Fifth Year Persisters: High School, College, and Early Career Outcomes For Persisting Non-Graduates

There is limited extant knowledge regarding academic and workforce experiences of students who remain engaged in high school, but do not graduate in the traditional four years. The current study used Multilevel modeling and descriptive statistics with statewide linked longitudinal administrative data (N = 2917) to (1) examine the student- and school-level factors related to earning a diploma during the fifth year of high school and (2) describe proximate academic and career outcomes for non-graduates and fifth year graduates. Multiple student-level factors were associated with increased likelihood of earning a diploma in the fifth year (e.g. special education eligibility, passing exit exams, higher attendance). Returning dropouts were less likely than persisters to earn a diploma in year five. In addition, the type and composition of the school a student attended affected the likelihood that a student would earn a diploma in year five. We also report population-level rates of participation in the workforce and postsecondary enrollment for fifth-year graduates and non-graduates. Fifth-year graduates outperformed non-graduates in both categories. Our findings provide insight into near term outcomes for students in a fifth-year of high school and suggest key factors that can be used for early identification and targeting services towards this under-researched and under-served population

Upstream Predictors of the Need for Developmental Education among First-year Community College Students

Objective/Research Question. How do student- and school-level factors measured in the final year of high school contribute to the odds of a student being assessed to need remediation in Math during the students’ first community college enrollment? Methods. The present study draws on five years of linked secondary and post-secondary administrative records and includes the academic records for 18,814 students attending 228 high schools across 24 jurisdictions in Maryland. We used a series of multilevel models (MLM) to address the research question. Results. Using MLM, we identified both student and school-level factors, drawn from the final year of high school, which relate to the odds of needing math remediation in their first year of community college. Of note, student-level academic performance in high school had a larger influence on the odds that a student would need remedial education than socio-demographic factors. In addition, receiving English language learner services and graduating from high school in the fifth-year functioned as protective factors linked to a reduced likelihood of needing math remediation. Conclusions/Contributions. Community colleges are functionally dependent upon secondary schools to prepare the student body for college level coursework. As such, preventing the need for remediation among community college students will not be resolved within institutional siloes and will most probably require some degree of inter-system collaboration. The findings from the current study presents opportunities for early identification and suggest possible targets for intervention intended to reduce the likelihood that high-risk students will need remedial coursework when they arrive at community college

Supporting Late Graduates, GED Earners, and Non-Completers Through the Transition into Postsecondary and the Labor Market

The transition out of adolescence signals a period of increasing personal and social responsibility. For many this means entering postsecondary or the labor market. Previous research has demonstrated that youth who do not finish high school in four years have less favorable postsecondary and labor outcomes. However, few studies compare the postsecondary and labor market outcomes within the group of students who do not finish high school in four years. The current study uses 12 years of linked-administrative data from Maryland to present the first statewide analyses comparing postsecondary and labor market outcomes for on-time graduates, GED earners, non-completers, and late graduates. The results describe an under-researched and underserved group of vulnerable students, with implications for supporting students during high school to improve the postsecondary and labor market transition

Expanding the Understanding of High School Non-Graduates Through a Comparison of High School Dropouts and Persisters

Although persisters now represent the largest group of non-graduating high school students, they have received little attention in the research literature, leaving unanswered the question of how persisters differ from dropouts in terms of demographic characteristics, academic preparation, and key life outcomes. Using statewide linked-administrative education and labor market data, we applied multilevel modeling to examine the differences in demographic and academic characteristics between persisters and late (Year 4) dropouts. We identified several student- (i.e., race, special education participation, previous dropout, standardized test scores, on-track status, and attendance) and school- (i.e., school type, school size) level characteristics that related to the odds of persisting and dropping out in students’ fourth year of high school. Additionally, we used a descriptive approach and data visualization to illustrate the near-term academic, postsecondary enrollment, and labor market pathways of 4-year non-graduates. Our findings highlight the unique characteristics and outcomes of persisting non-graduates and underscore an enhanced understanding of non-graduation through examining both persisting students and dropouts

