

need to be held accountable for their

graduation rates, too, which would provide

incentives for retention efforts and program

improvement.

5. Careful collection, dissemination, and

application of data will accelerate efforts.

Finally, to accomplish improvements in

readiness, access, and completion, there

needs to be careful collection,

dissemination, and application of data.

Schools need to assess and track P-20

student progress; following an individual

student’s progress and intervening when

necessary will foster readiness and

completion. Contact software can facilitate

this process. Effective, fair teacher

evaluation systems should be developed and

implemented. Schools and programs must

be assessed for effectiveness based on

current data. Finally, institutions,

community members, and other

stakeholders must share data and

information on best practices and successful

programs so these can be replicated and

brought to scale. The four convenings

provided a platform and opportunity for

this type of communication.

The Four Cities

The Four cities in which each of the convenings

was held have their own unique cultural

environments and demographics. Participants in

each city expressed individualized responses to

the questions posed and offered unique

approaches to issues related to college readiness,

access and completion. Details on each of them

follows.

BALTIMORE

Of the four cities, Baltimore has the highest

proportion of African-American students, and

has been involved in significant education reform

efforts for nearly two decades. Baltimore is

surrounded by outstanding suburban school

systems and award-winning community colleges.

The city is bolstered by excellent statewide

systems for P-20 articulation and by a statewide

college completion goal of 55 percent of its

population attaining a college degree by 2025.

Among the nation’s 20 largest metropolitan

areas, Baltimore ranks 8th in degree attainment,

with 43.9 percent of residents holding a

postsecondary degree.16 However, attainment for

whites and Asians is nearly double the rates for

African-Americans and Hispanics. Additionally,

Baltimore City has Maryland’s greatest

proportion of low-performing schools.17

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READINESS MARYLAND RANK NATIONALAVG

High School Graduation Rate 72.8% 25th 70%

Remedial Enrollment, Two-year colleges 66.3% 20th (out of 27) N/A

Remedial Enrollment, Four-year colleges 25% 13th(out of 25) N/A

ACCESS

College-going Rates (HS grads) 62.9% 25th 63.3%

COMPLETION

First Year Rentention Rates,Two Year Colleges 54.6% 26th 52.6%

First Year Rentention Rates,Four Year Colleges 81% 6th 76%

AA Completion (three year rates) 21.8% 36th 29.2%

BA Completion (six year rates) 64.1% 5th 55.5%

SOURCE: With the exception of remedial enrollment, all data are from the NCHEMS Information Center,retrieved on March 22, 2012. Remedial enrollment data was retrieved on the same date from the CompleteCollege America website. The remediation data is based on all first-time degree- or certificate-seekingstudents (not just recent high school graduates).

BALTIMORE

For the performance of its P-12 educational

system, Maryland has been ranked the top state

by Education Week for four consecutive years,

and earned several #1 rankings from the College

Board for achievement on Advanced Placement

tests. Maryland was one of the first states to

adopt the Common Core State Standards, and is

a “governing” state of PARCC, the new, national

assessment system. The state’s four-year

universities (public and private) stand out

nationally in terms of retaining and graduating

students. Despite the foregoing facts, the state is

more average in many other typical measures of

college readiness, access, and success.

Racial and ethnic gaps in performance are also

cause for concern. While those gaps are

narrower than the nation as a whole in terms of

high school graduation, they are still significant.

At the postsecondary level, the gaps widen.

Though Maryland’s four-year universities

perform very well in six-year graduation rates,

they have the third-highest gap between whites

and minorities in six-year

graduation rates.

The state is home to four

historically black colleges and

universities: Morgan, Bowie, and

Coppin Universities, and the

University of Maryland Eastern

Shore (UMES). Applicants come increasingly

from a pool of more economically disadvantaged

students, many of whom may also be less well

prepared academically, are the first members of

their families to attend college, come from

schools without strong college preparatory

programs, may need remedial instruction, and

may have to work while attending school. The

historically black colleges and universities have

responded with intensive interventions to

support students toward college completion.18

The Baltimore group noted that college access

and completion entail affordability and financial

acumen, entrance requirements that are

transparent, and support in making decisions

about college. They reported that large numbers

of students in Baltimore who enter college never

graduate, and while academic preparation is a

significant factor, lack of financial aid, lack of

integration into the college community, and lack

of psycho-social skills needed for college success

create formidable barriers to college completion.

All agreed that psycho-social factors that impact

college-readiness and contribute to success in

school and college can, and should, be taught.

Those factors include academic mindsets and

behaviors, attitudes and aspirations. Participants

agreed that teacher preparation is vital to the

success of students, and view Maryland’s

Educator Effectiveness Academies as successful

vehicles for strengthening teaching practice.19

The Baltimore participants identified college

readiness as a major concern and presented a

nuanced understanding of this issue as

encompassing content knowledge, cognitive

strategies, learning skills, motivation, tenacity,

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Too many low-incomestudents in Baltimore do noteven apply for financial aid,because the process seemsinsurmountable.

