tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/low-income-students-33582/articleslow income students – The Conversation2023-06-27T12:22:29Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2047812023-06-27T12:22:29Z2023-06-27T12:22:29ZCOVID-19 hurt kids’ math learning more than reading and writing – with the biggest setbacks in fall 2020<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531164/original/file-20230609-27-i49xk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The pandemic's effect on student learning could exacerbate racial and economic achievement gaps.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/adolescent-girl-on-her-computer-at-home-doing-royalty-free-image/1368081389">Laura Olivas/Moment Collection/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em></p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p>The COVID-19 pandemic had a stark negative impact on students’ math scores, <a href="https://epicedpolicy.org/wp-the-path-of-student-learning-delay-during-covid-19/">new data from Michigan shows</a>. Math achievement growth over the three-year period from spring 2019 through spring 2022 was substantially lower – approximately 7 national percentiles – than among comparable students the three years prior.</p>
<p>There were even larger decreases among students who are Black or Latino, low income or who attended the <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/annualreports/topical-studies/covid/">majority of schools that taught remotely</a> for at least part of the 2020-2021 academic year.</p>
<p>Effects on scores for English language arts, which include reading and writing, were small and generally not statistically significant.</p>
<p>To arrive at these findings, we looked at individual test scores and other data from Michigan.</p>
<p>First we looked at how math and English language arts test scores on Michigan’s annual statewide <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/mde/services/student-assessment/m-step">M-STEP exam</a> grew between 2019 and 2022 for a group of students in third grade through fifth grade in spring 2019. </p>
<p>We compared these students’ test score growth with growth achieved by similar students who were in those same grades three years earlier, before the pandemic began. This provides us with a broad view of the impact of the pandemic on school learning as measured through test scores. </p>
<p>We also looked at scores from a series of benchmark tests taken between fall 2020 and spring 2022 to measure how achievement growth changed within each school year <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/09/health/covid-19-pandemic-timeline-fast-facts/index.html">leading up to and following the height of the pandemic</a>.</p>
<p>While other studies also show how the <a href="https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/gpl_reports/41/">pandemic set back student achievement</a>, our research looks at how achievement was affected over the course of the pandemic rather than just the end result. And the picture is pretty clear: Using a set of exams given at the beginning and end of each school year, we found a large drop in achievement between fall 2020 and spring 2021.</p>
<p>While student achievement began to improve in spring 2021, that recovery has been too slow to enable students to reach pre-pandemic expectations for test scores.</p>
<p>And, just as Black, Latino and low-income students suffered the largest drops in test scores during the pandemic, their math recovery has also slightly lagged behind white students and students who were more affluent.</p>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>This study adds to the research on how the pandemic appears to have exacerbated racial and economic achievement gaps. These gaps are important because lower achievement among disadvantaged groups could lead to <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/2023/01/23/college-enrollment-gaps-how-academic-preparation-influences-opportunity/">lower college enrollment rates</a> and, in turn, <a href="https://www.clevelandfed.org/en/publications/economic-commentary/2012/ec-201210-the-college-wage-premium">lower earnings</a>. </p>
<h2>What still isn’t known</h2>
<p>Research is starting to show how quickly students are recovering and whether students are catching up at a rate fast enough to overcome pandemic learning disruptions. Some interventions, such as <a href="https://caldercenter.org/sites/default/files/CALDER%20WP%20275-1222.pdf">tutoring and after-school programming</a>, are in place to attempt to speed up the recovery, but we do not yet know how effective they are.</p>
<p>We also don’t know for sure why there were disproportionate learning delays in math relative to English language arts. One possibility is that families found it easier to supplement reading instruction at home compared to math.</p>
<h2>What’s next</h2>
<p>Our next study looks at how the pandemic affected how students were identified for special education services. We are assessing how the inability to have in-person contact between teachers, school professionals and students made it <a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2021/11/18/22789162/special-education-referral-drop-nyc">harder to assess</a> and <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/2023/5/24/23736774/special-education-early-intervention-services-preschool-pandemic">serve students</a> who might benefit from special education. Delays in access to these services could have substantially affected their academic, developmental and behavioral progress.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204781/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Scott A Imberman receives funding from the Institute for Education Sciences, US Department of Education.The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent views of the Institute or the U.S. Department of Education.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katharine O. Strunk receives funding from the Institute for Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education, the State of Michigan, and several philanthropic foundations. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent the views of any of the organizations that fund Dr. Strunk's research. </span></em></p>A new analysis of standardized test scores from elementary schools in Michigan pinpoints when during the pandemic students fell most behind.Scott A Imberman, Professor of Economics and Education Policy, Michigan State UniversityKatharine O. Strunk, Professor of Education Policy and Economics, Michigan State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1619572021-07-20T18:45:06Z2021-07-20T18:45:06ZFree school meals for all children can improve kids’ health<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/411933/original/file-20210719-19-1pzcy0m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5366%2C3572&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many children, especially from low-income communities or communities of color, eat up to half their daily calories in school. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/cafeteria-worker-serving-healthy-food-to-children-royalty-free-image/498579063?adppopup=true">SDI Productions/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Recognizing that millions of U.S. children are at <a href="https://theconversation.com/18-million-us-children-are-at-risk-of-hunger-how-is-the-problem-being-addressed-and-what-more-can-be-done-151821">risk of hunger</a>, <a href="https://www.foodservicedirector.com/operations/maine-california-embrace-universal-free-school-meals">Maine and California</a> have approved funding to offer free school meals to all students within their state. Meanwhile, a <a href="https://www.sanders.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Universal-School-Meals-Program-Act-of-2021.pdf">bill proposed in Congress</a> aims to make free school meals a permanent fixture in all states.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.sanders.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Universal-School-Meals-Act-Summary.4.28.21.pdf">Universal School Meals Program Act</a> would provide free healthy meals and snacks to all children in public and nonprofit private schools regardless of income. </p>
<p>Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/child-nutrition-response-84">has allowed</a> school districts to provide meals free of charge to families during the pandemic. Previously set to expire in September, the policy has been extended <a href="https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2021/04/20/usda-issues-pandemic-flexibilities-schools-and-day-care-facilities">through the 2021-2022 school year</a>. This marks the first time in the <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp/program-history">75-year history</a> of the National School Lunch Program that all U.S. public school children are getting equal access to school meals, with no questions asked.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://www.eatright.org/food/resources/learn-more-about-rdns/qualifications-of-a-registered-dietitian-nutritionist">registered dietitian nutritionist</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=2ujk8c8AAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate">researcher</a> who specializes in child <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-food-insecurity-152746#:%7E:text=Food%20insecurity%20is%20fundamentally%20an,obstacles%20like%20poverty%20and%20discrimination.&text=Food%20insecurity%20can%20be%20exacerbated,of%20healthy%20and%20affordable%20food.">food insecurity</a>, I frequently see how <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11071574">access and availability</a> to nutritious foods can shape kids’ health. </p>
<p>When children return to schools in the fall, the ongoing policy waivers provide an opportunity to examine how <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2020.03.006">universal free school meals</a> impact nutrition in school meal programs and health inequities among children.</p>
<h2>Better health</h2>
