The State of College Access and Completion

Improving College Success for Students from Underrepresented Groups

Laura W. Perna, Anthony Jones, Laura W. Perna, Anthony Jones

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781135106690
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Despite decades of substantial investments by the federal government, state governments, colleges and universities, and private foundations, students from low-income families as well as racial and ethnic minority groups continue to have substantially lower levels of postsecondary educational attainment than individuals from other groups. The State of College Access and Completion draws together leading researchers nationwide to summarize the state of college access and success and to provide recommendations for how institutional leaders and policymakers can effectively improve the entire spectrum of college access and completion.

Springboarding from a seminar series organized by the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, chapter authors explore what is known and not known from existing research about how to improve student success. This much-needed book calls explicit attention to the state of college access and success not only for traditional college-age students, but also for the substantial and growing number of "nontraditional" students. Describing trends in various outcomes along the pathway from college access to completion, this volume documents persisting gaps in outcomes based on students' demographic characteristics and offers recommendations for strategies to raise student attainment. Graduate students, scholars, and researchers in higher education will find The State of College Access and Completion to be an important and timely resource.

1

INTRODUCTION

Improving Postsecondary Access, Persistence, and Completion in the United States: Setting the Stage

Anthony P. Jones

Higher education in the United States has experienced tremendous growth in recent decades, due in large part to deliberate efforts of public policymakers to expand the nation's economy, meet workforce needs, improve the financial and social mobility of individuals and families, reduce discrimination and inequality, and develop a better-educated citizenry (Carnevale & Rose, 2012; Gilbert & Heller, 2010; Hutcheson, 2007). The chapters in this volume contend that significant progress has been made in broadening participation in postsecondary education, but several inequities still exist, especially for students most at risk for not entering or completing. These inequities prevent students and society from maximizing the benefits of higher education. This introduction sets the stage for the volume and provides broad context for the discussion and recommendations.

Expansion of higher education in the United States has occurred both in the number and types of institutions available as well as the number and characteristics of students enrolled. In terms of institutional increases, Table 1.1 shows that in the 2010–2011 academic year, there were 4,599 accredited institutions in the United States granting degrees at the associate's level or above, up from 4,182 in 2000–2001 and 3,231 in 1980–1981 (Snyder & Dillow, 2012; Snyder, Dillow, & Hoffman, 2008)—an increase of 10% within the last decade and 42% within the last three decades. The number of institutions in each of the major institutional sectors (i.e., 4-year and 2-year public, private nonprofit, and private for-profit) also has grown over these periods. ¹ The most dramatic growth since the mid-1990s has occurred in the private for-profit sector (Snyder & Dillow, 2012; Snyder et al., 2008).

Mirroring these patterns, the number of students enrolling in postsecondary education has also increased dramatically, and the distribution of students among institutional types has shifted. Table 1.2 shows that, of the 18 million students

TABLE 1.1 Number of Accredited, Degree-Granting (2-year and 4-year) Institutions in the United States, by Sector

Academic Year	Total	Public	Private Nonprofit	Private For-Profit
2010–2011	4,599	1,656	1,630	1,313
2000–2001	4,182	1,698	1,695	789
1990–1991	3,559	1,567	1,649	343
1980–1981	3,231	1,497	1,569	165

Sources: Snyder and Dillow (2012); Snyder, Dillow, and Hoffman (2008).

TABLE 1.2 Total Undergraduate Enrollment at Accredited, Degree-Granting (2-year and 4-year) Institutions in the United States with Proportional Enrollment by Sector

Period of Enrollment	Total	Public	Private Nonprofit	Private For-Profit
Fall 2010*	18 million	76%	15%	10%
Fall 2000	13.2 million	80%	17%	3%
Fall 1990	12 million	81%	17%	2%
Fall 1980	10.5 million	81%	18%	1%

Source: Aud et al. (2012).

*Percentages add to more than 100 due to rounding.

enrolled in undergraduate education programs at degree-granting institutions² during fall 2010, 76% attended public institutions, 15% attended private nonprofit colleges and universities, and 10% were enrolled in private for-profit institutions (Aud et al., 2012). These data show a three-decade increase of 71% in overall undergraduate enrollment and a proportional shift from public and private nonprofit institutions to private for-profits. Growth in total enrollment in undergraduate degree-granting institutions is projected to increase further by 12%–17% over the 11-year period from 2007 to 2018 (Hussar & Bailey, 2009).

These trends suggest that college-going has become a more common experience. Clearly, the nation's higher education system has changed from a place once “reserved for a relatively small fraction of the population, something of a social and academic elite, to one frequented by a broad cross-section of students” (Kim & Rury, 2007, p. 305). Moreover, this expansion in enrollment has occurred for more than just the “traditional” student—that is, under age 25, White, and from middle- and upper-income households. Over the past two decades, several other groups have seen surges in college enrollment as well, including veterans, nontraditional-age students, racial and ethnic minorities, women, immigrants, and students from low-income families (Choy, 2002; Kim & Rury, 2007; Schuetze & Slowey, 2002; Snyder & Hoffman, 1991). Enrollment of students age 25 and older (one measure of “nontraditional”) is projected to continue to grow in the coming years; between 2010 and 2020 the number of students age 25 and older is expected to increase by 20% while enrollment of students under age 25 is projected to rise by just 11% (Snyder & Dillow, 2012).