“Course redesign… has increased thenumber of students who can finish…”

UMBC President, Freeman Hrabowski

goal-setting, and transition knowledge. Another

impediment to college access emphasized in

Baltimore is financial aid. Particularly daunting

are the application processes, and it was noted

that too many low-income students in Baltimore

do not even apply for financial aid, because the

process seems insurmountable. The processes

need to be simplified and be made more

transparent. Students also need to be made more

aware of the range of postsecondary choices and

options available to them, including two-year

and career-oriented colleges – they are not

receiving enough comprehensive counseling and

support in making decisions about postsecondary

education. Parents, as well, need to be engaged

in the process.

Participants reported that Maryland’s institutions

of higher education (IHE) have focused on

improving their completion rates by shifting to a

“culture of success” on their campuses. Strategies

for retaining students in college are the first steps

toward completion. An effective approach

developed at one campus of the University

System (UMES) is the “triangle model” that

addresses the students’ social, academic, and

institutional needs. The model includes a

summer institute for incoming students that

provides orientation and remediation. Dr.

Reginald Ross, Vice President for Enrollment

Management at Coppin stated that, “Persistence

rates for freshmen who participate in summer

immersion programs are beginning to rise.” To

help promote student engagement, connections,

and support networks on campus, first-year

interest groups are formed, as well as “living and

learning communities,” – groups of students

formed by the university purposefully to ensure

students feel a sense of belonging and have a

problem solving peer group when they encounter

challenges. UMBC has successfully increased

completion by forming student study groups to

increase a student’s sense of affiliation and

connection with the college community, while

improving focus on academic work.

Additionally, several IHEs have increased

retention and completion rates by redesigning

their science and math courses. UMBC

President, Freeman Hrabowski, noted: “Course

redesign…has increased the number of students

who can finish….We plan to redo all courses.”

It was agreed that course redesign is vital to

motivating students and keeping them engaged,

and this initiative has been a major focus within

the University of Maryland System.

Advising has been strengthened during the

sophomore year, since data reveal that it is a

critical year when students decide to drop out.20

At the University of Maryland, school officials

contact students who have left college, encourage

them to return, and offer assistance needed.

Several campuses use early alert systems to

identify struggling students and provide them

with extra help.

The Baltimore group agreed that improving

college completion rates will require ongoing

collection and analysis of data by postsecondary

institutions to ascertain and understand their

students’ behavior patterns and evaluate

approaches that work. Maryland has been a

forerunner in developing a P-20, longitudinal

114

1

data system that holds great promise for studying

education dropout and completion patterns in

the future.

MIAMI

A published report by Lumina Foundation

predicted that by 2018, 59 percent of Florida’s

jobs will require postsecondary education.

Currently, 36.5 percent of the state’s 9.8 million

working adults hold at least a two-year degree.

Florida’s economic future depends on producing

more college graduates.21 One strategy to raise

that number is to encourage and assist the 22

percent of Florida’s adults who have gone to

college but not earned a degree, to complete

requirements for a degree. Florida must also

develop strategies to close the existing

achievement gaps among counties and fast-

growing groups in the state, including low-

income and first generation students, especially

Hispanic students.

Among the 20 largest metropolitan cities in

America, Miami ranks 8th in size, and 13th in

college attainment with about a third of its

adults (37.7 percent) holding at least a two year

degree.22 However, that standing is not a direct

reflection on the state’s education system, as it

includes people with college degrees from other

states or nations who reside in the area. In

addition, there are stark contrasts in educational

attainment across racial and ethnic groups.23

According to the most recent data available, the

high school graduation rate in Miami Dade is

58.5 percent.24 In this district, two in three

students (63.4) is Hispanic and an equal

proportion (63.4) of all students is eligible for

free and reduced-price meals.25

Florida also faces challenges in improving high

school graduation rate, which was 68.9 in 2009,

and a college completion rate of 25.6 percent

(also in 2009). According to the Grad Nation

index used by the Alliance for Excellent

Education, with a 90 percent high school

graduation rate, the additional graduates could

deliver an estimated $414 million in increased

annual earnings, $74

million in increased

annual state tax

revenues, and an

additional $532

million increase in the

Gross State Product.26

It behooves leaders

and educators in the

state to make citizens

aware of the high, economic stakes involved in

the initiatives to increase college readiness,

access, and completion.

Miami has been making steady progress in these

three areas. Under the leadership of Alberto

Carvalho, the Miami-Dade Public Schools has

been gaining momentum toward excellence in

college-readiness for its students. The student

population of Miami-Dade is 67 percent

Hispanic and 25 percent Haitian and African-

American, and according to Superintendent

Carvalho, “This is the face of the future

America.” He believes that “leaders must create

a hunger and demand for excellence by parents

and the community,” and effective reform must

be driven by an empowered citizenry. Because

15

The student population ofMiami-Dade is 67 percentHispanic and 25 percentHaitian and African-American, and according toSuperintendent Carvalho,“This is the face of the futureAmerica.”

116

READINESS FLORIDA RANK NATIONALAVG

High School Graduation Rate 68.9% 44th 75.5%(out of 51)

Remedial Enrollment, Two-year colleges 54.6% 21st (out of 27) N/A

Remedial Enrollment, Four-year colleges NP* N/A

ACCESS


COMPLETION

First Year Rentention Rates,Two-year Colleges 64.1% 9th 54.3%

First Year Rentention Rates,Four-year Colleges 77.9% 19th 77.1%

AA Completion (three-year rates) 48.1% 3rd 29.2%

BA Completion (six-year rates) 64.1% 38th 55.5%

SOURCE: With the exception of remedial enrollment and high school graduation rate, all data are from theNCHEMS Information Center, retrieved on May 22, 2012. Remedial enrollment data were retrieved on the samedate from the Complete College America website. The remediation data are based recent high schoolgraduates. NP= the State did not provide this data. Graduation rates are from the 2012 Building A Grad NationReport, using the Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate, Common Core of Data, National Center for EducationStatistics, U. S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C.