<p>Good nutrition plays a crucial role in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22175">strong academic outcomes</a>. School meals have been shown to reduce childhood <a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2017/august/usda-s-national-school-lunch-program-reduces-food-insecurity">food insecurity</a> and childhood <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2014.2048">overweight and obesity</a> while improving <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2016.04.010">overall diet quality</a>. </p>
<p>School meals are often more nutritious than meals eaten <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.5262">elsewhere</a> or even <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S136898001900017X">home-packed lunches</a>. Studies have shown that access to school meals can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxy267">improve attendance</a>, <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/health_and_academics/pdf/factsheetDietaryBehaviors.pdf">academic performance</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.3386/w24986">behavior</a>.</p>
<h2>Less stigma</h2>
<p>Many children, especially those from low-income and minority families, eat up to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2016.11.016">half their daily calories</a> at school. For these families, the cost of school meals, usually between <a href="https://schoolnutrition.org/aboutschoolmeals/schoolmealtrendsstats/">US$2.48 and $2.74</a> depending on grade level, can add up quickly over a week, month or school year.</p>
<p>Children with <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/unpaid-meal-charges">outstanding meal debts</a> could be <a href="https://www.eater.com/2019/5/22/18634237/lunch-shaming-students-meal-debt-american-schools">shamed</a>, refused a meal or provided a lower-cost alternative meal – such as a cheese sandwich, fruit and milk rather than the standard meal served to other students. </p>
<h2>Needed relief</h2>
<p>School meal programs are run like a business and depend heavily on federal <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/rates-reimbursement">reimbursements</a> from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. When families can’t or don’t pay for meals served, schools may need to use their own funds to cover the losses. The Department of Agriculture <a href="https://frac.org/wp-content/uploads/frac-unpaid-meal-fees-policy-guide.pdf">prohibits using federal funds</a> to pay off unpaid meal debt. The Universal School Meals Program Act would <a href="https://www.sanders.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Universal-School-Meals-Act-Summary.4.28.21.pdf">eliminate around $10.9 million of existing</a> unpaid school meal debt reported by <a href="https://schoolnutrition.org/uploadedFiles/6_News_Publications_and_Research/8_SNA_Research/2019-school-nutrition-trends-summary.pdf">75% of U.S. school districts</a>. </p>
<p>In addition to school meal debt, during the first full year of the pandemic, schools served <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/data/february-2021-keydata-report">fewer meals</a>, resulting in further losses in revenue. The meals served <a href="https://schoolnutrition.org/uploadedFiles/6_News_Publications_and_Research/8_SNA_Research/Impact-of-Covid-19-on-School-Nutrition-Programs-Back-to-School-2020.pdf">were more costly</a> due to packaging and personal protective equipment for staff. As a result, more than <a href="https://schoolnutrition.org/aboutschoolmeals/schoolmealtrendsstats/">50% of school meal programs</a> reported a financial loss in 2019-2020. An even greater number of programs report expecting a loss for the <a href="https://schoolnutrition.org/aboutschoolmeals/schoolmealtrendsstats/">2020-2021 school year</a>. </p>
<h2>Return on investment</h2>
<p>A <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020670">national study</a> found that schools participating in universal free meal programs reduced their per-meal costs while maintaining nutritional quality of meals served. School meals can <a href="https://agriculture.vermont.gov/sites/agriculture/files/documents/Farm_to_School_Institution/Economic%20Contribution%20of%20Farm%20to%20School%20in%20Vermont%20.pdf">stimulate local economies</a> because they can <a href="http://www.farmtoschool.org/Resources/EconomicImpactReport.pdf">drive purchases from local farmers</a> and ranchers and <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520300033/the-labor-of-lunch">create jobs</a> in school nutrition, food production, sales and distribution. </p>
<p>[<em>Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=100Ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p>
<p>For school districts, switching to a universal model of meals for all children – regardless of income – is likely to reduce <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/child-nutrition-reporting-burden-analysis-study">administrative burdens</a>. Schools would no longer have to waste time on applications and meeting reporting requirements like they have to do under the current reimbursement model. They could focus on healthy meals and nutrition education instead. </p>
<p>I believe the return on investment from universal school lunches would benefit our country’s economic recovery from the pandemic as well as the health and well-being of our country’s children.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161957/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew J. Landry receives funding support from the National Institutes of Health. He is affiliated with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics where he serves as a volunteer member of the Legislative and Public Policy Committee. He is also a member of the Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior where he serves as an appointed member of the Advisory Committee on Public Policy. These organizations had no role in this article and the views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author.</span></em></p>Expanding free lunch programs could also reduce stigma for students, lower administrative burdens for schools and create jobs for communities.Matthew J. Landry, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Stanford UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1152152019-04-23T10:44:42Z2019-04-23T10:44:42ZWhy federal student aid should be restored for people in prison<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270287/original/file-20190422-28087-17zavgb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Research shows prison education lessens the chances that inmates will return to prison after their release.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/College-Behind-Bars/3541c4fc32b34dc5be2908b140d1158b/82/0">Elaine Thompson/AP</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Congress is thinking of lifting a longstanding <a href="https://genprogress.org/its-time-to-lift-the-ban-on-pell-grants-for-prisoners/">ban</a> on federal student aid for those serving time in prison.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/2168/text?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22REAL+Act%22%5D%7D&r=2&s=1">“Restoring Education And Learning Act of 2019,”</a> or the “REAL Act of 2019,” seeks to reinstate federal Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated individuals. <a href="https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/grants-and-scholarships/what-is-a-pell-grant">Pell Grants</a> are federal grants meant to help students who need money to go to college.</p>
<p>If Pell Grants were reinstated for those serving time, about <a href="https://storage.googleapis.com/vera-web-assets/downloads/Publications/investing-in-futures-education-in-prison/legacy_downloads/investing-in-futures.pdf">463,000 people in prison</a> would become eligible for the grants.</p>
<p>As director of the University of Baltimore’s <a href="http://www.ubalt.edu/cpa/about-the-college/community-engagement/second-chance-college-program.cfm">Second Chance College Program</a>, I can attest to how such an investment will yield benefits not only for individuals behind prison walls, but for society as a whole.</p>
<p>Here are four reasons to support the reinstatement of the Pell Grant for incarcerated people.</p>
<h2>1. Saves taxpayers money</h2>
<p>Investing in prison education programs will save states money in the long run. </p>
<p>Research has found that when people get education in prison, they are <a href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR266.html">less likely to be incarcerated again</a>. This means that overall, less money would be spent on their time in prison. </p>
<p>Although the amount varies by state, incarcerating one person costs taxpayers <a href="https://www.vera.org/publications/price-of-prisons-2015-state-spending-trends">US$15,000 to $70,000 per year</a>. In the federal system the cost for each prisoner is around <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/04/30/2018-09062/annual-determination-of-average-cost-of-incarceration">$35,000 a year</a>.</p>
<p>One study found that, over a three-year period, correctional education can save taxpayers <a href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR266.html">$5 for every $1 spent</a>. An argument could also be made that prison education makes communities safer, since people who participate in post-secondary education in prison are <a href="https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RR200/RR266/RAND_RR266.sum.pdf">43% less likely</a> to commit another crime.</p>
<h2>2. Improves employment opportunities</h2>
<p>People who participate in academic or vocational programs while in prison are <a href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR266.html">more likely to find work</a> when released. They are also <a href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR266.html">more likely to earn more</a>.</p>
<p>Second Chance Pell programs are required to help prepare participants for the jobs for which they are eligible. For instance, there are thousands of <a href="http://www.ncsl.org/research/labor-and-employment/barriers-to-work-individuals-with-criminal-records.aspx">employment barriers and licensing restrictions</a> for people with criminal records.</p>
<p>Prison education programs offered through the U.S. Department of Education’s <a href="https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/12000-incarcerated-students-enroll-postsecondary-educational-and-training-programs-through-education-departments-new-second-chance-pell-pilot-program">Second Chance Pell pilot program</a> help prepare participants for high-demand fields. These include certificates or degrees in substance abuse counseling, business administration, horticulture, carpentry, heating and air conditioning, and other fields. </p>
