Using intrusive advising principles and the four Cs framework, the Strong-Start Program was developed and implemented to improve student outcomes in developmental math, reading, and writing courses. An intrusive advising protocol was used to help students recognize, adopt, and engage in the behaviors needed to complete instructor-assigned…

In the past decade, there has been a proliferation of community- and school-based college readiness programs designed to increase the participation of students who have traditionally been underrepresented in higher education. However, few of these college readiness programs have been empirically evaluated. This study examines the impact of one…

A strong feature of the widening participation agenda is improving the aspirations of groups that are underrepresented in higher education. This paper seeks to reposition the utility of this as a focal point of educational interventions by showcasing the success of a mentoring program that takes a different approach. The Australian Indigenous…

The expectations of first-year students are becoming more widely researched and understood. How to realign perceptions and prepare students for the transition from secondary school to tertiary education is less well considered. This paper presents an account of a pre-university preparation programme embedded in the senior years of secondary…

Recent Australian government targets for higher education participation have produced a flurry of activity focused on raising the aspirations of students from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds. In this paper we test two key assumptions underpinning much of this activity: that students from low-SES backgrounds hold lower career…

Corporatisation of universities has drawn parallels between contemporary universities and business corporations, and extended analysis of corporate social responsibility to universities. This article reports on a case study of university-community engagement with schools and school communities through youth engagement programmes to enhance…

This paper reports how one Australian university and the Queensland Department of Education and Training (DET) are working together to increase the number of school students from low socio-economic backgrounds enrolling in undergraduate university degrees. This innovative program involves university lecturers and school teachers working together…

This report provides a summary of major results of the Illinois Bridge Status Survey, administered online between April and June 2010. The purpose of the survey was to understand the extent to which bridge programs are being implemented in Illinois, as well as to build an online directory of bridge programs. Bridge programs are an emerging…

Adult education services, including education for those lacking basic literacy and numeracy, preparation for the high school equivalency diploma, and English-as-a-second-language courses, play a crucial role in bridging the basic skills gap for Latinos and other workers with limited formal education and training. With recent policy and program…

This case study examines a P-20 action research partnership involving a university, a nonprofit organization, and several middle and high schools with sizeable enrollments of underserved students. The partnership's goals were rooted in a cultural change model designed to encourage college awareness and attendance among largely Latino and African…

By offering information, counseling, and tutoring, college outreach programs attempt to smooth the path between high school and higher education for at-risk students. But do these program work? This paper uses longitudinal data from the Education Longitudinal Study to construct two quasi-experiments to assess the effectiveness of college outreach.…

To consider how interdisciplinary P-20 partnerships increase college going among Chicano/Latino youth, the authors highlight evidence from the Educational Partnership Center (EPC), University of California, Santa Cruz, a P-20 partnership building academic achievement and college and career pathways. Three elements advance EPC effectiveness:…

The social class gap in higher education (HE) participation rates has its origins in the compulsory schooling system and, despite over a century of universal education, differential rates of attainment by social class remain the norm. Against this background, policy initiatives to extend HE participation to under-represented groups are attempting…

As the need to serve a broader and larger population of students at the community college level increases, the rate of student success is decreasing at many institutions. There is a greater need to deliver in-class and co-curricular experiences that satisfy the students currently entering college. The Student Success Project at Santa Monica…

A study of community colleges found that they achieve high levels of participation from underrepresented groups and provide return-to-learning opportunities. However, many developmental studies students drop out. Retention improves when curriculum includes student experience and the educational culture appears to value students. (SK)