The underrepresentation of African Americans in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields in the United States is well documented. Statistics show that while African Americans make up 12.4% of the U.S. population, only 37% of African American 18-24-year-olds are enrolled in college, 45.9% complete their degrees within six…

Each year from 2018 to 2020, roughly 16,000 students participated in Tennessee Reconnect at community colleges across the state. However, fewer than half of those Reconnect students persisted to the following year as grant participants. To promote Reconnect students' reapplication and persistence, Nashville State and Southwest Tennessee Community…

Most school districts and charter schools are receiving significant, one-time revenues through the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) grant program. The ESSER III Investment Decision Guide and its companion User and Resource Companion document (ED617067) are designed to guide decision makers…

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the differences in the academic outcomes of first-year academically underprepared TN Promise-eligible college freshmen who participated in a college bridge program. A comparative research design was applied to existing data, including first-semester GPA, first-semester credit completion rate,…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine teacher perceptions of the effectiveness of the Response to Intervention (RtI) framework with students who are acquiring English as a second language. Students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds have been disproportionately represented in special education programs for…

Consistent with national trends, only about ½ of students who intend to major in STEM disciplines at Maryville College (MC) complete bachelor's degrees in these fields. The Scots Science Scholars (S[superscript 3] ) program was funded through the National Science Foundation's STEM Talent Extension Program to increase the number of students…

The Expanding the Network of STEM Scholars through the ADVANCE Women of Color Writing Retreat has become a model for knowledge sharing and intervention adaptation in the areas of scholarly productivity and faculty development. This multi-institutional network reveals the complexity of supporting scholarly productivity for women at minority serving…

Dramatic changes in the higher education landscape and the recent recession have intensified the challenges students face in postsecondary enrollment and completion. In response, some states, communities, and institutions have developed "postsecondary opportunity programs (POPs)"--comprehensive college access and success programs…

In fall 2009, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded a three-year project (IB Access Project) with International Baccalaureate (IB) to increase participation of minority students and students in poverty in the Middle Years Programme (MYP) and Diploma Programme (DP). The IB Access Project seeks to do four things: (1) Improve teacher practice…

Operated as a pair of philanthropic funds, the Hyde Family Foundations works to improve the quality of life in Memphis. In order to counteract persistent socioeconomic and racial barriers and improve opportunities for underserved families in Memphis, the foundations have made improving the city's education system a priority of its grantmaking.…