<p>Some programs offer entrepreneurship certificates or degrees to prepare students to create their own business. Others, such as the <a href="https://bpi.bard.edu/">Bard Prison Initiative</a>, offer associate and bachelor degrees in liberal arts education. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.aacu.org/sites/default/files/files/LEAP/2018EmployerResearchReport.pdf">A liberal education can build</a> skills often desired by employers such as critical thinking, ability to work in teams, ethical judgment, self-motivation and strong writing skills.</p>
<h2>3. Strengthens families</h2>
<p>Children of the incarcerated suffer greatly while their parents are behind bars. They experience a range of issues such as emotional and behavioral problems, do poorly in school, and are <a href="https://www.nij.gov/journals/278/Pages/impact-of-incarceration-on-dependent-children.aspx">six times more likely to end up in prison themselves</a>. </p>
<p>One way to less the potential for these negative effects is to increase the opportunities for their parents once they return home. </p>
<p>Ensuring that parents are successful and can maintain strong social bonds with their children could potentially disrupt the <a href="http://ssa.uchicago.edu/breaking-cycle-family-focused-approach-criminal-sentencing-illinois">generational cycle of crime and incarceration</a>.</p>
<p>Educating parents in prison also increases the chances that their children will attain higher levels of education. Research has found that children are <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/04/are-college-degrees-inherited/360532/">more likely to enroll and complete college</a> when their parents are college-educated.</p>
<p>During the first year and a half of the <a href="https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/12000-incarcerated-students-enroll-postsecondary-educational-and-training-programs-through-education-departments-new-second-chance-pell-pilot-program">Second Chance Pell pilot program</a>, <a href="https://storage.googleapis.com/vera-web-assets/downloads/Publications/second-chance-pell-experimental-sites-initiative-update/legacy_downloads/Second-Chance-Pell-Fact-Sheet-June-2018.pdf">954 credentials</a> have been awarded.</p>
<h2>4. Won’t take away money for other students</h2>
<p>Despite the many benefits of removing the ban on Pell Grants, there are critics who believe <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/pell-grants-prisioners-obama-administration-120850">“criminals” should not get a “free education” at the expense of taxpayers</a>.</p>
<p>As I argue in the book “<a href="http://www.aei.org/publication/education-for-liberation-the-politics-of-promise-and-reform-inside-and-beyond-americas-prisons/">Education for Liberation: The Politics of Promise and Reform Inside and Beyond America’s Prisons</a>,” awarding Pell to incarcerated students does not take away funds from low-income students in the community.</p>
<p>Students get Pell Grants based on their income. So no one will be denied a Pell Grant simply because someone in prison got one. Restoring Pell Grants for people in prison simply means more federal money being spent on the Pell Grant program.</p>
<p>In 2017-18, the Pell Grant supported <a href="https://trends.collegeboard.org/student-aid/figures-tables/pell-grants-total-expenditures-maximum-and-average-grant-and-number-recipients-over-time">7 million students with $28.2 billion</a>.</p>
<p>If Pell Grants are restored to people in prison, those numbers would rise to about 7.5 million students and $30.9 billion, respectively.</p>
<p>This extra $2.7 billion is a worthy investment for a safer community where everyone has a chance to make a living.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115215/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrea Cantora does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For people in prison to have a better chance at earning a living upon release, Congress should lift a longstanding ban on federal student aid for those serving time, a criminal justice scholar argues.Andrea Cantora, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, University of BaltimoreLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1096212019-01-23T11:48:08Z2019-01-23T11:48:08ZWhy it’s wrong to label students ‘at-risk’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/254420/original/file-20190117-32807-1skekoc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The term "at-risk" is frequently used to describe students from challenging circumstances. Some educators are working to change that.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-people-education-group-hispanic-students-583892335?src=ATrTAJnT0I6cVrwmvHbO2g-8-27">Diego Cervo/www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Of all the terms used to describe students who don’t perform well in traditional educational settings, <a href="https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED493702">few are used as frequently</a>– or as casually – as the term “at-risk.”</p>
<p>The term is regularly used in <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubs92/92042.pdf">federal</a> and <a href="https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/lawmakers-plan-to-provide-a-better-education-for-at-risk-students/5214101/">state</a> education policy discussions, as well as <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/beta-story-container/US/lebron-james-opening-school-risk-kids-culmination-decade/story?id=56913186">popular news articles</a> and <a href="https://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/02/at-risk-students.aspx">specialty trade journals</a>. It is <a href="https://www.childtrends.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/01/DefiningAtRisk1.pdf">often applied to large groups</a> of students with little regard for the <a href="https://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print/resource/2513">stigmatizing effect</a> that it can have on students.</p>
<p>As education researcher <a href="https://naeducation.org/our-members/gloria-ladson-billings/">Gloria Ladson-Billings</a> <a href="https://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print/resource/2513">once said of the term “at-risk,”</a> “We cannot saddle these babies at kindergarten with this label and expect them to proudly wear it for the next 13 years, and think, ‘Well, gee, I don’t know why they aren’t doing good.’” </p>
<p>My most recent encounter with the term “at-risk” came when I was tapped to review and <a href="http://dls.maryland.gov/pubs/prod/NoPblTabMtg/CmsnInnovEduc/2018_12_06_ToldsonFinalRecommendations2.pdf">critique</a> a draft report for the Maryland Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education, also known as the “<a href="http://dls.maryland.gov/policy-areas/commission-on-innovation-and-excellence-in-education">Kirwan Commission</a>.”</p>
<p>The Kirwan Commission, chaired by <a href="https://www.agb.org/bios/william-e-kirwan">William E. Kirwan</a>, a longtime higher education leader, was <a href="http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2016RS/chapters_noln/Ch_702_hb0999T.pdf">created in 2016</a> to make recommendations for improving education in Maryland. The initial draft of the Kirwan Commission report included a working group report called, “More Resources for At-risk Students.”</p>
<p>Fortunately, in this instance, commission members were aware of some common objections to using “at-risk” to categorize students and <a href="https://www.aclu-md.org/en/press-releases/race-equity-expert-delivers-highly-anticipated-second-address-kirwan-commission-what">publicly discussed</a> the <a href="https://www.edglossary.org/at-risk/">limitations</a> of using the term. Some of those objections included risk of social stigma to students and <a href="http://www2.ncte.org/blog/2017/02/redefining-risk-new-times-call-new-ground-rules/">lack of a uniform definition</a> of “at-risk.”</p>
<p>However, when it came to finding a better way to describe students who show lower levels of academic success because of nonacademic factors, such as poverty, trauma and lack of English proficiency, commission members were not sure what term to use.</p>
<p>As an <a href="http://www.qem.org/presidentbio/">outside consultant</a> for the commission, I was asked to come up with an acceptable alternative word or phrase. As I argue in my forthcoming book, “<a href="https://brill.com/view/title/54716">No BS (Bad Stats): Black People Need People Who Believe in Black People Enough Not to Believe Every Bad Thing They Hear about Black People</a>,” three things are essential to good decision making in education: good data, thoughtful analysis and compassionate understanding. What I have to say about the term “at-risk” will be based on those three things.</p>
<h2>Practical uses exist</h2>
<p>First, let’s acknowledge that, paired with good data, “<a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.3102/01623737015004380?fbclid=IwAR0hGmYiFL93HcnHT2SUCfCYcDBQvR_ZmqfuahwFO_TnIY3dIhx4uvqWiac">at-risk</a>” is practically useful and generally accepted in professional and academic settings. Used <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25608745?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">effectively</a>, identifying risk and protective factors can help mitigate harm to students.</p>
<p>For example, dating back to the 1960s, research about how <a href="http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/90/6/855.short">exposure to lead</a> placed children at risk for cognitive impairments helped educators create <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1240871/pdf/ehp0110-000563.pdf">safer learning environments</a> for students by removing lead from paint, toys and drinking water.</p>
<p>Today, in educational <a href="https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/S1479-3644(2009)0000007009">research</a> and <a href="https://www.fdschools.org/departments/student-services/at-risk-programs">practice</a>, educators <a href="https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED493702">routinely use “at-risk”</a> to classify students who do not perform well in traditional educational settings. However, the factors that determine “at-risk” are often either unknown or beyond the control of the student, caregiver or educational provider.</p>
