POSTSECONDARY RESEARCH PRIORITIES: AN OVERVIEW OF NNERPP MEMBERS’ WORK IN 2021
In This “Research Insights” Edition
As returning readers know, the Research Insights series in NNERPP Extra is where we summarize and connect similar or related work conducted by the research-practice partnerships in NNERPP in order to advance our collective knowledge on these research topics. One of the areas we are seeing a lot of activity in is postsecondary research. In this edition of Research Insights, we take a look at what our members have worked on over the past year with respect to postsecondary research, organizing the studies by topic. We hope to revisit this high-level overview periodically to see how the questions that RPPs are asking and the answers they are finding around postsecondary education evolve over time.
Why This Overview
In 2021 alone, eight partnerships in NNERPP published 13 studies examining various aspects of college / postsecondary-related research questions. In this initial overview of our members’ work, we identify key categories of these efforts in order to (i) help you get a better sense of the postsecondary-related questions our members are working on and (ii) connect the research, as appropriate.
We have grouped the 13 artifacts into six broad categories, based on their respective research interests: (i) scholarships; (ii) pre-college classes; (iii) school or district level factors related to postsecondary outcomes; (iv) early warning indicators; (iv) pathways through college; and (v) impacts of the pandemic. As you’ll see in the tables below, many of the studies investigate questions pertaining to state-level interests, while just two are at the district level. Moreover, while we only see one study exploring the impacts of the pandemic on postsecondary-related outcomes, we anticipate this category growing over the next year as more partnerships look into these types of questions. Finally, from a geographic perspective, there is much activity from partnerships situated in the midwestern and western U.S., with less activity in the southern and eastern parts of the U.S.
We begin the synthesis below with studies related to scholarships, and then follow with the remaining topical areas noted above.
NNERPP Members’ Areas of Work
| >>SCHOLARSHIPS | 3 total | West = 1, South = 2 | |||
| Region | WEST | Community Philanthropy for Student Success Initiative: Evaluation SummaryJohn W. Gardner Center for Youth and Their Communities, January 2021Overview. An evaluation of the “Community Philanthropy for Student Success Initiative” (CPI). CPI explored how community funding could play a role in reducing disparities among college completion rates for California students.Keywords: California, college completion, philanthropy, program evaluation | Of Note:Includes community philanthropy initiative theory of actionStudies to what extent CPI reached its 5 year goals, including factors that aided/prohibited progressShares lessons learned for other philanthropy communities wishing to achieve equitable college completion rates |
| Location | California | ||
| Artifact Type | Report | ||
| # of Pages | 5 | ||
| Region | SOUTH | Helping Youth Realize Their College Dreams: An Impact Study of the San Antonio Area Foundation’s Scholarship ProgramUrban Education Institute, April 2021Overview. An evaluation of the San Antonio Area Foundation’s higher education scholarship program, including estimated impacts on college enrollment, degree completion, student debt, and need to work while in college.Keywords: college completion, college enrollment, community philanthropy, program evaluation, Texas | Of Note:Includes 5 clear policy recommendations based on the research findingsProvides technical considerations of the research study and design as wellStudy was made possible because of the Foundation’s work in collecting the necessary data |
| Location | Texas | ||
| Artifact Type | Report | ||
| # of Pages | 64 | ||
| Region | SOUTH | Does the Timing of Money Matter? A Case Study of the Arkansas Academic Challenge ScholarshipOffice for Education Policy, February 2021Overview. A case study analysis of the “Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship” program (ACS), focusing on the impacts of the scholarship on various outcomes (GPA, credit accumulation, graduation rates) for currently enrolled college students, who became eligible when the program was launched.Keywords: Arkansas, college GPA, college completion, credit accumulation, policy evaluation, scholarships | Of Note:Focus on scholarship effects for students already enrolled in college when they became eligibleExplores potential benefits and drawbacks for using merit scholarships as a policy leverLooks into whether the timing of merit aid matters for various outcomes (i.e., sophomore recipients vs juniors vs seniors)Includes a discussion of policy implications |
| Location | Arkansas | ||
| Artifact Type | Policy Brief | ||
| # of Pages | 5 | ||
| >>PRE-COLLEGE CLASSES | 4 total | West = 2, Midwest = 1, East = 1 | |||