MIAMI

this has happened in Miami, the city has seen the

development of a proliferation of publically

chartered P-12 schools and academies with

strong support from businesses and the

community. As a result, the Miami-Dade schools

are reaping the rewards of aggressive initiatives.

Current data show that Latino and African-

American students outperform their counterparts

in all other urban districts, which was one of the

prime factors that led to the school system

receiving the 2012 Broad Prize.27

Despite these successes, students in Miami still

need a great deal of support in developing both

academic and “soft skills” such as maturity,

persistence, ability to form supportive networks

and awareness of college expectations. Award-

winning Miami-Dade College has developed a

readiness initiative by bringing together many

community partners at one location to provide

workshops for students and families on financial

aid, readiness skills, and linking college

coursework to careers. They also succeed by

fostering a campus culture that is “rabidly

student-centered,” according to a faculty member.

Participants acknowledged that readiness and

access are necessary for college success, but not

sufficient. Colleges and universities are not

trained for urban, culturally-diverse student

populations or students entering with deficits.

College faculty needs information, time, and

resources to support the increase in completion

rates, particularly for minority, under-resourced,

and ELL students. Lenore Rodicio, of

Education Success Initiatives, Miami Dade

College, remarked, “What works is known; what

is needed are resources for continuous, close

tracking of students’ progress and provision of

supports, when needed.” Additionally, to

increase retention and completion, Miami Dade

College requires students to complete a “Student

Life Skills” course. Participants suggested that

the course be pushed back to high school and

offered as a college credit-bearing course.

Other issues identified by participants included

more communication and collaboration along

the P-20 continuum; addressing the issues of

poverty; the billions of dollars in federal aid that

go unused each year; managing with cuts in

funding to education; avoiding duplication of

efforts; improving training for guidance

counselors and teachers pertaining to readiness

skills; parental awareness needs; increased

collaboration among businesses, and parents

along the P-20 continuum; improved policies to

address affordability – “tuition hikes exclude the

very students we want in college;” passage of the

Dream Act; funding for colleges and universities

based on performance, completion rates, and

student need, not based solely on “full time

equivalents” (FTEs).

LOUISVILLE

The Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) in

Louisville, Kentucky, under the leadership of

Superintendent Donna Hargens, has a student

enrollment of over 100,000, with a minority

117

Miami Dade College requires students tocomplete a “Student Life Skills” course.

118

LOUISVILLE

READINESS KENTUCKY RANK NATIONALAVG

High School Graduation Rate 77.6% 23rd 75.5%(out of 51)

Remedial Enrollment, Two-year colleges 49.1% 9th N/A(out of 27)

Remedial Enrollment, Four-year colleges 8.0% 23rd N/A(out of 25)

ACCESS

College-going Rates (HS grads) 60.9% 32nd 63.3%

COMPLETION



AA Completion (three-year rates) 30.5% 16th 29.2%


SOURCE: With the exception of remedial enrollment and high school graduation rate, all data are from theNCHEMS Information Center, retrieved on July 2, 2012. Remedial enrollment data were retrieved on the samedate from the Complete College America website. The remediation data are based recent high schoolgraduates. NP = the State did not provide this data. Graduation rates are from the 2012 Building A Grad NationReport, using the Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate, Common Core of Data, National Center for EducationStatistics, U. S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C.

population of 43.5 percent. As a suburban/

urban consolidated school system, JCPS educates

one half of Kentucky’s African-American

students. Louisville has developed a highly

coordinated and articulated inter-agency and

community collaboration, a strong pipeline

approach, and strong mayoral support. The city

has adopted a major initiative to improve college

completion in the form of the non-profit

organization, “55,000 Degrees,” led by Mary

Gwen Wheeler, a former aide to the mayor. This

initiative has energized the city’s P-12 schools,

institutions of higher education, the mayor and

other elected officials, and the business and faith

communities. The goal is to increase the

number of Louisville residents who hold degrees

to half of the population by 2020, including

African-Americans and Latinos, the city’s fastest

growing population.28 55,000 Degrees also aims

to create a college-going community culture, use

businesses to accelerate degree attainment,

prepare students for success in college, make

higher education accessible and affordable, and

increase educational staying power.29

Kentucky has adopted the Common Core State

Standards, and students have demonstrated

continuing progress since

2008 on statewide academic

measures, lower dropout

rates, and increased high

school graduation.

Superintendent Hargens,

reported that, “Since 2008,

JCPS has enjoyed a 200

percent increase in students attending college.”

Documented successes demonstrate that

initiatives are working, are fostering expectations

from young ages of going to college, and are

creating a college-going culture in Louisville.