<p>As a scholar of counseling psychology – and as one who specializes in <a href="https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=i9M5DQAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA143&dq=Ivory+Toldson+counseling+psychology&ots=mwAv76j3Ea&sig=MBU-X3J5lMJkQKaVyz-LuvWdFvE#v=onepage&q=Ivory%20Toldson%20counseling%20psychology&f=false">counseling persons of black African ancestry</a> – I believe that to designate a child “at-risk” for factors such as growing up in a single-parent household, having a history of abuse or neglect, or how much money their families make or their race or ethnicity – adds more chaos and confusion to the situation. Instead, compassion and care are what are needed.</p>
<h2>Never use ‘at-risk’ as an adjective</h2>
<p>Using “at-risk” as an adjective for students is problematic. It makes “at-risk” a category like honors student, student athlete or college-bound student. “Risk” should describe a condition or situation, not a person. Therefore, “More Resources for At-risk Students” might more appropriately be “More Resources to Reduce Risk Factors for Students.”</p>
<h2>Be specific</h2>
<p>Assessments of risk should be based on good data and thoughtful analysis – not a catch-all phrase to describe a cluster of ill-defined conditions or characteristics. If the phrase “at-risk” must be used, it should be in a sentence such as: “‘This’ places students at risk for ‘that.’” If the “this” and “that” are not clearly defined, the “at-risk” characterization is useless at best, and harmful at worst. But when these variables are clearly defined, it better enables educators and others to come up with the solutions needed to reduce specific risk factors and improve outcomes.</p>
<h2>Skip the alternatives</h2>
<p>Common alternatives to “at-risk” include “historically underserved,” “disenfranchised” and “placed at-risk.” These indicators acknowledge that outside forces have either not served the individual student or population well, or have assigned the at-risk label to unwitting subjects.</p>
<p>These phrases move the conversation in the right direction. However, using these phrases still comes up short because they obscure the problem. For example, research suggests that <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10509674.2010.519666">child abuse</a>, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10911359.2013.747407">poverty</a> and <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25608729?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">racism</a> can place students at risk. However, different strategies can lessen each risk. When the risk factors are more clearly identified, it puts educators and others in a better position to strategically confront the issues that impede student learning. It also better enables educators and others to view the individual student separately and apart from the particular risk.</p>
<p>Some have suggested replacing the term “at-risk” with “<a href="https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=fQX2czepcW8C&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=%22at-risk%22+%22at-promise%22&ots=yLkU8c1_8q&sig=Jf5h6Ya_p9gIh-p7n0RP7OmRNlM#v=onepage&q=%22at-risk%22%20%22at-promise%22&f=false">at-promise</a>.” While well-intended, the problem I see with that is it could easily be seen as a condescending euphemism for the term it was meant to replace.</p>
<h2>The best alternative for ‘at-risk’</h2>
<p>In my book, I describe an in-service training for staff members of a public high school, in which I asked the participants to describe the neighborhoods of their students. I heard phrases like “crime-ridden,” “broken homes” and “drug-infested.” I then asked if anyone grew up in neighborhoods that had similar characteristics. After several raised their hands, I asked, “How did you grow up in such a neighborhood and still become successful?” This question spurred a more meaningful discussion about the neighborhoods where students are from. It was a discussion that considered community assets – such as hope and resilience – against a more thoughtful examination of community challenges.</p>
<p>Every student has a combination of risk and protective factors among their friends, in their homes, schools and neighborhoods. These factors can help or hurt their academic potential. Students who live in poverty, or have been assigned to special education, or have a history of trauma, or who are English learners, may or may not be “at risk” depending on their respective protective factors. But when students are labeled “at-risk,” it serves to treat them as a problem because of their risk factors. Instead, students’ unique experiences and perspectives should be normalized, not marginalized. This reduces a problem known as <a href="https://www.edglossary.org/stereotype-threat/">“stereotype threat,”</a> a phenomenon in which students perform worse academically when they are worried about living up to a negative stereotype about their group.</p>
<p>For all these reasons and more, I believe the best alternative to describe “at-risk students” is simply “students.” For what it’s worth, the Kirwan Commission agrees. The commission recently <a href="http://dls.maryland.gov/pubs/prod/NoPblTabMtg/CmsnInnovEduc/2019_01_18_PolicyArea4.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2rCDkWkBSdXnbfQely6FiUiUoGU2aupfmXrxPVm360veL_VVceEa4KBXc">revised its call</a> for “More Resources for At-risk Students” to “More Resources to Ensure All Students are Successful.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/109621/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ivory A. Toldson is affiliated with Howard University and The QEM Network. </span></em></p>Using the term ‘at-risk’ to describe students from challenging circumstances often creates more problems than it solves, a professor of counseling psychology argues.Ivory A. Toldson, Professor of Counseling Psychology, Howard UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/961822018-05-08T10:47:02Z2018-05-08T10:47:02ZWhy graduation rates lag for low-income college students<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/217810/original/file-20180505-166906-1bvtb0c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Just under half of all Pell Grant recipients graduate on time, new data show.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/group-multi-ethnic-graduates-their-graduation-265982891?src=58H2PiFayP5uZFg7fsbzQQ-2-65">Joseph Sohm/www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As college students nationwide prepare for graduation, a new analysis has shown that <a href="https://www.thirdway.org/report/the-pell-divide-how-four-year-institutions-are-failing-to-graduate-low-and-moderate-income-students">just under half of all those who receive Pell Grants</a> – the federal government’s main form of direct financial aid for low-income students – finish their four-year degree programs on time.</p>
<p>The federal government considers “on time” being six years for a four-year degree. The maximum federal <a href="https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/grants-scholarships/pell">Pell Grant program</a> award for the current school year is US$5,920. Next school year, the award will rise to $6,095.</p>
<p>So, why are so many low-income college students not completing their degrees within this time frame? The question is an important one because last year the federal government spent <a href="https://www2.ed.gov/about/reports/annual/2017report/fsa-report.pdf">$26.9 billion dollars</a> on Pell Grants. It’s also important because Pell Grant recipients can expect to earn <a href="http://muse.jhu.edu/article/508220">substantially higher salaries</a> if they complete their degrees.</p>
<p>Speaking as a researcher who <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=KQW0iwMAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">focuses on issues of performance at public institutions</a>, the available data suggest the reason Pell Grant recipients have lower graduation rates is related to both the nature of the colleges these students attend, as well as the personal barriers these students face.</p>
<p>Compared to other college students, <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2015601">those receiving Pell Grants</a> are more likely to belong to a racial minority, to have parents who never went to college, and to be parents themselves.</p>
<h2>Personal barriers to success</h2>
<p>As a result of their backgrounds, Pell Grant students – like other low-income students – tend to <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2002/2002169.pdf">face many unique personal barriers</a> to completing a college degree, such as being a single parent or not going straight to college out of high school.</p>
<p>Completing a degree is <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.0038-4941.2005.00363.x">more difficult</a> for students who are parenting children, especially for single parents. With less support available from parents and other family members, Pell Grant students can feel a strong pull to pause their studies and <a href="https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED507432.pdf">start working</a>, especially if they encounter unexpected expenses, such as significant medical bills or car repairs.</p>
<p>Pell Grant students are often less academically prepared for college than their peers. For example, Pell Grant students tend to have <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2002/2002169.pdf">lower SAT/ACT scores</a> and graduate from high schools that don’t offer a rigorous curriculum. This is unsurprising given that academic success in K-12 education systems in the U.S. is highly correlated with <a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/may13/vol70/num08/The-Widening-Income-Achievement-Gap.aspx">income and race</a>.</p>
<p>Also, since research suggests that family members who have gone through college are often an <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2202/1949-6605.1724">important source of information</a> about how to succeed in college, those who are first-generation college students miss out on a significant source of motivation and advice.</p>