| Region | WEST | Understanding Access to and Participation in Dual Enrollment by Locale and Income LevelREL Central, May 2021Overview. Descriptive study looking at dual enrollment access and participation patterns across a number of central-U.S. states. Explores how patterns varied with school characteristics, examining these in the context of the individual states, as a region, and how they compare nationally.Keywords: descriptive study, dual enrollment, access and participation patterns, rural education, state policy | Of Note:REL Central region is more rural than the national average, providing a good setting to study thisUses data on students and schools from the Civil Rights Data Collection and the National Center for Education StatisticsFindings can inform state policies and practices related to college and career readiness, especially in terms of dual enrollment |
| Location | CO, KS, MO, NB, ND, SD, WY | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 14 | ||
| Region | WEST | The Impact of Career and Technical Education on Postsecondary Outcomes in Nebraska and South DakotaREL Central, May 2021Overview. Research study examining the relationship between completing career and technical ed (CTE) courses in high school and three student outcomes: on-time high school graduation, postsecondary enrollment, and postsecondary completion (within 2 and 5 years).Keywords: career and technical ed, high school graduation, Nebraska, postsecondary enrollment and completion, South Dakota, state policy | Of Note:Nebraska and South Dakota enacted CTE-related policies to improve the alignment between workforce needs and high school students’ skillsLooks at outcomes for CTE “concentrators”, which is a student who takes a sequence of 2-3 CTE courses aligned to specific career clusterThe study finds a large, positive impact of being a CTE concentrator on student outcomes |
| Location | Nebraska, South Dakota | ||
| Artifact Type | Research Study | ||
| # of Pages | 11 | ||
| Region | MIDWEST | Indiana and Minnesota Students Who Focused on Career and Technical Education in High School: Who Are They, and What Are Their College and Employment Outcomes?REL Midwest, June 2021Overview. Research study providing descriptive look at CTE participation in terms of dosage and evaluating impact of CTE coursework on college enrollment, degree attainment, employment rates, and earnings.Keywords: career and technical ed, descriptive study, CTE participation patterns, Indiana, Minnesota, postsecondary enrollment and completion, state policy, workforce outcomes | Of Note: Studies how CTE “dosage” differs among students and for whom (i.e., concentrators, explorers, samplers, and nonparticipants)Indiana and Minnesota define concentrators differently; findings of the research study are still fairly consistent across statesIncludes a discussion of implications, especially how high school teachers and guidance counselors might use this work |
| Location | Indiana, Minnesota | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 16 | ||
| Region | EAST | The Effects of Accelerated College Credit Programs on Educational Attainment in Rhode IslandREL Northeast & Islands, June 2021Overview. Descriptive study seeking to understand how accelerated college credit programs (e.g., dual enrollment, concurrent enrollment, and Advanced Placement) impacts high school completion, postsecondary enrollment, and postsecondary coursetaking.Keywords: Advanced Placement, concurrent enrollment, dual enrollment, high school graduation, postsecondary enrollment, Rhode Island, state policy | Of Note:Rhode Island has invested significantly in efforts to expand access to college credit programs through “PrepareRI Dual Enrollment Fund”Study compared participation rates in the accelerated college credit programs by student and school characteristicsFocused on first-time 9th graders in the 2013/14 school year |
| Location | Rhode Island | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 18 | ||
| >>SCHOOL or DISTRICT LEVEL FACTORS | 2 total | Midwest = 1, N/A = 1 | |||
| Region | MIDWEST | Do College and Career Readiness and Early College Success in Indiana Vary Depending on Whether Students Attend Public, Charter, or Private Voucher High Schools?REL Midwest, March 2021Overview. Descriptive study that explores the connection between type of high school attended (e.g., public, charter, private) and performance on indicators of college and career readiness and early college success.Keywords: descriptive study, early college success indicators, high school type, Indiana, readiness indicators | Of Note:Indiana made large investments in both its charter schools and private school voucher program Examined how students background characteristics related to high school typeWhile not causal, the study provides a first look at how students are sorting themselves and their resulting performance on a variety of relevant outcomes, which can lead to future research |
| Location | Indiana | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 17 | ||
| Region | N/A | Steps to Develop a Model to Estimate School- and District-Level Postsecondary SuccessREL Central, March 2021Overview. Tool that helps state and local education agencies in designing and running a model to predict student postsecondary success at the school or district level.Keywords: model development, postsecondary success, state policy, tool | Of Note:Tool draws from previous work done with the Kansas State Dept. of Education on the Kansas Postsecondary Effectiveness ModelIntended to measure influence schools have on their students’ success post-high schoolResults can be used for federal reporting requirements and comparative analysis across schools |