The City’s mayor, Greg Fischer, has

enthusiastically embraced 55,000 Degrees and is

very much hands-on in supporting the initiative

because he sees it as “helping citizens to fulfill

their human potential.” He credits the initiative

with providing a skilled workforce for many

unfilled jobs, raising the economic and social

wellbeing of the city, and transforming Louisville

into a world-class city. However, Mayor Fischer

identified an issue that remains to be addressed:

while the city has developed a college-going

culture, it also “… needs to develop a college

completion culture.”

The Louisville group described best practices

regarding improving college access as including

the creation of a “metroversity” wherein

institutions of higher learning in a metropolitan

area can access and share data, as well as

collaborate on a range of projects of mutual

interest. This leads to a strong community

collaboration and outreach. Louisville has

broadened the definition of college to include

any post-secondary institution offering

certification or a degree.

Louisville has developed the “Achieving the

Dream” initiative to support college completion.

The initiative includes a study skills and college

orientation course for freshmen. Interventions

during the “sophomore slump” also improve

completion. They noted that by the time

students earn 22 to 25 credit hours, they

119

Superintendent, Hargensreported that, “Since 2008,Jefferson County Public Schoolshas enjoyed a 200 percentincrease in students attendingcollege.”

20

consider themselves to be college students.

Participants agreed that college completion

requires persistence and engagement by students

in campus activities. Tracking systems for

dropouts and intermittent enrollees, along with

use of exit surveys, inform interventions for

completion. To improve completion, colleges

must also change to actively

embrace diverse student

populations and individual

student learning styles, and

prevent students from “falling

through the cracks.”

Combining higher education and work

experience also improves completion rates.

Transition among institutions of higher

education should be made easier by cross-

institutional collaboration. Additionally,

students must be made aware of campus

resources and feel comfortable accessing them.

Other, salient points were discussed that

addressed social and emotional factors,

particularly “engagement” as necessary for college

completion. Important aspects of engagement

are engagement of family, the community, and

the institution, all of which are essential to

support readiness, access, and completion.

Furthermore, the student should be expected to

have responsibility in the education process,

according to several participants. Dr. Aaron

Thompson, Vice President for Academic Affairs,

Council on Postsecondary Education, noted

that, “Students must be helped to become co-

facilitators of their own learning.”

DENVER

Among the nation’s most populated

metropolitan areas, Denver, Colorado, is the

tenth most educated, with approximately 47

percent of its working age population holding at

least an associate degree.30 The city boasts an

improved school system, as well as highly

regarded suburban systems. Effective city and

state partnerships create a seamless progression

for students. A city that has developed well-

coordinated, major funding for college

scholarships and college access, Denver has

adopted a “collective” approach to the whole

student and offers alternative educational models

and pathways to high school graduation. While

the city has made significant efforts regarding

college readiness and access, an area that still

poses challenges is college completion.

Thousands of working age adults in Denver have

gone to college, but have not completed a

degree.31 Encouraging those persons to complete

a degree would further boost the city’s

educational standing, as well as its economy,

since thousands of job openings expected in the

next decade will require postsecondary

credentials.

Over the past four

years, under

Superintendent

Tom Boasberg, the

Denver Public

Schools has had its highest growth in

achievement and grades. The goal for the school

system is 100 percent of students graduating

high school and ready for college and careers.

Families in Denver are providedwith pre-service regardingcollege choices, applications,and college knowledge.

“Students must be helped tobecome co-facilitators of theirown learning.” Dr. Aaron Thompson

21

READINESS COLORADO RANK NATIONALAVG

High School Graduation Rate 77.6% 23rd 75.5%(out of 51)

Remedial Enrollment, Two-year colleges 43.1% 5th (out of 27) N/A

Remedial Enrollment, Four-year colleges 8.0% 4th(out of 25) N/A

ACCESS


COMPLETION



AA Completion (three-year rates) 39.3% 5th 29.2%


SOURCE: With the exception of remedial enrollment and high school graduation rate, all data are from theNCHEMS Information Center, retrieved on June 5, 2012. Remedial enrollment data were retrieved on the samedate from the Complete College America website. The remediation data are based recent high schoolgraduates. NP= the State did not provide this data. Graduation rates are from the 2012 Building A Grad NationReport, using the Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate, Common Core of Data, National Center for EducationStatistics, U. S. Department of Education, Washington, D.C.

DENVER

1

Academic rigor begins in the elementary schools,

and following dramatic reforms in the Denver

middle schools, record improvement was

achieved in grades six through eight.

Superintendent Boasberg indicated that,

“Middle school was like falling off a cliff until

reforms were instituted.” An alternative learning

center/multiple pathways center was developed

for students unable to thrive in the traditional

high school. Students can earn a high school

diploma through the center.

Colorado’s adoption of a P-20 initiative, with the

participation of all education-related institutions,

has helped to improve college readiness, but

students need to understand all postsecondary

options available to them, including community

college. Families in Denver are provided with

pre-service regarding college choices,

applications, and college knowledge. Exposure

for students to diverse environments also helps

smooth the transition to college.

Denver is working to ensure that students are

remediation-free on entering college and have

the financial support to successfully complete.

The Denver Scholarship Foundation was created

and has been a great resource for access and

completion of college. Denver philanthropists

have also stepped up to help students and

families. Access is improved by students earning

college credits while in high school, and through

pathways for smooth transition from two-year to

four-year colleges. Attaining a career

certification that allows a student to earn money

for college improves access, as well. Denver

colleges provide intrusive support for students at

the entry point, including mentoring, coaching,

and building a supportive network. To ensure

student engagement, certification and degrees are

aligned with the needs of the marketplace. To

that end, partnerships with employers are

pursued. Undocumented students pose a

particular challenge for access and need for

additional support.

