Rural High School Student Aspirations & College Success for Rural Youth

Rural High School Student Aspirations & College Success for Rural Youth

CREC is involved in an initiative that builds on previous work associated with the Rural High School Aspirations (RHAS) study administrated out of the National Research Center for Rural Education Support.

In particular, we are interested in identifying malleable educational programs, policies, and practices that promote college persistence and completion among rural youth. By conducting quantitative analyses using data from the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study, we will address the following questions:

• Do rural youth at four-year institutions differ from their metro counterparts in college experiences and pathways by which they pursue postsecondary education?  If so, how?
• How do college experiences of rural youth affect their college persistence and degree completion?

Which educational programs and policies matter for bachelor degree persistence and completion among rural youth, controlling for background traits (e.g., family socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity and gender) and pre-college preparation?

This work will be conducted in collaboration with Penn State faculty member Soo-yong Byun, and Dr. Judith Meece, professor of education at the University of North Carolina.