<h2>College quality</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.thirdway.org/report/the-pell-divide-how-four-year-institutions-are-failing-to-graduate-low-and-moderate-income-students">new analysis</a> – which comes from a <a href="https://www.thirdway.org/about">center-left</a> think tank called Third Way – shows that most four-year colleges have lower graduation rates for Pell Grant students than for students not receiving Pell Grants. But as the published data from the analysis also shows, Pell Grant students also tend to go to schools with lower overall graduation rates.</p>
<p>Many colleges in the U.S. have very low graduation rates. Nationwide, <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=40">only 59 percent</a> of students who enroll full time in a bachelor’s degree program complete their degree within six years, although the Third Way report’s data indicate that figure rises to 67 percent if Pell Grant students are excluded from the calculation.</p>
<p>The top schools in a given state typically have much higher graduation rates. These top schools are generally admitting highly qualified students, who are the most likely ones to complete a degree anyway. But studies suggest college quality also plays a role in determining the likelihood that a student will <a href="https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/690818">finish their degree</a>.</p>
<p>Lower-quality schools often have <a href="http://www.hamiltonproject.org/assets/files/increasing_college_completion_with_federal_higher_education_matching_grant_pp.pdf">fewer financial resources</a>, which makes it harder for them to offer <a href="http://www.nber.org/papers/w23736">students support</a> in the form of advising, tutoring or small classes.</p>
<p>Given lower levels of academic preparation, students eligible for Pell Grants likely find it harder to be admitted to the highest-quality colleges in the country. This matters because attendance at a quality college <a href="https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/690818">could</a> boost their chances of graduating on time. Low-income students may also face a greater need to attend a college near their hometown, particularly if they wish to save money on living expenses by living with family. Some students who are geographically constrained will <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272775709000259">lack having any high-quality colleges</a> in their area.</p>
<h2>Potential solutions</h2>
<p>What can be done to improve graduation rates for low-income college students?</p>
<p>The evidence suggests that increased support for students may help. For instance, a <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w24150">recent analysis</a> of a random control trial at a community college found that low-income students who received access to emergency financial assistance – in combination with a case manager – were much more likely to complete an associate’s degree.</p>
<p>Another recent study found evidence that <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w23736">more students complete degrees</a> when colleges have more funding.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/96182/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nathan Favero does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New data show that less than half of all Pell Grant recipients graduate on time – a reality that one scholar attributes to the unique barriers faced by low-income students.Nathan Favero, Assistant Professor of Public Administration & Policy, American University School of Public AffairsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/826332017-08-21T10:57:05Z2017-08-21T10:57:05ZColleges need affirmative action – but it can be expanded<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182642/original/file-20170818-7941-147b9b6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Race-neutral affirmative action can help identify first-generation students like Blanca Diaz and LaQuintah Garrett.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Amy Anthony</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 2003, <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/539/306/case.html">Justice Antonin Scalia</a> predicted that the Supreme Court’s sanctioning of race-conscious affirmative action in higher education would spark future litigation for years to come. And right he was. From <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2015/14-981">defeated claims of discrimination</a> against the University of Texas at Austin to an <a href="http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2014/11/18/law-suit-admissions-alleged-discrimination/">ongoing lawsuit</a> against Harvard, colleges continue to come under attack for considering race as a factor in admissions decisions.</p>
<p>The recent report of the Department of Justice’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/01/us/politics/trump-affirmative-action-universities.html">possible investigation</a> of “intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions” demonstrates that the assaults aren’t likely to end anytime soon.</p>
<p>As a <a href="http://sc.edu/study/colleges_schools/law/faculty_and_staff/directory/nelson_eboni.php">professor of law and scholar</a> dedicated to ensuring equal educational opportunities for students of color, I believe now is an important time to earnestly consider other methods for diversifying student bodies. Race-neutral alternatives could effectively consider such factors as socioeconomic status and educational background, while supplementing more traditional affirmative action.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182008/original/file-20170814-28487-csunzj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lawyer Bert Rein and his client, Abigail Fisher, failed in their discrimination case against UT Austin’s affirmative action policies.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>‘Race-based’ vs. ‘race-conscious’</h2>
<p>When thinking about affirmative action, it’s important to first define (and debunk) a few key terms, starting with “race-based” and “race-conscious” affirmative action.</p>
<p>“Race-based affirmative action” is a misnomer often used to describe some college admissions policies. “Race-based” implies that an admissions decision is made <a href="http://dailysignal.com/2015/12/02/how-affirmative-action-at-colleges-hurts-minority-students/">solely because of or based upon an applicant’s race or ethnicity</a>, which could not be farther from the truth. A university’s decision to admit, deny or waitlist an applicant is based upon <a href="https://professionals.collegeboard.org/guidance/applications/decisions">myriad criteria</a>, ranging from standardized test scores to state of residency. Race is <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/college-admissions-how-diversity-factors-in/2012/02/20/gIQAs0BHSR_blog.html">just one of many admissions factors</a> a university may consider.</p>
<p>This approach is more appropriately termed “race-conscious.”</p>
<p>Schools that employ race-conscious admissions policies do so in order to achieve the <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/40251923">educational, social and democratic benefits</a> of a diverse student body.</p>
<p>As the Supreme Court held in <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2002/02-516">Gratz v. Bollinger</a>, race is not and cannot be the determining factor under a constitutional race-conscious plan. Therefore, when people claim that an African-American or Hispanic student was admitted because of race, they’re often not only inaccurate but also dismissive of the student’s other numerous attributes that played a role in the university’s decision.</p>
<h2>Race-neutral alternatives</h2>
<p>Opponents of race-conscious affirmative action often assert that such policies are <a href="http://www.theblaze.com/contributions/todays-affirmative-action-is-racism-2/">racist</a> or <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/affirmative-action-based-on-income/2012/11/08/a519f67e-17e9-11e2-9855-71f2b202721b_story.html">disproportionately benefit privileged minority students</a> from middle- and upper-class backgrounds.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182636/original/file-20170818-7934-p46oz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Justice Sandra Day O'Connor delivered the majority opinion in Grutter v. Bollinger, which asserted that schools must consider ‘workable race-neutral alternatives.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Susan Walsh</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For its part, the Supreme Court is also skeptical of using <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/pdf/11-345.pdf">racial classifications in governmental decision-making</a>. As a result, it has held that institutions of higher education must afford serious consideration to “<a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/11-345_l5gm.pdf">workable race-neutral alternatives</a>” before implementing a race-conscious policy.</p>
<p>Importantly, the court’s use of the term “race-neutral” does not mean “race-blind.” That is, universities are permitted to think about how alternative admissions criteria could help them achieve their diversity goals. <a href="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/edlite-raceneutralreport.html">Race-neutral criteria</a> could include socioeconomic background, high school or undergraduate institution, or class rank. In other words, these are factors that may contribute to a school’s racial diversity, but applicants themselves are not considered based on race.</p>
<p>In some cases, it’s <a href="http://www.uclalawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Kidder-D64-update.pdf">proven difficult</a> for race-neutral admissions policies to achieve the same levels of racial diversity as those achieved through direct consideration of race. However, such measures <a href="https://www.universitybusiness.com/article/race-neutral-policies-and-programs-achieving-racial-diversity">have been useful</a> in helping to diversify student bodies when used in conjunction with or in lieu of race-conscious affirmative action.</p>
<h2>The viability of race-neutral alternatives</h2>