Despite good access and funding to support

students, college completion remains a challenge

in Denver. The group agreed that the message

must change from “college-going” to “college

completing.” Colleges need to be aggressive in

pursuing students who have dropped out,

especially those who are a few credits shy of

completion. A student’s need for remediation

continues to be a barrier to completion,

especially because of the

time involved. For

example, a student may

not need an entire year

for remediation.

Furthermore, Colorado

schools need to

overcome barriers for

culturally-diverse students. Rosann Ward,

President of the Public Education and Business

Coalition in Denver, stated that, “Colleges need

to be culturally responsive and support all

learners. The best pedagogy is responsive and

sensitive to kids.”

Recommendations made by Colorado’s

Lieutenant Governor Joe Garcia, who also heads

the State’s post-secondary programs, include

maintaining a partnership with America’s

Promise; breaking the traditional silos in which

K-12 and colleges have operated; remediating

students before they enter college; educating

parents about college choices; strengthening early

22

“Colleges need to be culturallyresponsive and support alllearners.”Rosann Ward, Public Educationand Business Coalition

1

literacy instruction; increasing the number of

high school graduates who are workforce and

college ready; and increasing supports for

Hispanic students. Dr. Garcia also advised that:

“Education reform should not be adversarial

between K-12 and higher education; the need is

to work together for students and for us.”

Promising Practices

While the research extant on college readiness,

access and completion is corroborated and

verified by much of what was unearthed in the

four convenings, the rich discussion in the four

cities did provide new insights and directions for

practices that should be brought to scale, and

which will also pave the way for future research

and collective action. One of the goals of the

project was to form an “Action Team

Collaborative,” with the idea that best practices

and new directions could emerge that would

create a platform for activism, adoption and

change. Also unearthed were some promising

best practices that could benefit students and,

thus, are worthy of further attention and

development.

Brief mentions below, with accompanying

descriptions of best practices as noted above, are

organized by the topics of Readiness, Access and

Completion. Separate mentions of Policy

Implications and General Initiatives also follow:

23

1

ISSUE

READINESS

Students must be prepared to meet the academic

demands of college without remedial courses.

PROMISING PRACTICES

• Many states have adopted the Common

Core State Standards, which are expected to

increase P-12 academic rigor.

• Maryland will administer the PARCC pilot

assessments in 2013-14 to measure whether

students reach the new standards. Tests can

be used to measure improvement at the

state level, and the classroom level. In

addition, they provide feedback to high

schools and individual students about

readiness for college.

• Howard County Community College

(MD), for example, provides readiness

testing to high schools in the county. Some

of the schools have developed a “college-

readiness class” in partnership with the

community college for students whose tests

show they need additional instruction.

• In Louisville, increased focus on AP and

pre-AP has resulted in success in increasing

AP participation and pass rates.

• A proliferation of specialized schools and

academies and publicly-chartered schools -

such as IB, arts emphasis and early college

schools - in Miami has provided effective

pathways for students.

• Kentucky students are also able to

participate in dual credit programs while in

high school.

24

1

• Denver offers alternative educational

models and pathways to high school

graduation. An alternative learning

center/multiple pathways center was

developed for students unable to thrive in

the traditional high school. Students can

earn a high school diploma through the

center. Due to the model’s success, plans

are in the works to create additional centers

in high poverty communities in Denver.

• Denver schools create an Individual Career

and Academic Plan (ICAP) for high school

students.

25

Students must be prepared to meet the academic

demands of college without remedial courses.

Effective teachers are needed in P-12 classrooms.

• In Maryland, summer programs and

campus visits expose students to college

culture

• Miami Dade College has a summer

program in which students receive social-

emotional (non-cognitive) counseling,

assistance with planning courses and

making connections with other students.

• The Denver Scholarship Foundation was

created and has been a great, citywide

resource for access to college.

• Louisville is providing parent academies

and scholarships, creating pathways from

GED to college, and offering summer

transition and credit-bearing programs for

incoming freshmen.

• Maryland is revising its Educator

Effectiveness System to ensure teachers are

ready to teach a rigorous curriculum.

126

ISSUE

ACCESS

Students must have access to information about

college choices and support for the search,

application, and transition processes.

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

• In 2011, Louisville high schools were

redesigned to include an advisory period

with dedicated college access time, which

has changed the culture of the area high

schools. JCPS uses a number of “packaged

programs” from across the country to help

facilitate college access for students.

• Further, JCPS has received grants for

college coaches to supplement school

counselor efforts.

• In Florida, ASPIRA is a Hispanic youth

leadership development program that

promotes college readiness beginning at the

middle school level, exposing parents and

students to the college-going process.

• Miami Dade College invites students to

campus to work with staff on seeking out

and applying for scholarships in the

college’s computer lab, drawing 2,500

students to the campus last year.

• The Louisville Chamber of Commerce is

addressing readiness and access for K-12

students and adults through job shadowing

programs and Junior Achievement

programs, which provide knowledge about

careers and future jobs.

