College Completion Research Articles

724-P: Baseline Findings from ACT1VATE—A Novel RCT for Diabetes Distress

Recent interventions for diabetes distress (DD) have achieved dramatic improvements in DD, but not A1c. Further, none have been rigorously tested in the healthcare settings where individuals receive their diabetes care. An in-progress RCT will compare diabetes education (DSME/S) to an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy group program (ACT1VATE) in improving glycemic management in N = 484 adults with type 1 diabetes, A1c ≥ 8, and significant DD. We predict that ACT1VATE will be superior to DSME/S in improving DD and glycemic management given its 1) goal to change one's relationship with difficult diabetes thoughts/emotions driving problematic health behaviors and 2) linkage of diabetes self-care behavior to one's personal values, thus eliciting intrinsic motivation for meaningful, lasting health behavior changes. Thus far, enrolled participants (N = 105) are predominantly female (65%), non-Hispanic (83%), and employed (63.8%), but heterogeneous in terms of education (49.5% completed college, 26.1% high school or less), household income (24% < $50k, 38% > $100k), and age (20 to 83; M = 45.9±16.1 years). Mean baseline A1c = 9.2±1.4 and Diabetes Distress Scale total = 2.8±0.9 (indicating “moderate/severe” distress). The Acceptance and Action Diabetes Questionnaire (AADQ) measured psychological processes targeted in ACT1VATE (psychological inflexibility, experiential avoidance). Consistent with our theoretical framework, at baseline, greater diabetes acceptance/action (higher AADQ) was significantly correlated with lower A1c (r = -.30) and diabetes distress (r = -.63), fewer missed insulin doses (r = -.38), healthier diet (r = .29) and better overall well-being (r = .55), ps < .01. As the first large scale DD RCT integrated in a real-world setting, this study will build on prior well-controlled efficacy trials and provide rich information about implementation. These findings will inform healthcare systems’ attempts to meet ADA recommendations to integrate DD screenings and interventions into routine care. Disclosure E.C.Soriano: None. A.L.Fortmann: Employee; Dexcom, Inc. H.Sandoval: None. M.G.Antrim: None. S.Guzman: Consultant; Abbott Diabetes. W.H.Polonsky: Consultant; Abbott Diabetes, Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly Alliance, Eli Lilly and Company, Insulet Corporation, Intuity Medical, Inc., MannKind Corporation, Provention Bio, Inc., Sanofi-Aventis U.S., Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated. S.R.Spierling bagsic: None. A.Philis-tsimikas: Advisory Panel; Dexcom, Inc., Novo Nordisk A/S, Sanofi, Other Relationship; Medtronic, Research Support; Novo Nordisk A/S, Lilly, Viking Therapeutics, NIH - National Institutes of Health. Funding National Institutes of Health (1R01DK127491)

What Knox Achieved

<h3>Abstract</h3> We examine the effect of a last-dollar “free community college” program on college credit accumulation, college completion, and medium-term labor-market outcomes. Knox Achieves pledged tuition-free community college to any Knox County, Tennessee high school graduate and served as the model for the statewide Tennessee Promise program as well as local and state initiatives across the U.S. We find that Knox Achieves eligibility led to a 24 percent higher likelihood of attaining an associate’s degree within nine years of high school, alongside positive but insignificant changes in the likelihood of attaining a bachelor’s degree, and negative but insignificant changes in in-state earnings.

The complementary feeding practices of low-income Black mothers with infants between 6 and 24 months of age: A qualitative study.