<p>When coupled with the stark <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/11/the-33-whitest-jobs-in-america/281180/">racial disparities</a> that continue to plague some professions, the uncertain future of race-conscious affirmative action calls for a renewed focus on alternatives that look beyond race alone.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1109&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1109&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182628/original/file-20170818-7952-63e9xt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1109&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">TV isn’t the only place where the legal profession remains one of the whitest.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">USA Network</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>My co-researchers, <a href="http://cosw.sc.edu/faculty/ronald-pitner">Dr. Ronald Pitner</a> and <a href="https://dickinsonlaw.psu.edu/academics/faculty/resident-faculty/carla-pratt">Professor Carla D. Pratt</a>, and I recently took a look at one particular aspect of higher education diversity: law school admissions.</p>
<p>Law schools play a unique role in training <a href="https://harvardlawreview.org/2013/12/law-schools-leadership-and-change/">our country’s next generation of leaders</a>. It is, in fact, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2336994">vital to the future of our democracy</a> that we continue to provide students from historically underrepresented racial groups with access to legal education. And yet, the legal profession was recently determined to be “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/05/27/law-is-the-least-diverse-profession-in-the-nation-and-lawyers-arent-doing-enough-to-change-that">one of the least racially diverse professions in the nation</a>.”</p>
<p>To help law schools improve their diversity, we examined the relationship between race and race-neutral identity factors in law school admissions. The project, which was funded in part by a grant from <a href="https://www.accesslex.org/accesslex-center-legal-education-excellence">AccessLex Institute</a>, surveyed over a thousand first-year law students at schools throughout the country and asked about various aspects of their identity, such as socioeconomic status and educational background.</p>
<p>Our findings indicated that African-American and Hispanic students were <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2849546">significantly more likely</a> than both white and Asian/Pacific Islander students to have qualified for free or reduced lunch programs in elementary or secondary school, had a parent or guardian who received public assistance when the student was a dependent minor, and received a Pell Grant during their undergraduate studies – all of which are race-neutral factors that schools could consider in admissions decisions.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=536&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=536&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/182641/original/file-20170818-7956-wqrhu9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=536&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Race-neutral affirmative action can help identify first-generation students and students from low-income families.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Pat Sullivan</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How admissions could change</h2>
<p>Based on the sample of participants in our study, it’s clear that privilege did not catapult all students of color to law school. Many of them had to overcome the structural inequalities of poverty, race and public education to embark on a legal career. Expanding opportunities for these and other minority students will benefit not only legal education and the legal profession, but also society more broadly.</p>
<p>Race-neutral admissions policies could help identify and create opportunities for these students.</p>
<p>To be clear, I do not advocate for the wholesale substitution of traditional race-conscious admissions measures with the factors we studied. Race-conscious policies continue to be the <a href="https://www.ets.org/Media/Research/pdf/reardon_white_paper.pdf">most effective</a> means by which to create diverse student bodies.</p>
<p>However, we encourage law schools and other institutions of higher education to utilize these and other race-neutral admissions factors as a means of complying with the Supreme Court’s affirmative action mandates and testing the viability of policies that take such factors into account.</p>
<p>Doing so will help ensure that traditionally underrepresented students of color will continue to have access to colleges and universities that serve as gateways to career, financial and life opportunities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/82633/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Eboni Nelson receives funding from AccessLex Institute. </span></em></p>Race-conscious admissions policies are still the best way to achieve diversity on campus. Yet, some race-neutral methods could help colleges improve diversity – and stand up to legal scrutiny.Eboni Nelson, Professor of Law, University of South CarolinaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/684712016-12-01T01:55:50Z2016-12-01T01:55:50ZWhat cyber charter schools are and why their growth should worry us<p>What President-elect Donald Trump and the Republican sweep of government will mean for K-12 education priorities over the next four years is not entirely clear yet. However, <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/policies/education">policy statements</a> and administration selections so far indicate “school choice” will top the agenda.</p>
<p>Betsy DeVos, Trump’s nominee for education secretary, has been known to be an advocate of <a href="http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2016/11/betsy_devos_education_secretary_five_things_to_know.html">school choice initiatives</a>: DeVos has supported voucher programs that allow families to use taxpayer money to enroll in private and religious schools. She also promoted charter school legislation that offers students choices outside of traditional public schools. </p>
<p>Vice President-elect Mike Pence too has a history as governor of Indiana of promoting school choice policy. Indiana not only is ranked as having the most favorable policy provisions for charter schools by a <a href="http://www.publiccharters.org/get-the-facts/law-database/states/in/">prominent charter schooling advocacy group</a>, but it is among the 25 states employing a type of charter school unfamiliar to many folks across the United States: the cyber charter school.</p>
<p>Unlike the usual charter school, the cyber version is typically delivered to students online wherever they may live, so long as they are residents of the state in which the cyber charter school operates. Cyber charter schools have been growing in states that have school choice policy.</p>
<p>Our research, along with a body of academic work, suggests that the public should be concerned about an expansion of the cyber charter schooling model.</p>
<p>Here’s why.</p>
<h2>What is a cyber charter school?</h2>
<p>Charter schools are privately managed K-12 schools that utilize public money. The funds for charter schools are removed from regular public schooling budgets and paid to various private firms and organizations (and sometimes other parts of a state’s education system) to provide a wider choice of schools.</p>
<p>In the cyber version of the charter school, instruction is typically delivered to the students online wherever they may live, so long as they are residents of the state in which the cyber charter school operates. The <a href="http://www.tcrecord.org/content.asp?contentid=15986">model of these schools could vary</a> – some use a hybrid delivery model (online and in person), although most are entirely online. Students receive course material, lessons and tests on their computer at home (usually the computer is also provided with state funds). </p>
<p>As with traditional charter schools, the general idea behind cyber charter schools is to allow families and students to have a choice other than their local public school.</p>
<p>A 2015 annual report prepared by a consulting group that tracks online school practice and is often cited by scholars to describe cyber charter school enrollment shows that in 2014-2015 there were <a href="http://www.kpk12.com/wp-content/uploads/Evergreen_KeepingPace_2015.pdf">275,000 students in cyber charter</a> schools across 25 states. In some states, tens of thousands of students enroll in cyber charter schools. In Pennsylvania, for example, more than 36,000 students enrolled in cyber charter schools during 2014-2015. </p>
<h2>Where do the students come from?</h2>
<p>One of the goals of recent scholarship has been to understand who are the students who enroll in these schools and why do they do so. </p>
<p>The National Education Policy Center (NEPC) conducts an analysis of cyber charter school students every year. The most recent report shows that in 2013-2014, cyber charter schools, compared to the national average, <a href="http://nepc.colorado.edu/files/publications/RB-Miron%20Virtual%20Schools.pdf">had higher percentages</a> of white students and lower percentages of free and reduced lunch students. </p>
<p>However, since these numbers are nationally aggregated and not every state has a cyber charter school, we believe comparing national cyber charter school averages to all students nationally may be problematic. Our research at Penn State on cyber charter schools has examined enrollments within Pennsylvania and shows that the picture is more complicated.</p>
<p>In our study of enrollments in Pennsylvania, we found that the majority of students in cyber charter schools are indeed white, but they <a href="http://epx.sagepub.com/content/early/2015/09/25/0895904815604112.abstract">match the racial demographics</a> of the state. Similar results <a href="https://edex.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/publication/pdfs/%2808.02%29%20Enrollment%20and%20Achievement%20in%20Ohio%27s%20Virtual%20Charter%20Schools.pdf">have been seen in Ohio</a>. </p>