127

ISSUE

COMPLETION

Too many students who enroll in college do not

complete their studies and earn a degree.

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

• The University of Maryland Eastern Shore

(UMES) uses a “triangle model” addressing

social, academic, and institutional needs. A

summer institute provides orientation and

remediation opportunities for students

before the fall semester.

• University of Maryland Baltimore County

(UMBC) has successfully pursued group

study as a means of increasing students’

sense of affiliation and connection with the

college community, as well as improving

their focus on coursework

• Howard Community College (MD) and

other colleges use early alert systems to

identify students in need of extra help to

prevent their dropping out of classes.

• Both UMBC and UMES increased success

rates in science classes by redesigning those

courses. Now a statewide effort is seeking

to redesign math courses at the state’s

universities and community colleges, aided

by a Completion Innovation Challenge

grant from Complete College America

(CCA) which provides incentive funding

for colleges to continue work redesigning

remedial math, as well as implement

strategies to reduce time to degree for

students transferring from two-year to four-

year colleges.

128

ISSUE

COMPLETION

Too many students who enroll in college do not

complete their studies and earn a degree.

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

• There is wide use of Lumina Foundation’s

Productivity Labs (working to scale up

redesigned courses to community colleges

and independent institutions) in Maryland.

• A number of states participate in Complete

College America, an alliance focused on

state level policies to strengthen college

completion rates. Postsecondary segments

and campuses set completion targets.

• Louisville city leaders have set a shared goal

of ‘55,000 Degrees’ for the Louisville area

by 2020.

• Miami Dade College requires its students to

complete a Student Life Skills course.

• ASPIRA clubs in Miami foster leadership

skills including training students in

parliamentary procedure and appointing

students to serve as advisors to the ASPIRA

Board.

• DeVry University, nationally, utilizes

contact management software to provide

assistance to the student, as needed, in the

areas of finances, academics, and

counseling.

• The Community College of Baltimore

County participates in Achieving the

Dream (focused on accelerating remedial

coursework); University of Maryland is

involved in Access 2 Success (with an

emphasis on reducing achievement gaps).

129

ISSUE

POLICY IMPLICATIONS

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

• All participants recognized that the

“Sophomore Slump” needs to be addressed

and formalized as a major initiative across

the country. By the time students have

earned 20-25 credits, they consider

themselves to be authentic college students.

How to get them to the level of at least 20

credits, so they can move beyond the

freshman year, is worthy of further research,

funding and policy exploration on the part

of IHEs.

• Participants in all four cities believe that

cultural sensitivity is missing on many

campuses, and college and university

faculties are not trained for urban, diverse

student populations, nor for students

entering as the first IHE attendees in their

families. A course in diversity should be

required of all new faculty, and in-depth

professional development for veteran

professors should be offered routinely in

state university systems across the country.

• Denver has adopted as a policy a

“Collective Approach” to the whole student

and offers alternative educational models

and pathways to high school graduation,

involving a number of cross-sector

individuals brought to bear to support the

student.

• Miami believes that there should be a

change in the method for making

allocations to colleges within state systems,

based not on FTEs, but on performance,

completion rates, and student need.

Colleges that have a higher rate of

completion, or experience entering

freshmen with a higher need for

remediation should receive financial

incentives to implement the necessary

support initiatives.

PROMISING PRACTICES

130

ISSUE

GENERAL INITITATIVES

Communication and Collaboration

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

• Louisville’s “55,000 Degrees” initiative is

supported by the Chamber of Commerce

and community leaders including the

Mayor, Superintendent of Jefferson County

Public Schools, businesses, and education

organizations.

• A collaborative effort with UPS allows

college students in Kentucky to gain work

experience while they earn a degree.

• In Miami, education leaders including

Superintendent Carvalho are engaging the

business and faith-based communities,

growing existing nonprofit partners (e.g.

Teach for America) and bringing in new

national partners (e.g. ACCESS/UAspire).

The goal of these partnerships is to

improve, remediate, and accelerate student

achievement, and to use equity to promote

excellence through intervention and

strategic support, create oases of

opportunities, and to replicate successful

reform models.

• Maryland, Florida and Colorado have

adopted a P-20 educational focus, which

encourages communication and data-

sharing across academic institutions.

Furthermore, Maryland has developed a

comprehensive P-20 longitudinal data

system that includes virtually all

educational institutions in the state

generating, using and sharing data.

131

ISSUE

GENERAL INITITATIVES

Communication and Collaboration

PROMISING PRACTICES

PROMISING PRACTICES

• Louisville uses college coaches that come

from the private and public sectors to

collaborate in providing support to

students.

• Louisville has created a “metroversity”

wherein institutions of higher learning in

the metropolitan area can access and share

data, as well as collaborate on a range of

projects of mutual interest.

Conclusions

Facilitators from America’s Promise joined with

practitioners and experts on the ground in four

cities across the country to explore issues

pertaining to college readiness, access, and

completion. The cities vary in demographics

and are unique in character, yet are grappling

with similar challenges of how to increase the

proportion of their citizens who have attained a

high school diploma and who have quality,

postsecondary degrees and credentials.