High School Persisters: An Examination of College and Workforce Outcomes

This report examined the college and workforce outcomes of high school persisters, students who did not formally withdraw from high school, nor earn a regular high school diploma, four years after entering high school as a first-time ninth grader. We used data from the Maryland Longitudinal Data System (MLDS) to identify the population of students enrolled as first-time ninth graders in a Maryland public high school for a period of 90 days or more during the 2009-2010 academic year and attended a Maryland public high school in the 2012- 2013 academic year. The analyses conducted for this report identified a population of Maryland students who persisted into and through their fourth year of high school without earning a high school diploma that was larger than the population of students who dropped out of high school in their fourth year. Non-white and Hispanic students, as well as students in vulnerable subgroups (eligible for free and reduced price meals (FARMs), homeless, immigrant, English learners, and special education) tended to have less favorable outcomes in their fourth and fifth years of high school. Overall, persisters had more negative college and workforce outcomes when compared to students who earned a high school diploma. Policy implications and directions for future research are addressed

Remedial Coursework in Maryland: Examining Trends, High School Predictors, and College Outcomes

This report examined the trends in needing remedial coursework, the high school predictors of needing remedial coursework, and the college outcomes associated with needing remedial coursework in Maryland. Data from the Maryland Longitudinal Data System (MLDS) were used to link Maryland public high school graduate records to Maryland college enrollment and degree records. Sixty-seven percent of Maryland public high school graduates graduating in the 2013-2014 academic year who entered college in the 2014-2015 academic year were assessed for remedial coursework in any subject. Forty-one percent needed remedial coursework in any subject. Math was the most commonly assessed subject and was the subject in which students most commonly needed remedial coursework. Maryland two-year public institutions had the highest rates of students needing remedial coursework. Student demographic characteristics, high school program participation, high school attendance, and failing a high school assessment (HSA) were each associated with the likelihood of being assessed to need remedial coursework in college. Students assessed to need remedial coursework in college experienced more negative college outcomes when compared to students not assessed to need remedial coursework. These outcomes included poorer grades in the first non-remedial course taken, lower likelihood of earning a bachelor’s degree, and increased time to degree. Additionally, a lower percentage of students beginning in a two-year college who were assessed to need remedial coursework eventually transferred to and earned their final degree from a four-year college when compared to students not assessed to need remedial coursework. This report concludes with policy implications and future directions for research on remedial coursework in Maryland

Remedial Coursework in Maryland Community Colleges: Disentangling Individual and High School Level Predictors

Remedial courses at community colleges are designed to develop the skills of students who are underprepared for the academic rigor of college courses. A significant portion of students in Maryland and nationwide are assessed to need remedial coursework each year. In order to better prepare students for college courses and prevent the need for remediation, it is important to identify at-risk students before they arrive at college. This study used data from the Maryland Longitudinal Data System (MLDS) to examine the individual- and high school-level characteristics that predict the need for remediation in Maryland community colleges. The results indicate that after controlling for other characteristics, female students, Hispanic students, students in Special Education, and students who were eligible for free and reduced price meals (FARMS) were more likely to need remedial coursework in math or English at Maryland community colleges. After controlling for other characteristics, students who had a GPA of 3.0 or greater and students who took 2 or more courses with a grade of B or higher in high school were less likely to need remedial coursework in math and English. At the school level, after controlling for student-level characteristics, students who graduated from high schools with a higher percentage of students who were eligible for FARMS were more likely to need remedial coursework in math and English, whereas graduates from high schools with higher percentages of fifth-year graduates were less likely to need remedial coursework for math only. Policy implications and directions for future research are discussed

Linking Homelessness in Secondary School to Postsecondary and Early Labor Market Outcomes in Maryland Using a Continuum of Risk Framework