The period from 6 to 24 months in an infant's life presents a critical window for understanding feeding practices and for designing culturally appropriate interventions. However, little is known about the complementary feeding practices of Black mothers and how this period can be used to optimise the long-term health of their children. The present study aimed to identify factors that influence the complementary feeding practices of low-income Black mothers with children aged 6-24 months. Participants were recruited through Research Match, Facebook advertising, flyers, and snowballing techniques. Low-income, Black mothers, with a 6-24-month-old infant, and who lived in Franklin County, Ohio, USA, were eligible for the study. A cross-sectional design using in-depth interviews was used. Reflexive thematic analysis was utilised to analyse and interpret the feeding practices of Black mothers. Mothers (n = 8) were aged between 18 and 30 years old and most completed college or had some college education (n = 6). Half (n = 4) were married, employed, and rated their diet quality and their children's as very good. Three themes emerged: (a) complementary feeding at ≥ 6 months of age; (b) involvement of health care providers and service organisations in feeding decisions; and (c) use of responsive feeding cues. All mothers breastfed exclusively and most (n = 6) initiated complementary feeding at 6 months. Paediatricians, other health providers and service organisations were instrumental in helping Black mothers adopt complementary feeding practices. Mothers also engaged in responsive feeding practices. These findings point to the critical nature of access and education in helping Black mothers in the study achieve feeding recommendations for their infants.

Top Talent, Elite Colleges, and Migration: Evidence from the Indian Institutes of Technology

We study migration in the right tail of the talent distribution using a novel dataset of Indian high school students taking the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE), a college entrance exam used for admission to the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT). We find a high incidence of migration after students complete college: among the top 1000 scorers on the exam, 36% have migrated abroad, rising to 62% for the top 100 scorers. We next document that students who attended the original “Top 5” IIT were 5 percentage points more likely to migrate for graduate school compared to equally talented students who studied in other institutions. We explore two mechanisms for these patterns: signaling, for which we study migration after one university suddenly gained the IIT designation; and alumni networks, using information on the location of IIT alumni in U.S. computer science departments.

Educational attainment for at-risk high school students: closing the gap.

The higher education gap persists in the United States for underserved, first-generation, low-income minority students. They often have little knowledge of college application and future success. This mixed-method study evaluated a Northeastern university-sponsored tutorial-mentorship 2-year program, Soar (pseudonym), for 80 metropolitan first-generation junior and senior high school students. One research question guided the study: Does Soar as a precollege program for underserved, first-generation, minority high school students help them successfully complete applications and prepare them for higher educational success? With college-oriented classes and workshops, the students submitted applications and received 205 acceptances from 96 colleges. Quantitative surveys and qualitative forums showed significant improvement in socioemotional and cognitive skill development and knowledge. Themes derived from qualitative focus groups supported the quantitative results. For juniors: Confidence, Aligning Schools and Strengths, Financial Literacy. For seniors: College Aspirations; Successfully Complete College Applications; Confidence, Self-Advocacy, Communication; Knowledge About Diversity of Schools and Critical Thinking. For mentors: Matching, Closeness, Trust; Confidence, Voice, Perseverance, Strengths, Goal Pursuit; Civic Engagement. The findings illustrate how an outreach program can result in higher education attainment and success for underserved, first-generation, minority high school students. Soar can become a model for college preparation for similar underserved students in other urban areas.

Rising Tides Don’t Create Racialized Change: Analyzing Institutional Change Projects in Postsecondary Philanthropy’s College Completion Agenda

ABSTRACT This paper uses critical archival analysis, paired with textual analysis of grant descriptions, to understand how nine foundations — all with endowments derived from the student loan industry — have motivated their college completion work and the relationship between these commitments and grantmaking over time (2000–2019). Mobilizing concepts of theorization and racialized change work (RCW) to analyze the relationship between funders’ deployed racial frames and their theory of change, this paper offers three primary contributions: 1) A methodological approach to analyzing philanthropic or intermediary-led reform campaigns (e.g. the college completion agenda) as a form of theorization — a core mechanism of institutional change and diffusion — inclusive of funders’ racial projects; 2) Insights on the qualitative, causal pathway by which one foundation created organization-specific interest convergence that facilitated engagement in RCW, and 3) Evidence demonstrating how race-evasive theorizations, even if efficacious mechanisms for change, fail to deinstitutionalize a core mechanism of racialization: investment in deficit-minded, individual-level projects. These insights speak not only to the material differences between race-evasive and race-conscious theorizations, but also organizational pathways toward durable race-conscious commitments in higher education.