Nonetheless, as Laura Perna and Elizabeth Kurban as well as Don Heller note in their chapters in this volume, although the United States has enjoyed relatively high college access rates, challenges remain. One challenge is that educational attainment in the United States now lags behind that of many other developed nations (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2011). Reflecting this trend, improving degree completion has become a centerpiece of national policy, as evidenced by President Obama's goal of returning the country to the top of world rankings in degree completion (Obama, 2009), and by the efforts of several foundations and organizations (e.g., see Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, n.d.; Lumina Foundation, 2012; Southern Regional Education Board, 2010) to encourage national and state policy and institutional practice toward increasing degree completion.

Any attempt to reform or improve aspects of higher education to reach these degree completion goals must acknowledge several facts. First, both individuals and society benefit from an educational system that adequately prepares students to complete postsecondary coursework, enables entry to a postsecondary educational institution, and promotes students' successful progress to completion of their educational programs. Society benefits from increased participation in higher education in many ways, including higher rates of voting, adult literacy, charitable giving, and volunteerism, and lower rates of incarceration and utilization of public assistance (Baum, Ma, & Payea, 2010; Bowen, 1997 ). In turn, there are also numerous individual economic benefits to completing at least some postsecondary education; primary among these individual benefits are higher earnings and greater job satisfaction (Baum et al., 2010). In the 3-year period following the recession that began in 2007, and matching patterns that occur in better economic times, individuals with college degrees had the lowest unemployment rates and the best chances for getting hired (Carnevale, Smith, & Strohl, 2010). On average, lifetime wage earnings for an individual with a bachelor's degree are $1.1 million higher than for someone holding an associate's degree; even completing some college, but no degree or certificate, yields $473,000 in additional average lifetime earnings compared to an individual with only a high school diploma (Carnevale et al., 2010).

Second, public policies and programs have spurred tremendous expansion and improvement in college access and completion over time. Improvements in degree attainment rates for students from lower-income families and among most all racial, ethnic, and age groups (Berube, 2010) are attributable, at least in part, to public policies and legislation that removed barriers to and encouraged participation in postsecondary education (e.g., legislation to ban discriminatory admissions practices, creation of need-based student financial aid programs, the creation and expansion of 2-year public colleges and other sectors, etc.). Arguably one of the most significant of these is the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) for establishing several need-based student aid grant, work, and loan programs (including the Federal Pell Grant program). The HEA also has aided and strengthened minority-serving institutions, and advanced and expanded the TRIO programs (e.g., Upward Bound, Talent Search, Students Support Services), which are federally funded on-campus programs designed to promote college preparation and achievement for underserved student populations. Much of the expansion in individual opportunity and growth of the national economy are owed to such policies and programs.

Nonetheless, renewed attention by public policymakers and institutional leaders is required not only to raise further the nation's overall educational attainment rates, but also to remedy persisting gaps in college access and success across groups. As discussed in the chapters in this volume, although improvements have been made, substantial proportions of our population, especially students from low-income households and racial/ethnic minority groups, remain underprepared to take on and succeed in postsecondary coursework (see chapters by Conley; Long & Boatman), have unequal access to college enrollment (see chapters by Heller; Perna & Kurban), and struggle to persist to completion of their desired postsecondary credential (see chapters by Bragg; Melguizo, Kienzl, & Kosiewicz; Hossler, Dundar, & Shapiro). Further, there continues to be a need for new and different strategies for reaching out to, informing, and supporting students and families earlier in the educational process regarding benefits of and application processes for higher education (see chapters by Bragg; Conley; Long & Boatman; Heller; Melguizo, Kienzl, & Kosiewicz; Perna & Kurban).

Finally, raising educational attainment and reducing gaps in attainment across groups requires consideration by public policymakers and educational leaders across the entire spectrum of the college completion process, spanning awareness of college and financial aid, academic readiness and preparation, access and choice, persistence and transfer, and completion. Isolated attention to narrow or discrete parts of the process is insufficient. Focusing on enhancing one aspect of the spectrum at the expense of another only restricts opportunity and narrows the pipeline for students. For broad gains to be realized, each aspect must be considered in terms of its impact on the whole process.

Purpose of this Volume

This volume assesses the state of college access, persistence, and completion for students in the United States by identifying the problems that must be addressed, summarizing what is known and unknown from prior research about how to address these problems, and offering recommendations for federal and state public policymakers, campus leaders, and educational researchers who are interested in addressing these problems. Written by nationally recognized experts in higher education, the chapters in this volume address the following four questions:

1. What are ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Foreword
• Acknowledgments
• 1 Introduction: Improving Postsecondary Access, Persistence, and Completion in the United States: Setting the Stage
• 2 Improving College Access and Choice
• 3 Pathways to College for Underserved and Nontraditional Students: Lessons from Research, Policy, and Practice
• 4 Proficiency Approaches for Making More Students College and Career Ready
• 5 The Role of Remedial and Developmental Courses in Access and Persistence
• 6 The Role of Finances in Postsecondary Access and Success
• 7 The Potential of Community Colleges to Increase Bachelor'S Degree Attainment Rates
• 8 Longitudinal Pathways to College Persistence and Completion: Student, Institutional, and Public Policy Perspectives
• 9 Access, Persistence, and Completion in the State Context
• 10 Nonexperimental Designs and Causal Analyses of College Access, Persistence, and Completion
• 11 Conclusions: Improving College Access, Persistence, and Completion: Lessons Learned
• Contributor Biographies
• Index