| Location | N/A | ||
| Artifact Type | Tool | ||
| # of Pages | 19 | ||
| >>EARLY WARNING INDICATORS | 2 total | South = 2 | |||
| Region | SOUTH | Identifying Indicators that Predict Postsecondary Readiness and Success in ArkansasREL Southwest, June 2021Overview. Descriptive study testing the strength of a collection of middle and high school indicators in predicting postsecondary readiness.Keywords: Arkansas, middle and high school indicators, postsecondary readiness | Of Note:The Arkansas Dept. of Education identified a collection of middle and high school indicators to monitor student performance towards postsecondary readinessThe indicators paired with student background characteristics were more accurate than using student background characteristics alone |
| Location | Arkansas | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 16 | ||
| Region | SOUTH | Alternative Career Readiness Measures for Small and Rural Districts in TexasREL Southwest, February 2021Overview. Descriptive study exploring the potential for alternative career readiness indicators to measure career readiness for students in small and rural districts who otherwise do not have access to CTE program or course resources.Keywords: career readiness, high school indicators, military readiness, postsecondary readiness, rural, Texas, state policy | Of Note:Recent Texas law established a funding bonus for districts related to the number of students that met college, career, and military readiness (CCMR) indicators via the state’s accountability systemLocal capacity and funding issues may prevent small and rural districts from providing the coursework that could result in CCMR |
| Location | Texas | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 45 | ||
| >>MOVING THROUGH COLLEGE | 1 total | Midwest = 1 | |||
| Region | MIDWEST | Navigating the Maze: Understanding CPS Graduates’ Paths Through CollegeUChicago Consortium on School Research, May 2021Overview. Descriptive report exploring the patterns of college enrollment and non-enrollment for high school graduates, including a deep dive into the timing, type, and frequency of post-secondary transitions by student groups.Keywords: Chicago, college completion, postsecondary pathways, postsecondary mobility | Of Note:Includes a number of visualizations to help illustrate the “maze” students move through as they proceed through collegeProvides several snapshots of how postsecondary mobility differs by various student characteristicsUnique methodology for developing mobility categories, as well as special use of a sequential approach to describing patterns of transfer and enrollment that provide different takes on college pathways |
| Location | Chicago, IL | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 39 | ||
| >>IMPACTS of the PANDEMIC | 1 total | Midwest = 1 | |||
| Region | MIDWEST | College During the Pandemic: Immediate Enrollment and Retention of CPS Graduates in Fall 2020UChicago Consortium on School Research, April 2021Overview. Descriptive brief summarizing patterns of immediate postsecondary enrollment and retention for high school graduates during the fall of 2020.Keywords: Chicago, COVID, postsecondary enrollment and retention, descriptive study | Of Note:Explores the extent to which the pandemic impacted patterns of college enrollment and retention for high school graduatesFindings show that the class of 2020 continued to enroll in four-year colleges at similar rates to previous classesFindings also show a decline in two-year college enrollment and retention, especially among students of color |
| Location | Chicago, IL | ||
| Artifact Type | Descriptive Study | ||
| # of Pages | 24 | ||
Conclusion
The questions that RPPs in NNERPP are examining in their postsecondary research are multifaceted and span the entire postsecondary trajectory, from postsecondary preparation in high school to degree completion and workforce outcomes and how scholarship programs are impacting students’ postsecondary success. In particular, partnerships are concerned about equal access to accelerated college credit programs, supporting all students in achieving postsecondary readiness, understanding how students navigate college and providing more targeted support accordingly, examining how career and technical education relates to college and work outcomes, and evaluating how scholarship programs and initiatives support students.
If you are also doing work in this area, we hope this overview helps you determine how your research fits (or doesn’t) with that produced by other partnerships, and which questions future research should prioritize. For anyone simply curious to find out more about postsecondary research conducted by RPPs, we hope this article is a starting point for exploring recent postsecondary work. We encourage you to examine the studies included here in greater detail — and we look forward to revisiting this research topic in the future!
Paula Arce-Trigatti is Director and Nina Spitzley is Marketing Specialist of the National Network of Education Research-Practice Partnerships (NNERPP).
Suggested citation: Arce-Trigatti, P., & Spitzley, N. (2021). Postsecondary Research Priorities: An Overview of NNERPP Members’ Work in 2021. NNERPP Extra, 3(3), 2-8. https://doi.org/10.25613/K9T8-5Q94