Virtual Antenatal Group Contraception Counseling: A Pilot Study [ID: 1346753

INTRODUCTION: This pilot study examines the feasibility, patient satisfaction, and knowledge after a novel virtual Group Contraception Counseling (GCC) session. METHODS: At an urban academic hospital, we recruited English-speaking pregnant women aged 15–49 who had access to a video-enabled electronic device. Participants engaged in a standardized 45-minute educational session about contraceptive methods in groups of two to five persons conducted over a video conferencing platform. The primary outcome was patient satisfaction measured by the Person-Centered Contraception Counseling (PCCC) scale. The secondary outcome was knowledge change before and after counseling. We used a nonparametric test of ranks to analyze satisfaction scores. A paired-sample t test and independent t tests were used to compare knowledge scores. RESULTS: Nineteen participants completed the study. Participants identified primarily as Black (47%), in a partnership (52%), having completed college (61%), and having an annual income of less than $50,000 (78%). The mean PCCC score was 19.21 out of 20 (SD 1.12, range 13–20) with no difference in satisfaction based on demographics or knowledge change score (r−0.296, P=.218). There was a significant difference between knowledge test scores pre- and post-GCC sessions (t 18=−3.229, P&lt;.01), with post scores being 12% higher than pre scores (range 16–40%). Age, race, partnership status, and employment did not differentiate scores, whereas education was predictive of mean change of score after the GCC session (t 15=−2.93, P&lt;.01). CONCLUSION: Our preliminary findings suggest antenatal contraception counseling in small virtual groups is a feasible option with high satisfaction and increased contraceptive knowledge for postpartum contraception choices.

Genetic risk, childhood obesity, and educational achievements

We use the genetic risk exclusively related to body mass index as an instrumental variable to examine the causal effects of childhood obesity on educational achievements. We find that childhood obesity decreases high school GPA by 0.92 grade points (33.0%), GPAs of different subjects by 0.72–1.11 grade points (21.7–42.6%), the probability of college enrollment by 0.37, the probability of college completion by 0.65, and years of schooling by 2.19 years (14.8%). Additionally, we explore potential underlying mechanisms through which childhood obesity adversely influences educational outcomes. Our results indicate that childhood obesity does not have a statistically significant influence on cognitive abilities. Nevertheless, it negatively affects educational achievements via health factors (overall health status, health-damaging behaviors, and psychological well-being), school absenteeism and aggression, college aspirations and expectations, and family dynamics. This research provides evidence that childhood obesity can hinder children's educational progress, potentially affecting adult outcomes and exacerbating economic inequality.

Optimism and Obstacles: Racialized Constraints in College Attitudes and Expectations among Teens of the Prison Boom

Using data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we estimate associations of paternal incarceration with three measures of teens’ attitudes and expectations: (1) optimism about the future, (2) perceived importance of college graduation, and (3) perceived likelihood of college graduation. Results suggest that whereas optimism toward the future and the importance of college are resilient in the face of paternal incarceration, teens’ expectations of actual college completion are reduced, particularly for Black youth. An examination of micro-, meso-, and macro-level mechanisms suggests that early consequences of paternal incarceration influence perceptions of future educational trajectories. Our findings point to the complexity of contemporary teens’ college-related attitudes in the wake of the prison boom. Signs of optimism surfaced, yet obstacles associated with paternal incarceration represent a type of racialized constraint. An updating of the educational expectations literature is needed to account for the racialized nature of the era of mass incarceration in the United States.

ASSESSING THE KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDEOF MOTHERS TOWARDS THEIR CHILDREN ORAL HEALTH IN CHENGALPATTU DISTRICT – A CROSS SECTIONAL SURVEY

Introduction: Poor oral health has a significant impact on general health.In both affluent and developing nations, oral disorders significantly worsen people's quality of life. Geographical space is now thought of as a functional domain, as both a recipient and an activator of social processes. The study aims to present a new concept on including mother's concept on level of education in preventive aspect among a valuable population. Materials And Methods:The study is a cross sectional survey conducted among 100 moms and 100 children aged 6 from the Chengalpattu area made up the study sample. The mothers signed the informed and mandated permission after being told of the study's goals and procedures. Results: In terms of the demographics of the chosen group, it was found through the analysis of the data gathered that 50% of the moms have completed high school,followed by those who graduated from completed college (46.7%). Children with considerable caries experience are more likely to be among subjects with an inadequate practise score than those with a good practise score,according to the association between oral health practise level and children's carious experience (dmft among 1 and 4). (dmft between 5 and 8). Conclusion: The findings of our study demonstrated that mothers' knowledge and attitudes about oral health are moderate, and that mothers' levels of education have an impact on those levels of knowledge and attitudes, with mothers with higher levels of education having more knowledge than mothers with only a high school diploma.