The last decade has witnessed an increased

interest in education, in general, and a particular

interest in improving the high school and college

graduation rates across America. Buoyed by the

public accountability brought about by the “No

Child Left Behind” Act of 2003, the reform

movement has taken hold and produced massive

action to improve education. The issues

surrounding readiness, access, and completion

have been explored by researchers and

practitioners alike. Organizations such as

America’s Promise, Lumina Foundation, and the

Gates Foundation, along with educational

researchers and practitioners, have made

significant strides in identifying both empirical

and practical evidence of the challenges and

solutions involved with increasing the number of

high school and college graduates in America.

While some of the discussions in the four cities

confirmed information revealed in research over

the last few years a number of ideas emerged that

hold promise for future research

and action. Foremost among these ideas has

been the confirmation that each student has

specific academic, social, psychological and

financial needs that must be addressed in a

“personalized” manner; the idea that the “soft

skills” are as important to college completion as

the cognitive skills; and the daunting nature of

the financial aid application processes that cause

some students and their families to not even

apply. Policy changes were suggested that would

simplify the loan process at the federal level,

create more transparency and provide support to

students in completing the paperwork.

The participants also emphasized the need for

cross-sector collaboration and collective strategy.

Research supports the need for a unified,

collaborative effort that promotes college

awareness in the early grades,32 a rigorous high

school curriculum,33 and ongoing financial,

social, and academic supports across the P-20

continuum.

The “Practitioner-Experts” at the four

convenings provided snapshots of the progress

that is being made in their settings toward

improved readiness, access, and completion.

Increased rigor, innovative programs, and school-

university-community partnerships have led to

success in these cities and states; research and

rich descriptions of effective practice offer

further examples of successful programs.34

Clearly, progress is being made.

132

Despite these efforts, however, many challenges

remain; these, too, were articulated by convening

participants. Although challenges might vary

slightly from region to region, several key

obstacles must be addressed in order to achieve

the national degree attainment goals.

First, the deep and far-reaching effects of poverty

must be mitigated. Interventions to address the

social, academic, and financial needs of low-

income students are critical, beginning in the

earliest grades and continuing throughout the

students’ academic career.35

A second remaining challenge is the lack of

academic preparedness amongst high school

students. There is a great need for effective,

timely remediation for middle and high school

students so that they can enter college ready to

take college-level courses. The amount of

remediation done in the first year of college

could be greatly reduced so that students can

progress toward graduation in a timely manner.36

A third area is the need for increased diversity

training among college faculties who are

struggling to cope with students’ lack of

appropriate cognitive skills and strong cultural

differences from students they may have taught

in the past. Increasingly, more students enter

college as “first generation” college students,

requiring special and better orientation, as well

as supports.

The growing Latino population will be a critical

part of our nation’s success in the future; yet this

group lags behind in academic achievement and

graduation rates. Efforts must be directed

toward all aspects of readiness, access, and

completion for these students.37 Relatedly, ELL

students’ language skills must be accurately

assessed and the students provided with the

support they need to graduate from high school

and enter a post-secondary program.

Finally, the financial burden of post-secondary

education must be lightened for students. Too

many students are deterred from entering or

completing college for financial reasons; some

become daunted by the financial aid process, and

others must work too many hours to pay for

their education, which threatens their academic

success. Programs and policies need to ensure

that financial barriers do not hold students back

from accessing and completing higher education,

so that they can compete globally with students

from many other countries that offer free or very

low cost university tuition to their citizens.

These challenges are multi-faceted and inter-

connected; to address them will require a great

deal of focused effort and resources. Initiatives

such as President Obama’s goal of attaining the

highest proportion of college graduates by 2020

indicate that emphasis must now shift from

“access” to “completion.” Organizations such as

America’s Promise can collaborate with schools,

students, parents, and communities to develop a

“college-completing” attitude, and help increase

efforts toward ensuring that students not just go

to college, but that they attain the degree that

will lead to a better career. This will bolster the

success of individuals, local communities, and

the nation as a whole.

133

Endnotes

1 Balfanz, R., Bridgeland, J., Bruce, M., and

Fox, J. (March, 2012). Building A Grad

Nation:Progress and Challenge in Ending the

High School Dropout Epidemic. Civic

Enterprises, Everyone Graduates Center,

America’s Promise Alliance, Alliance for

Excellent Education.2 Kirsch, I., Braun, H., Yamamoto, K., and

Sum, A. (January, 2007). America’s Perfect

Storm: Three Forces Changing Our Nation’s

Future. Educational Testing Service, 8.3 “Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators

2012.” OECD. September 2012.

http://www.oecd.org/edu/EAG2012%20-

%20Country%20note%20-

%20United%20States.pdf4 “Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators

2012.” OECD. September 2012.

http://www.oecd.org/edu/EAG2012%20-

%20Country%20note%20-

%20United%20States.pdf5 Lumina Foundation. (2012).

http://www.luminafoundation.org/goal_

2025/goal2.html6 www.all4ed.org7 Long, M., Conger, D., & Iatarola, P. (2012).

Effects of high school course-taking on

secondary and postsecondary success.

American Educational Research Journal. 49

(2). 285-322.

Harvill, E. L., Maynard, R. A., Nguyen, H.

