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CREC is involved in initiatives that build on previous work associated with the Rural High School Aspirations (RHAS) study administrated out of the National Research Center for Rural Education Support. This work examined the ways in which rural youth develop future aspirations for education, residence and career, in particular looking at how rural school and community attachment may affect rural youth aspirations and future plans.

Follow-up work looks at malleable educational programs, policies, and practices that promote college persistence and completion among rural youth. Using various data available at the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) (e.g., Educational Longitudinal Study, High School Longitudinal Study, and Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study), this work addresses 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?

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 follow-up work is being conducted in collaboration with Penn State faculty member and CREC Associate, Soo-yong Byun, and Dr. Judith Meece, professor of education at the University of North Carolina.