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Math coursetaking trajectories in high school during the COVID-19 disruptions to schooling
Using student-level transcript data and information about instructional mode among public high school students in Massachusetts, this study examines the impact of disruptions to in-person instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic on students’ math coursetaking trajectories. We find that rates of advancement (that is, of taking a higher-level math course in one year compared to the prior year)… more →
Remote Learning in 2020-21 and Student Attendance Since the COVID-19 Pandemic
Student attendance declined during the COVID-19 pandemic and remains lower than pre-pandemic levels. This study examines the role of remote learning in these post-pandemic declines in student attendance. I find that remote learning in 2020-21 led to persistent declines in post-pandemic attendance, with generally larger negative effects for students exposed to longer periods of remote learning… more →
Dual-Enrollment Dosage Design: Conceptualization and Measurement of Student Profiles and School Structures
Dual-enrollment (“DE”), in which students enroll in college-level courses and receive college credit in high school, has become one of the most prominent strategies for promoting college access and readiness. DE models range from a la carte options or "random acts of dual-enrollment" to highly structured pathways leading to associate degrees embedded in whole-school reform models. However,… more →
Switching Schools: Effects of College Transfers
Using Texas administrative data and a regression discontinuity design, I study how transferring between colleges affects students’ earnings. I leverage applications and admissions data to uncover unpublished GPA cutoffs used for transfer student admissions at each fouryear institution, then use these cutoffs as an instrument for transfer. I do not find positive earnings returns for… more →
Are Work-Based Professional Skills Associated with Postsecondary Entrance and Persistence? Novel Evidence from the Cristo Rey Network
Professional skills such as initiative, communication, and adaptability are thought to shape postsecondary success, but most evidence comes from self- or teacher-reported measures collected in school settings. This study uses employer ratings of students’ professional skills gathered through corporate internships undertaken by economically disadvantaged high school students. After controlling… more →
The Language of Closure: Examining Racial Differences in How A Community Discusses School Closure Metrics
School closures in urban districts disproportionately affect marginalized communities, yet community input often goes unanalyzed or is reduced to simple frequency counts. This study applies BERTopic, a neural topic modeling approach, to analyze 4,159 suggestions from 2,006 community members regarding school closure metrics in a large urban district. Through extensive hyperparameter tuning… more →
Policy and Practice Series
Webinar Series
The Bigger Picture: Key Trends in America’s Changing Education Landscape
Are the enrollment and achievement declines we’re seeing just pandemic fallout, or something deeper? The papers featured in this webinar provide essential context for evaluating common narratives about recent changes in student achievement and enrollment.