While many high schools reproduce social inequalities in college access, little is known about the schools that successfully reduce them. To this end, Gorana Ilic and James E. Rosenbaum studied an urban high school that expressed a strong commitment to supporting all students' college applications. In this article, they describe the organizational…

College counseling has become an increasingly significant part of high school counselors' jobs, but too often, they focus primarily on college access, without paying attention to whether students are choosing the appropriate college for them. Gorana Ilic, James Rosenbaum, Isabelle Matthies, and Lynn Meissner interviewed counselors to better…

Efforts to promote college for all for all has opened college doors to a broad range of students. But college--and career success after college--doesn't have to mean a bachelor's degree. Community college credentials, such as associate's degrees and one-year certificates, can lead to further degrees or jobs that offer more benefits than students…

Florida's College and Career Readiness Initiative (FCCRI) required schools to administer a community college placement test to 11th-grade students and enroll students who did not pass in a college readiness course. Christine Mokher, James Rosenbaum, Alexis Gable, Caitlin Ahearn, and Louis Jacobson surveyed teachers of the course and found that,…

States and districts across the country have experimented with various college and career readiness initiatives designed to help students complete the postsecondary education they need to succeed in the labor market. Yet how do teachers view their students' likely college capabilities following these efforts? Can the reforms help work-bound…

This paper analyzes teacher responses to a distinctive reform that sought to ­implement alignment between high schools and colleges. A survey of 225 teachers is used to examine teachers' perceptions of the reform's effectiveness, further resources needed, and how perceptions changed over time. The reform was perceived as effective for…

When 89% of high school graduates plan BA degrees, and low-achieving seniors who plan degrees have 80% failure rates, raising already high plans may be a poor strategy for improving college success. Using data on 7th-10th grade students, Domina et al. argue that higher plans are associated with success and suggest that my study of high school…

Despite planning college, disadvantaged students are less likely to enroll in college, particularly 4-year colleges. Beyond cost and academic achievement, previous research finds that a lack of college-related social resources poses barriers. However, little research investigates whether schools can help. We examine whether, how, and for whom a…