<p>Furthermore, in a another study in Pennsylvania we found that it was the economically disadvantaged students who were <a href="http://epubs.library.msstate.edu/index.php/ruraleducator/article/view/368">more likely</a> to enroll in a cyber charter school. </p>
<p>An obvious question to ask is whether parents would have homeschooled their children had the cyber charter school option not existed. The best estimate comes from an internal report of one of the largest national providers of cyber charter schools: The report found that a small percent – <a href="http://my.info.k12.com/rs/k12/images/K12%20Academic%20Report%20-%202013.pdf">13.6 percent of cyber school students in those schools</a> – were previously homeschooled.</p>
<p>So, what motivates a majority of parents to enroll their children in these schools? </p>
<p>Penn State researchers who interviewed parents who enrolled their children into cyber charter schools found that parents thought these schools were <a href="http://download.springer.com/static/pdf/846/art%253A10.1007%252Fs11528-009-0303-9.pdf?originUrl=http%3A%2F%2Flink.springer.com%2Farticle%2F10.1007%2Fs11528-009-0303-9&token2=exp=1479154189%7Eacl=%2Fstatic%2Fpdf%2F846%2Fart%25253A10.1007%25252Fs11528-009-0303-9.pdf%3ForiginUrl%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Flink.springer.com%252Farticle%252F10.1007%252Fs11528-009-0303-9*%7Ehmac=549c62df4f5c1595bcae11e524a24dc3888dc71f12682d9ff8129125736864de">better customized</a> to their children’s needs, carried little financial risk and were possibly the last hope for their child to succeed in school. </p>
<h2>Concerns about cyber charters</h2>
<p>Despite the hope that many parents hold out for this new educational option, the performance of cyber charter schools has consistently, and often drastically, lagged behind the performance of their brick-and-mortar school counterparts. </p>
<p>Research about cyber charter school performance outcomes paints a dismal picture linked to test-based outcomes. For example, <a href="https://credo.stanford.edu/pdfs/OnlineCharterStudyFinal2015.pdf">a recent report</a> from the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), a policy analysis center based in Stanford University, used a technique to match cyber students to an academic and demographic “twin.” </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/148150/original/image-20161130-17000-1unr6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Researchers have been concerned about the learning in cyber charter schools.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/wfryer/6578121699/in/photolist-qo984v-b2hApn-69ZT48-pd92Gn-69ZSZV-69ZT2v-6a53DG">Wesley Fryer</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>They did this matching twice, once to compare individual gains of cyber charter students to their statistical twin in brick-and-mortar charter schools and once to compare them to their statistical twin in a brick-and-mortar district school.</p>
<p>Across all racial and poverty status groups of students in the study, the majority of cyber charter school students showed poor learning growth when compared to their matched twin. This was true in both math and reading when students were compared to charter and traditional students. </p>
<p>Researchers found these trends across almost all states that they studied: They found lower learning growth in reading in 14 out of the 17 states, and 17 out of 17 states in math. In their report they noted that improved academic outcomes for a student in a cyber charter school was <a href="https://credo.stanford.edu/pdfs/OnlineCharterStudyFinal2015.pdf">“the exception rather than the rule.”</a></p>
<p>This research is consistent with others that examine the academic outcomes of cyber charter schools. Studies have looked at cyber charter school outcomes in <a href="http://credo.stanford.edu/reports/PA%20State%20Report_20110404_FINAL.pdf">Pennsylvania</a> and in <a href="https://edex.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/publication/pdfs/%2808.02%29%20Enrollment%20and%20Achievement%20in%20Ohio%27s%20Virtual%20Charter%20Schools.pdf">Ohio</a>. These studies provide similar results about extremely lower learning growth in cyber charter schools in these state contexts when compared to other schools. </p>
<p>What is of further concern as one legal scholar, <a href="https://www.law.temple.edu/contact/susan-l-dejarnatt/">Susan DeJarnatt</a>, has shown is that cyber charter schools <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2370125">may not have all the safeguards</a> needed to protect the sector from fraud. Already federal authorities have indicted two of the five “mega-cyber” providers (a school that enrolls more than 2,000 students) in Pennsylvania of fraud.</p>
<p>Outside of the scholarship conducted about fraud in Pennsylvania, a review of hundreds of news stories <a href="http://www.edweek.org/ew/section/multimedia/cyber-charters-widespread-reports-of-trouble.html">revealed dozens of state audits across 20-plus states</a>. These news stories repeatedly and overwhelmingly raise concerns about funding and academic accountability across all state contexts, matching the concerns that have emerged in the academic literature.</p>
<h2>Looking forward</h2>
<p>Following such reports of poor academic outcomes and questionable ethical practices, our research team at Penn State has decided to continue to study the cyber charter school movement in Pennsylvania to find out more.</p>
<p>Our current research examines how cyber charter schools have influenced the entire education system in Pennsylvania. </p>
<p>However, based on the body of academic work that is currently available, we believe while it may be logical to allow online learning in certain circumstances, the cyber charter model is not the appropriate model. And the new education secretary Betsy DeVos might want to exercise caution.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/68471/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The study mentioned in this article, titled "Schooling in Cyberia: Analyzing the Contexts and Effects of Cyber Charter Schools and Online Learning in Pennsylvania Public Schools" received grant funding from Penn State's College of Education.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Baker does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>What Betsy DeVos, an advocate of school-choice initiatives and President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for education secretary, as well as the rest of us need to know about cyber charter schools.Bryan Mann, Ph.D. Candidate, Penn StateDavid Baker, Professor of Sociology, Education, Demography, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/692692016-11-24T20:13:34Z2016-11-24T20:13:34ZHere’s how undocumented students are able to enroll at American universities<p>President-elect <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/policies/immigration">Donald Trump has vowed</a> to deport millions of undocumented people, beginning on his first day in office. In response, students and faculty from <a href="http://fusion.net/story/371117/undocumented-students-leading-fight-for-sanctuary-campuses/">100 campuses</a> around the United States have launched a campaign to demand that their universities become “sanctuaries” for undocumented students. </p>
<p>About <a href="https://thinkprogress.org/why-so-few-undocumented-immigrants-make-it-through-college-d07d30136e5#.dcuohfo9b">30,000 undocumented students</a> enroll in higher education each year. Of these, fewer than 2,000 will graduate. Many of these students face financial difficulties. In addition, they lack mentoring and support.</p>
<p>We are sociologists at the University of California, Merced and are currently working on a research project on undocumented students’ access to higher education. Our students and faculty too are demanding to be a “sanctuary campus.” </p>
<p>Many at this time also want to know how undocumented students are able to attend university if they do not have legal status.</p>
<p>There is a complex web of federal and state laws that both prevent and facilitate undocumented students’ access to higher education. In most states, students do not have to <a href="http://www.thenyic.org/node/3491">disclose</a> their immigration status or provide a <a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/dean/college-advice-for-undocumented-student/">Social Security number</a> when applying for university. </p>
<h2>Policies vary by state</h2>
<p>Immigration policy is under the purview of the federal government. States, however, can pass laws that make them more or less friendly to undocumented immigrants.</p>
<p>In 1975, the Texas Legislature <a href="https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/plyler-v-doe-public-education-immigrant-students">passed a law</a> that permitted school districts to deny undocumented children access to education. A group of students from Mexico challenged the case, and in 1982, the case reached the Supreme Court. </p>
<p>In a landmark judgment, <a href="https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/plyler-v-doe-public-education-immigrant-students">Plyler v. Doe</a>, the Supreme Court decided that the Equal Protections Clause requires local school districts to ensure that all children in the United States have access to K-12 education. Plyler v. Doe, however, does not apply to higher education. </p>
<p>In fact, when it comes to higher education, <a href="http://www.ncsl.org/research/immigration/tuition-benefits-for-immigrants.aspx">three states</a> explicitly bar undocumented students from enrolling in universities: Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. </p>
<p>Alabama and South Carolina bar undocumented students from all public institutions of higher education. Georgia bars undocumented students from enrolling in the five most selective public institutions.</p>
<p>Most states, however, have no policies with regard to access to higher education for undocumented students. This is made possible as there is <a href="https://professionals.collegeboard.org/guidance/financial-aid/undocumented-students">no federal law</a> that requires students to prove they are lawfully present to be admitted into a post-secondary institution in the U.S. Undocumented students <a href="http://www.thenyic.org/node/3491">do not have to disclose their status</a> and they do not have to provide a <a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/dean/college-advice-for-undocumented-student/">Social Security number</a> when applying.</p>
