UC Davis

This dissertation is comprised of three articles that explore policies and practices to improve college and career readiness in the state of California, with a focus on reducing racial and socioeconomic inequality. The articles range from broadly exploring the role of charter schools in preparing student for better college enrollment outcomes, examining the effect of implementing a district-level policy to increase four-year college eligibility, and describing the inequities observed in course-taking patterns in the state of California. Findings from these three papers all show disparities in college preparedness, access, and enrollment by race, socioeconomic status, and English learner status. While the policies discussed in this dissertation may show evidence of an attenuation of inequities, large disparities remain, and are important to consider in future research efforts.

The first article, Beyond Test Scores: Exploring the relationship between graduating from a California charter school and college enrollment, explores the differences in college enrollment rates between charter school students and traditional public school students in the state of California. The descriptive study provides a comprehensive comparison of college enrollment patterns, inclusive of all students in the state who enroll in public, non-alternative, traditional and charter schools. Findings reveal that students graduating from charter schools exhibit lower rates of enrollment to any postsecondary institution 12 months following high school graduation compared to their traditional public school peers. However, of the students enrolling in college, charter school students are more likely to enroll in one of California’s public four-year universities compared to traditional public school graduates. These findings contribute to the wide variation in charter school performance expressed in the existing literature.

The second article, Requiring A-to-G: Examining the effect of aligning high school graduation requirements with California’s public university admissions course requirements, examines the causal effect of unified school districts in California aligning their high school graduation course requirements with the course sequence necessary for eligibility to the state’s public four-year universities, known as the A-G requirement. Findings show that requiring the A-G sequence to graduate increases A-G completion rates, graduation, and subsequent enrollment to a California public four-year university 12 months following graduation. However, results also indicate a decrease in overall college enrollment rates, which is in large part driven by a significant decrease in California Community College enrollment rates. Although overall results are similar in pattern to results for different racial/ethnic groups and socioeconomically disadvantaged students, respectively, students of color and socioeconomically disadvantaged students benefit most from this policy.

The last chapter, Inequality in Academic Preparation for College, is an overview of the course taking patterns of California high school students. Findings reveal racial disparities in A-G completion rates, Advanced Placement test participation, dual enrollment participation, and advanced math course taking. In addition to differences in these outcomes by race at the state level, we also find that disparities in these outcomes exist within districts and schools, suggesting that it is not merely a difference in racial composition of students across the state. This article was published by the Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), an independent, non-partisan research center and co-authored with colleagues at The California Education Lab at UC Davis.

Together, these articles contribute to the literature on equity in college preparedness and access, suggesting that students’ educational outcomes and trajectories are influenced by the policies, practices, and strategies taken by schools. The work included in these papers highlight the factors that education practitioners and policymakers should consider in helping more of California’s youth—particularly those from historically marginalized groups—make college enrollment and degree attainment a reality.