MAKING CAREER CHOICES APPLICATION FOR CHILD AT SECONDARY LEVEL

Career choice constitutes one of the most critical turning points in student lives because this choice determines students future role in the society and symbolizes one of the most important processes in student entire life. Career choice is one of the key decisions among student’s life. Correct decision will give success in their professional life. The objective is to determine role of career guidance in professional career choice among secondary school students. Career decidedness at early stages produces positive effects on student performance, college completion, and professional development. Good career planning leads to life fulfillment however; cultural heritage can conflict with youths’ personal interests. This is examined existing literature on factors that influence youths’ career choices in both collectivist and individualistic. Career choice and planning has become important as globalization, and current vocational choices have created an unprecedented war for talent. Selection of the wrong career can affect achievement, contentment and mental health of the individual for life.

Four-Year College Completion Rates: What Accounts for the Variation?

Higher education has been touted as critical to social mobility, even greater longevity; however, these benefits accrue with degree completion, and many students who begin college never earn a degree. Using the most recent Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), we sought to understand variation in college completion rates and test hypotheses related to a set of institutional factors potentially associated with higher completion rates. Our findings suggest that greater attention to low-resource institutions is paramount if higher education is to fulfill the aspiration of promoting social mobility and equity. Several policy interventions could be used to combat ongoing disparities.

Developmental trajectories of behavioral inhibition from infancy to age seven: The role of genetic and environmental risk for psychopathology.

The present study leveraged data from a longitudinal adoption study of 361 families recruited between 2003 and 2010 in the United States. We investigated how psychopathology symptoms in birth parents (BP; Mage =24.1 years; 50.5-62.9% completed high school) and adoptive parents (AP; Mage =37.8 years; 80.9% completed college; 94% mother-father couples) influenced children's behavioral inhibition (BI) trajectories. We used latent growth models of observed BI at 18 and 27 months, and 4.5 and 7 years in a sample of adopted children (Female=42%, White=57%, Black=11%, Multi-racial=21%, Latinx=9%). BI generally decreased over time, yet there was substantial variability in these trajectories. Neither BP nor AP psychopathology symptoms independently predicted systematic differences in BI trajectories. Instead, we found that AP internalizing symptoms moderated the effects of BP psychopathology on trajectories of BI, indicating a gene by environment interaction.

Moving Across 2-Year Institutions: Who Are Lateral Transfer Students? What Are Their Degree Outcomes?

Objectives/Research Question: This study aims to explore who transfers between 2-year colleges (lateral transfer students) and how these students fare in terms of degree attainment. More specifically, this research explores two research questions: (1) What are the predictors of lateral transfer? (2) Is lateral transfer associated with degree attainment outcomes, time to earn a degree, or cumulative loan debt by the sixth year? Methods: Using the Beginning Postsecondary Students 12:17 data, I compared lateral transfer students to students who never transferred (non-transfer students) to identify the predictors of lateral transfer and examine degree attainment outcomes. I used multinominal logit, logistic regressions, and inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment matching models. Results: Lateral transfer students were more likely to be female and take college courses in high school than non-transfer students. Six years later, lateral transfer students were more likely to earn all types of college credentials, except for an associate degree, complete a degree more quickly, and still attend college if they had not yet earned a credential than non-transfer students. However, lateral transfer students took out a greater amount of federal loans than non-transfer students. Conclusions: Given the positive degree attainment outcomes, policymakers, and practitioners should reconsider the role of lateral transfer in the college completion agenda and pay more attention to why students make lateral transfers and the nature of their college pathways. This study suggests that lateral transfer has great potential to improve persistence and graduation for students who start their education at a community college.