<p>In those states that have no official policies, undocumented students often must pay out-of-state or even steep international rates for public education. This makes access to higher education difficult.</p>
<h2>Providing financial support</h2>
<p>In contrast, there are <a href="http://www.ncsl.org/research/immigration/tuition-benefits-for-immigrants.aspx">20 states</a> that not only allow undocumented students to attend institutions of higher education, but also permit those students to pay in-state tuition. </p>
<p>The 20 states, subject to change, that have this policy are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah and Washington. </p>
<p>In these 20 states, undocumented youth who graduate from high school within the state and meet other residency requirements – such as having graduated from high school within the state – are eligible to pay in-state tuition in the state’s public universities. The availability of in-state tuition facilitates access for undocumented college students by making it more affordable. </p>
<p>However, even though most undocumented students come from low-income families, they are not eligible for federally funded programs such as loans and Pell Grants. A Pell Grant is a <a href="https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/grants-scholarships/pell">federally subsidized grant</a> for low-income students that does not have to be repaid. The lack of federal grants and loans presents an important barrier to access to higher education for undocumented youth.</p>
<p>Currently, only five states offer financial aid to undocumented students: California, New Mexico, Texas, Minnesota and Washington. In the remaining states, undocumented youth have to fund their education themselves, or rely on a very limited supply of private scholarships. <a href="http://www.thedream.us/">TheDream.US</a>, a national scholarship fund, for example, provides highly competitive scholarships to undocumented students to attend <a href="https://mydocumentedlife.org/2016/11/15/the-dream-us-scholarships-open-to-undocumented-students-with-daca-or-tps/">university</a>.</p>
<h2>Private universities make their own decisions</h2>
<p>There are no laws that prevent undocumented students from attending private universities. These universities, however, tend to be even more costly than public universities, and are unaffordable for most undocumented youth.</p>
<p>Some private universities offer a small number of scholarships to undocumented students that enable them to access higher education, but the demand far outpaces <a href="http://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/lessons-local-level-dacas-implementation-and-impact-education-and-training-success">supply</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/147242/original/image-20161123-19696-47fexs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Statue of John Harvard at Harvard University.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/davepeterson/2206731767/in/photolist-4n15tr-drFNfs-dtw3FT-cGrAkf-8WHHro-gwSCPz-bpDLL-oxpwLv-qtoM1D-zH62-hngc1g-JG94Y-nE85eK-9Xa1it-8ovzZM-95C7u6-kDMGp-az3XDL-8ovzVn-3EW6Qg-6ff4so-cyV8FG-5bmdB7-bnMc2n-4v2KzQ-cFi4aN-dc5Sbq-2kUKt3-a11dtq-48ziVT-PHa1e-fjMRxS-dCBHdo-JGfwt-5pYpAn-gmvDnx-4v2JLS-uqDZs-86ySzV-7XizTN-8Pmf8m-mVaikP-kDMGo-dHe2hs-777FW7-oa1r4G-4Jn8Ns-fEfuMB-2M3er-roBdJX">Dave Peterson1</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The most selective universities in the country, such as Harvard, Princeton and Duke, offer <a href="http://getmetocollege.org/financial-aid/info-for-undocumented-students/school-policies-towards-undocumented-students">need-based scholarships</a> to all admitted students, including those who are undocumented. Here, the main obstacle is admission. The acceptance rate at Harvard, for example, is 6 percent. At Duke, it is <a href="http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/lowest-acceptance-rate">12 percent</a>. Although there are no estimates of undocumented students in private universities, it is estimated that <a href="http://www.undocuscholars.org/assets/undocuscholarsreport2015.pdf">200,000 to 225,000</a> are enrolled in colleges nationally.</p>
<p>Other, less selective colleges do not offer full financial aid to all admitted students. For example, Bard College, which accepts one-third of all applicants, offers much more limited <a href="http://getmetocollege.org/financial-aid/info-for-undocumented-students/school-policies-towards-undocumented-students">financial aid</a> packages for undocumented students. At Bard College, similar to many other colleges, undocumented students must apply as international students. </p>
<p>Most private universities consider undocumented students to be international students, which often means they have to pay higher tuition than domestic students. A few, however, have changed their policies and now consider undocumented students to be domestic students, both in their <a href="https://mydocumentedlife.org/2016/09/14/colleges-that-accept-undocumented-students-as-domestic-students/">admission criteria</a> and financial aid policies.</p>
<h2>The case of California</h2>
<p>The state with the largest number of undocumented immigrants in the country is <a href="http://www.pewhispanic.org/2016/09/20/overall-number-of-u-s-unauthorized-immigrants-holds-steady-since-2009/">California</a>. Nearly two and half million of the estimated <a href="http://www.pewhispanic.org/interactives/unauthorized-trends/">11 million</a> undocumented migrants in the United States live in California. The Golden State also has some of the most favorable policies toward them. </p>
<p>A series of immigration policy reforms in California known as the California Dream Act provides access to higher education for undocumented students. Governor Gray Davis signed <a href="http://ab540.com/What_Is_AB540_.html">AB 540</a> in 2001, a bill that granted undocumented students in-state tuition eligibility.</p>
<p>One decade later, Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bills, <a href="http://www.laney.edu/wp/ab540/california-dream-act-ab-130-131/">AB 130 and AB 131</a>, which granted scholarships from nonstate or private funds and allowed eligible undocumented students to apply for state financial aid.</p>
<p>Without financial aid, and especially without access to in-state tuition, college attendance remains out of reach for most undocumented students. </p>
<p>Our research group recently interviewed 35 undocumented students at the University of California in Merced and found that the annual household income was less than US$25,000 for 22 of the 35 students. </p>
<p>In-state tuition at UC Merced is over $13,000. In addition to tuition, students must also cover their living expenses, supplies and books. The total cost of attendance at UC Merced for a student who lives at home is estimated at <a href="http://financialaid.ucmerced.edu/cost-attendance">$25,825</a>, more than what most of these families earn in a year. </p>
<p>It is clear their parents would not be able to afford to pay tuition, much less to pay room, board, books and other costs associated with college attendance. Even with state financial aid, students struggle to get by. </p>
<h2>What can change under Trump</h2>
<p>On June 15, 2012, President Obama created a new policy for children of immigrant parents, known as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (<a href="https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/consideration-deferred-action-childhood-arrivals-daca">DACA</a>). This policy temporarily protects undocumented youth from deportation, and provides them with a Social Security number and a work permit.</p>
<p>To qualify, undocumented immigrants must have been under the age of 31 on or before June 15, 2012; have arrived in the United States before the age of sixteen; and be currently enrolled either in school or in the armed forces or already have completed high school. DACA does not provide any additional benefits when applying to college. </p>
<p>DACA does allow many undocumented college students to supplement their parents’ meager income by getting part-time employment. </p>
<p>President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/policies/immigration">rescind</a> all of President Obama’s executive orders. If this happens, youths who currently have DACA would eventually lose their work permits as well as access to employment in the formal economy. DACA has had a <a href="http://immigrationimpact.com/2015/06/15/3-years-in-its-increasingly-clear-that-daca-benefits-all-of-us/">noticeably positive impact</a> on its beneficiaries. It has opened up better economic opportunities and allowed recipients to obtain driver’s licenses, and even open their first bank accounts. </p>
<p>A repeal of DACA would also negatively affect undocumented youths’ access to university as it would affect their ability to work and thus afford university.</p>
<p>However, as president, Trump would not be able to directly change state laws governing access to higher education. Those laws were passed by state legislatures and could only be overturned by the state legislatures themselves or by the Supreme Court, if they were determined to be unconstitutional. </p>
<p>In Kansas, for example, the in-state tuition law has come under attack nearly every year <a href="http://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article1111646.html">since the law passed in 2004</a>. However, these attacks have been unsuccessful at repealing the law.</p>
<p>As president, Trump could threaten to take away federal aid from states or even from universities that allow undocumented students. However, as the sanctuary movement builds, and as more and more campuses sign on, there would be, we believe, strong resistance to any efforts to restrict access to higher education for undocumented youth.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/69269/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Twenty states not only accept undocumented students in higher education institutions, but also provide them with financial support.Tanya Golash-Boza, Professor, University of California, MercedBenigno Merlin, Ph.D. Student, University of California, MercedLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.