Afterschool and competency-based learning are increasingly emerging as student-centered, supportive learning models to prepare students for college and career. This white paper explores the intersection and relationship between these two fields, recommends ideal policy environments for implementing successful programs, provides real-world…

The Community College Pathways initiative consists of two pathways, Statway® and Quantway®, that accelerate post-secondary students' progress through their developmental mathematics sequence and a college-level course for credit. Launched in 2011, the Pathways have been remarkably successful, helping thousands of students achieve success in…

Bachelor's degree attainment has become essential for U.S. labor market participation. However, degree attainment is differentially accessible across racial and economic lines. One explanation of degree disparities is that urban students often lack the social and cultural capital needed to succeed in higher education institutions. This article…

For the past decade, MDRC has evaluated a number of interventions designed to improve the outcomes of community college students, including enhanced counseling, learning communities, and financial incentives. Encouragingly, many of these strategies have produced positive effects, affirming that changes in institutional practices and policies can…

Less than 25 percent of college students who take any developmental education courses earn a credential within eight years. Over the past three years, the six states in the Developmental Education Initiative have developed and enacted unprecedented changes in policy and practice in an effort to reverse these dismal outcomes. "Ahead of the…

In January 2007, the Oregon State Board of Education mandated a new Oregon diploma that strengthened high school graduation requirements with the aim of improving student readiness for college and career. Among the major changes was a requirement that students demonstrate proficiency in nine "essential skills" that included the…

Nationwide, close to 40 million adults lack a high school diploma or a General Educational Development (GED) credential. About a quarter of high school freshmen do not graduate in four years, and while many high school dropouts eventually do attend GED preparation classes, too few ever pass the GED exam or go on to college. Students with only a…

With the advent of the new post-9/11 GI Bill, many colleges and universities have seen significant growth in the numbers of veterans and other military students on their campuses. Along with this increased population has come a growing recognition that while these students share many of the same struggles as other students, their service in the…

Educational reform in the United States is perpetually evolving. Much of the recent reforms have concentrated on high-stakes testing and assessment, but a parallel effort has been emerging in the field of vocational and career education. Prompted partly by federal legislation--most recently by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act…

Students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) have had difficulties in achieving educational, vocational, and community outcomes that would lead to personal success and satisfaction. Some of these outcomes relate to how special education transition programs integrate effective approaches to support success with these students. In this…

Research on student retention and transition in higher education has been an ongoing focus since the 1950s and during the past decade research into this area has gathered momentum as institutions of higher education increasingly recognise the economic and social costs of failing to retain and transition future graduates. Measures to improve…

One of the biggest fears and challenges a parent of a child with special needs faces is navigating the post-22 landscape. When a child hits the age of 22, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is no longer required to provide daily services and support. Whatever the abilities, or disabilities, of a child, every parent has the…

This article discusses how school districts in California collaborate with higher education to boost college readiness and access. In Long Beach, educators from all three major institutions of learning--elementary, middle and high schools, the local university and the community college--worked together to align standards and expectations across…

This case study describes how Porterville Unified School District (PUSD), a rural school district in California's Central Valley, began to fulfill its vision to transform high school and career education through the implementation of Linked Learning. Linked Learning is a state-wide initiative for redesigning large comprehensive high schools into…

For over 17 years, Boston Day and Evening Academy has served a population of young people often left behind: those who are off track to high school graduation or who have dropped out altogether. Through its competency-based approach, BDEA has tackled one of the toughest education conundrums of our time: how to recover low-skilled students two or…