Extending School-to-College Programs

Abstract Many foundations and philanthropic organizations have supported special programs to assist at-risk students' transition to college. This report provides analyses of three programs that have extended their programs beyond high school through enrollment in a community college. The results indicate the programs provide the added needed to increase the likelihood of success. Introduction and Background Each year, many special high school-to-college programs help youth attend college. Typically these programs target risk students--the underprivileged, minorities, or the academically challenged. Some programs are funded by private sources; others use public funds. Educators from more than 180 countries attending a U.N. meeting affirmed that more people need postsecondary education to be sufficiently skilled (Murray, 1999). Peter Drucker (1995) agreed when he said, knowledge has become the key resource for a nation's military and economic strength (p. 37). School-to-college programs acknowledge the need for postsecondary training and provide increasing access to college as the way of extending opportunity for all (Tierney & Hagedorn, 2002). Although there is almost universal agreement on the need for postsecondary education, access to and success in college are not widespread and remain highly correlated with race, socioeconomic status, and other demographic statistics unrelated to student effort, goals, or true ability. America's schools face difficulties in serving increasingly diverse groups of students. According to the latest census, 40% of those under the age of 18 are African American, Asian American, Hispanic, American Indian, or another minority (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). Despite years of federal aid and promising strategies, students enrolled in the country's low-income schools continue to lag behind in most measures of academic success (Levine, 1996). Simultaneously, selective colleges and universities restrict their admissions to only the nation's top students in an effort to increase the university's ratings by relying on the marketing premise that a limited commodity (access to) raises the value of the specific good (education). Increasingly, universities pride themselves on their high level of selectivity typically based on standardized admissions tests (SAT or ACT). The reliance on U.S. News and World Report's annual Best Colleges issue as a prestige-barometer is another deterrent to a more open access to college. One of the criteria for a top rating in this honored list is selectivity--or the proportion of applicants denied admission. Thus institutions gain points by denying admission to larger proportions of applicants. High selectivity of colleges means that students who do not receive a quality K-12 education do not stand a chance at going to a prestigious university. It has long been established that students from low-income backgrounds who attend schools in low-income neighborhoods receive a lesser quality education (Oakes, 2002). These students are almost guaranteed to have lower scores on standardized admissions tests. Also a lack of household familiarity with the college process and other significant obstacles make it increasingly difficult for students to enter elite universities (Jun & Colyar, 2002). Further evidence indicated that when low-income students enter elite universities they are likely to have more difficulties than students from middle- and high-income areas and are more prone to leave (Jun & Colyar, 2002; Tinto, 1993). Due to the aforementioned, the only alternative for many students is to attend a community college. By way of community colleges, students may transfer to a four-year college and subsequently obtain a bachelor's degree and beyond. While this scenario sounds great, the sad truth is that the majority of students who enter community colleges with high expectations never achieve their goals (Berkner, Cuccaro-Alamin, & McCormick, 1996). …