Distinctively Black Names and Educational Outcomes

Names can convey information about race or ethnicity and therefore can be used to discriminate against protected groups; many researchers have demonstrated as much through audit studies. Yet few studies link life outcomes with names using observational data. We use administrative data from over 3 million Black students to ask whether those with more statistically Black names have differential educational outcomes. We find that while test scores, college enrollment, and college completion are negatively correlated with Black names net of background characteristics, this relationship is absent when we compare across siblings within households.

The Impact of Education Abroad Participation on College Student Success Among First-Generation Students

ABSTRACT This study utilized the large-scale, multi-institutional CASSIE dataset to examine the impact of education abroad participation on academic outcomes for first-generation college students. Using robust multivariate matching methodology that effectively minimized self-selection bias, results showed the magnitude of benefit offered by studying abroad was greater for first-generation students than for continuing-generation students. Even after matching on a variety of background and prior achievement variables, first-generation students who studied abroad had higher 4- and 6-year graduation rates, had higher cumulative GPA scores, and took less time to graduate—relative to first-generation students who did not study abroad. These findings suggest that education abroad programming can be leveraged as a high-impact educational practice to promote college completion rates among first-generation students.

Affect Theory and the Community College Completion Agenda

Affect Theory and the Community College Completion Agenda

“It was Hard to Prepare without Knowing What I was Preparing for”: Latine Youth Experiences of a First-Generation College-Going Group

This article describes the experience of participants and facilitators engaging in a psychoeducational group counseling intervention designed to enhance college readiness among Latine first-generation college-going students—those for whom neither parent completed college (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017). The group was designed to increase students’ understanding of how their various identities impacted their college preparatory experience and willingness to seek help. Findings suggest that participants recognized the importance of their identities and the way they influenced their help-seeking behaviors. Participants identified similarities among their experiences related to college going while also valuing learning from each other’s differences. Last, participants felt a sense of uncertainty and angst about going to college. We also share facilitator experiences.

A Smartphone-Based Pilot HIV Prevention Intervention (Sakhi) among Transgender Women who Engage in Sex Work in India: Efficacy of a Pre- and Post-Test Quasi-Experimental Trial.

Transgender women (TGW) in India, especially those who engage in sex work, are at high risk for HIV. Guided by the information-motivation-behavioral skills model and qualitative formative research findings, Sakhi (girlfriend), a 3-week smartphone-based pilot intervention consisting of short videos (one/week) and text messages (two/week), was implemented using a one-group pre- and post-test design to test its efficacy in promoting condom use and HIV testing among TGW (N = 50) who engage in sex work in Chennai. Changes in outcomes were assessed by conducting multivariable analyses using generalized estimating equations. Participants' mean age was 26 years, and the mean monthly income was INR 21700 (USD 292). About one-third completed college, and 96% were HIV-negative. Significant changes in the desired direction were observed in the primary outcomes: condom use - decrease in the engagement of condomless anal sex with male partners (12% to 2%, p < 0.05) and HIV testing - increase in intentions to undergo HIV testing every 6 months (34% to 86%, p < 0.001); and in some of the secondary outcomes: decrease in alcohol use before sex, increase in intentions to use condoms consistently and increase in the well-being score. This study demonstrated the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of the Sakhi intervention and warrants a larger randomized trial among diverse sub-groups in diverse settings.

“For free and useless studies”: Critical reflections on the end of work and study

Revisiting Gorz’s Destroy the University (1970) offers an opportunity to analyze the community college as situated between the factory (vocational) and the prison (formal education’s “other”) in the United States. College administrators increasingly require economic rationality to justify the continued existence of liberal arts, humanities, and social science programs at community colleges or risk being eliminated as “useless.” Most community college students are first generation, full-time students, workers, and often parenting students. They face severe time constraints, which are under-theorized and under-politicized to their own detriment. The COVID-19 pandemic compelled most people, including students, to transform previously private spaces to public spaces to accommodate work, school, and care-giving responsibilities. As a result, spatial and temporal distinctions between these different modes of being collapsed, allowing economic rationality to inform the most intimate settings of home; a Gorzian nightmare. In this article, I bring Gorz’s “Destroy the University” into conversation with his Critique of Economic Reason to examine how economic rationality functions within the community college with special attention to the acceleration of study in relation to Complete College America’s “15 to Finish” program at LaGuardia Community College, CUNY.