H., Robertson-Kraft, C., Tognatta, N., &

Society for Research on Educational

Effectiveness. (2012). Effects of College

Access Programs on College Readiness and

Enrollment: A Meta-Analysis. Society For

Research On Educational Effectiveness.8 IQS Research. (August 2012). Preparing

students to transition from high school to

college: A review of the perceptions

surrounding college and the challenges

students face as they prepare for their

collegiate experience. Special report by IQS

Research. Available at http://iqsresearch.com/

wordpress/2012/08/special-report-released-

preparing-students-to-transition-from-high-

school-to-college/9 Barnett, E., Corrin, W., Nakanishi, A., Hare

Bork, R., and Mitchell, C. (May 2012)

Preparing high school students for college: An

exploratory study of college readiness

partnership programs in Texas. National

Center for Postsecondary Research.10 Ibid 3.11 Lumina Foundation. (2012). Lumina’s Latino

Student Success Effort: America’s Economic

Future Increasingly Depends on Graduating

More Latinos from College.

http://www.luminafoundation.org/

newsroom/news_releases/2012-10-03.html12 See, for example, Martinez-Wenzl, M.,

Marquez, R., & University of California, L.

(2012). Unrealized Promises: Unequal Access,

Affordability, and Excellence at Community

Colleges in Southern California. Civil Rights

Project.13 Harper, S. R., & Griffin, K. A. (2011).

Opportunity Beyond Affirmative Action:

How Low-Income and Working-Class Black

Male Achievers Access Highly Selective, High-

134

1

Cost Colleges and Universities. Harvard

Journal Of African American Public Policy,

1743-60.14 Bragg, D. and Durham, B. (2012).

Perspectives on access and equity in the era of

(community) college completion.

Community College Review, 40 (2).

Pp. 106-125.15 Lumina Foundation. (2012). 16 http://www.luminafoundation.org/

goal_2025/goal2.html


state?metroareas=1 17 Balfanz, R. (March, 2012)18 The graduation gap. The Baltimore Sun.

September 23, 2012, 26

http://marylandpublicschools.org20 See, for example, Sanchez-Linguelinel, C.

Supporting ‘slumping’ sophomores:

Programmatic peer initiatives designed to

enhance retention in the crucial second year

of college. College Student Journal 2008

42(2), 637-64621 http://www.luminafoundation.org/state/

florida/22 A Stronger Nation through Higher Education.

Florida. Lumina Foundation. March 2012.


publications/state_data/2012/Florida-

2012.pdf23 A Stronger Nation Through Higher

Education, March 2012, Lumina Foundation;

http://www.every1graduates.org 24 Characteristics of the 100 Largest Public

Elementary and Secondary School Districts in

the United States: 2008–09.” National Center

for Educational Statistics. November 2010.

http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/search.asp

25 Characteristics of the 100 Largest Public

Elementary and Secondary School Districts in

the UnitedStates: 2008–09.” National Center

for Educational Statistics. November 2010.

http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/search.asp26 www.all4Ed.org27 http://broadprize.org28 http://55000degrees.org29 Ibid30 http://www.luminafoundation.org/

state?metroareas=131 http://www.luminafoundation.org/

state/colorado/32 IQS Research. (August 2012). Preparing

students to transition from high school to

college: A review of the perceptions

surrounding college and the challenges

students face as they prepare for their

collegiate experience. Special report by IQS

Research. Available at

http://iqsresearch.com/wordpress/

2012/08/special-report-released-preparing-

students-to-transition-from-high-school-to-

college/33 Long, M., Conger, D., & Iatarola, P. (2012).

Effects of high school course-taking on

secondary and postsecondary success.

American Educational Research Journal.

49 (2). 285-322.34 See, for example, Scrivener, S., Weiss, M. J.,

Sommo, C., & MDRC. (2012). What Can a

Multifaceted Program Do for Community

College Students? Early Results from an

Evaluation of Accelerated Study in Associate

Programs (ASAP) for Developmental

Education Students. Executive Summary.

MDRC. and Bragg, D. and Durham, B.

(2012). Perspectives on access and equity in

35

the era of (community) college completion.

Community College Review, 40 (2). Pp.

106-125.35 Muraskin, L. & Lee, J. (2004). Raising the

Graduation Rates of Low Income Students.

Lumina Foundation for Education and The

Pell Institute.36 The Condition of College and Career

Readiness, 2011. ACT®.37 Ibid. "Un Nuevo Dia.” Lumina Foundations

Focus. Spring 2011. Lumina Foundation for

Education.

This report is based on research funded by the

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Lumina

Foundation. The findings and conclusions

contained within are those of the authors and do

not necessarily reflect positions or policies of the

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation or Lumina

Foundation.

Acknowledgements

America’s Promise wants to acknowledge the

contributions of several individuals to the

following report:

Elizabeth Molina Morgan, PhD, Principal Writer

Shulamit Finkelstein, Contributing Writer and

Principal Note Taker

Rebecca Grove, Research Assistance and

Contributing Writer (Doctoral Student at the

University of Maryland)

Mary Bruce, Highlight Notes (Miami, Louisville,

Denver)

Pamela Burdman, Highlight Notes (Baltimore)

136

www.americaspromise.org

America's Promise Alliance1110 Vermont Avenue, N.W., Suite 900Washington, DC 20005202.657.0600

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REPORT ON THE GRAD NATION ACTION TEAM COLLABORATIVE CONVENINGS · Report on the Grad Nation Action Team Collaborative Convenings ... completion of a degree or certificate; ... a major