Homeless and low-income students share multiple overlapping risk experiences; however, some studies report little to no observed differences in outcomes between these students. From the cumulative risk perspective, homelessness is perched at the extreme edge of economic insecurity, suggesting that homeless students encounter additional hardships beyond poverty experiences alone. Using a continuum of risk framework, this study leveraged statewide administrative data from a 6th grade cohort of Maryland public school students (N = 52,610) to investigate the association between homelessness and educational and early labor market outcomes, above and beyond the associations linked to poverty. Findings provide support for the continuum of risk in relation to educational outcomes; however, no significant differences were observed in early labor market outcomes, although racial differences were detected. This study underscores the importance of targeted interventions in promoting positive, long-term outcomes, particularly for students who were homeless in adolescence

Dual Enrollment in Maryland: A Report to the General Assembly and Governor Lawrence J. Hogan

A total of 5,453 Maryland 12th grade students were dually enrolled with overlapping enrollment dates in high school and a Maryland postsecondary institution in academic year 2013-2014. Overall, the total number of dually enrolled students in Maryland has increased 2% between the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 academic years. This trend varies across school districts. The great majority of dually enrolled students were 12th grade students, but the percentages of dually enrolled students who were in 9th-11th grades have increased between the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 academic years. The proportion of dually enrolled students that were female has remained stable across academic years (59%), with female students over-represented in dual enrollment participation in comparison to the proportion of female students in the 12th grade population (50%). Students eligible for free and reduced price meals (FARMs) are under-represented in dual enrollment participation. Racial minority students and Hispanic students are also under-represented in participation in dual enrollment, whereas White students are over-represented. Most dually enrolled students attended Maryland community colleges. A greater proportion of dually enrolled students (91%) enrolled in postsecondary education within one academic year when compared to the proportion of students in the population of Maryland 12th grade students (63%). However, this finding should be interpreted cautiously. In sum, a greater proportion of dually enrolled students are White, not Hispanic, Female, and not eligible for FARMs, and students with those characteristics generally enroll in postsecondary education at higher rates than other students. Such educational attainment gaps are generally seen as the result of those groups of students historically and currently not having equal access to effective educational programming or services. In addition to examining overlapping enrollment dates in high schools and postsecondary institutions to identify dually enrolled students, data from MHEC were used to identify students whom Maryland postsecondary institutions identified to be dually enrolled. This method is included in the report because it is the method used in prior MLDSC reports on dual enrollment, and it is the only method for which 2014-2015 data on dual enrollment are currently available. The number of dually enrolled high school students (from both public and private schools) identified by Maryland postsecondary institutions has substantially increased from 5,716 students in the 2013- 2014 academic year to 6,724 students in the 2014-2015 academic year, using this method of identifying students. This report is the first dual enrollment report that used merged cross agency data to identify dually enrolled students in Maryland. The benefit of cross agency data is that it provides a high level of confidence that the students identified are actually concurrently enrolled in both a high school and a postsecondary institution. As more years of data become available within the MLDS, additional trends can be reported. Future research on dual enrollment will examine the academic achievement of students who are dually enrolled compared to students who are not dually enrolled and will examine additional postsecondary educational outcomes, including retention, degree attainment, and time to degree

The Promise of Persistence: Expanding the Framework for High School Completion

The research on students who do not graduate from high school has traditionally focused on students who drop out before their expected graduation date. This ignores the experiences of persisters or persisting students—those who remain enrolled in high school on or beyond their expected graduation date, but have yet to earn a diploma. Where data are available persisting students are estimated to be equal to or greater in number than dropouts. Authors argue that persisting students warrant greater attention in research, policy, and practice efforts meant to better understand and promote high school completion and the postsecondary transition. To this end, this article summarizes the existing literature on persisting students, with attention to how they are defined, their sociodemographic and academic characteristics, and the schools they attend. The article also lays out a research agenda and policy implications, highlighting the importance of better understanding this group and meeting their needs more effectively with the twin goals of (1) adding nuance to our understanding of persisting students and (2) improving the precision in educational research more broadly