Using State Data to Make a Case: The cases of California

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Using State Data to Make a CaseThe cases of
California Wisconsin

• Dr. Colleen OBrien
• Director
• The Pell Institute for the Study of Opportunity
  in Higher Education
• Council
• for
• Opportunity in Education

• Dr. Alberto F. Cabrera
• Department of Educational Policy Leadership
• University of Maryland

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Policy questions under examination

• Readiness for college
• Does GEAR UP have an impact on middle school
  students preparedness for college?
• Financial aid
• Is financial aid packaging stable across time?
• Are all types of financial aid equally effective
  in promoting persistence in college?

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Policy question

• Does GEAR UP have an impact on middle school
  students preparedness for college?

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An example of a longitudinal perspective for
assessing GEAR UP

• Unit of analysis
• Cohorts of 7th graders attending 180 California
  public schools in the fall of 1999.
• Cohorts followed from 6th grade to 8th grade
• Variables
• Dependent mean scaled scores on the Stanford-9
  tests in reading and mathematics
• Independent School characteristics

Analytical Design for CA and National APRs
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Growth Trajectories among Californian Schools
1999-2001

• Across all schools, reading and math scores
  improved
• Reading
• 6th to 7th grade 21.3 points
• 6th to 8th grade 30.5 points
• Mathematics
• 6th to 7th grade 21.4 points
• 6th to 8th grade 24.7 points

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Examining the impact of financial aid packaging

• State-based database
• University of Wisconsin System Longitudinal data
  base.
• Subjects
• Random sample of the freshman class of 1979.
• Research design
• Longitudinal tracking of changes in financial
  aid packaging during four years of college for
  the same student (1979-82).
• Financial aid
• Extracted from institutional records.
• Method of analyses
• Markov analyses

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Making sense of Markov analysis

• Rows represent student aid packages students
  belonged at in their freshman year
• Columns show their classification in their next
  three years of college.
• Cells along the diagonal indicate the probability
  of maintaining the same student aid packaged
  across four years of college
• Off diagonal cells indicate the probability of
  changing financial aid packaging.

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Financial Aid Packaging Across Time
Stability in financial aid packaging
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What is the probability of receiving only grants
across 4 years of college?
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Financial Aid Packaging Across Time
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Financial Aid Packaging Across Time
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What is the probability of receiving only loans
across 4 years of college?
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Financial Aid Packaging Across Time
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Financial Aid Packaging Across Time
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• To what extent is financial aid packaging stable
  across time?
• To what extent are all types of financial aid
  equally effective in promoting persistence in
  college?

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Financial Aid Packaging Across Time
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Examples of promising State-based databases

• State of Washington
• Texas
• Wisconsin
• Nevada

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Thank you!
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• Additional Material for Questions Answers

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Potential research designs using state-based
databases
Dr. Cabrera
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References

• Adelman, C. (1999). Answers in the tool box
  Academic intensity, attendance patterns, and
  bachelors degree attainment. Document PLLI
  1999-8021. Washington DC U.S. Department of
  Education, Office of Educational Research and
  Improvement.
• Bensimon, E. M., Polkinghorne, D. E., Bauman, G.
  L. Vallejo, E. (2004). Doing research that
  makes a difference. Journal of Higher Education,
  75(1), pp. 104-126.
• Cabrera, A. F., Burkum, K. R. La Nasa, S. M.
  (2005). Pathways to a four year degree
  Determinants of transfer and degree completion.
  In A. Seidman (Ed.). College Student Retention A
  Formula for Student Success. ACE/Praeger series
  on Higher Education.
• Cabrera, A. F., Prabhu, R., Deil-Amen, R.,
  Terenzini, P. T., Lee, C., Franklin, R. F., Jr.
  (2006). Increasing the college preparedness of
  at-risk students. Journal of Latinos and
  Education, 5(2), 79-97

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References

• Stampen, J. O. Cabrera, A. F. (1988). The
  targeting and packaging of student aid and its
  effects on attrition. Economics of Education
  Review, 7, 29-46.
• Stampen, J. O. Cabrera, A. F. (1986). Exploring
  the effects of student aid on attrition. The
  Journal of Financial Aid, 16, 28-40.