NEW YORK – The Education Trust–New York today launched its To&Through interactive tool, allowing users for the first time to explore data that offer a window into how well New York State’s public high schools are preparing many of their students who are low-income for success in college.
To shine a light on an important aspect of readiness for college, careers, and active citizenship, the tool draws on college persistence and completion rates through December 2018 for students who are estimated to have graduated from New York State public high schools in 2012 and 2013, enrolled the following fall in a New York college or university, and participated in the state’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)—which provides financial aid to families generally earning up to $80,000 in taxable income per year for dependent undergraduate students.
“We believe in a simple premise: the best measure of college readiness is whether students ultimately succeed in college,” said Ian Rosenblum, executive director of Ed Trust–NY. “Giving meaning to that intention requires stronger connections between K-12 data—including which courses students take, the resources and supports in their schools, and how they perform on high school assessments, among other measures—and the actual postsecondary outcomes that students experience in college.”
At the state level, the new data reveal several key takeaways about how well New York high schools are preparing graduates for college, including:
Although this data universe is limited due to the availability of data, these findings represent an important look into how well New York high schools are preparing students—particularly those who are low-income—to succeed in college.
“Too often, students, parents, and educators are given little information about whether high schools are actually preparing students to be college-ready when they receive their high school diplomas,” said Rosenblum. “While high school preparation is far from the only contributor to whether a student completes college, it is a critical factor.”
The data raise important questions for education leaders and state policymakers to consider, including:
Questions for School Districts
Questions for State Policymakers
Schools across New York are already recognizing the importance of ensuring their students are ready for success in college, and adopting best practices to support them to and through college. Read their stories; explore data on individual schools, districts, and high-performers; and see our detailed data methodology note at www.edtrustny.org/ToAndThrough.
This project is made possible thanks to the support of the Heckscher Foundation for Children.
“Removing barriers to equality in educational choices is fundamental to our funding approach of venture philanthropy and this particular tool, which links college completion data back to the high school level, is a prime example of our targeted problem solving in action,” said Peter Sloane, chairman and CEO of the Heckscher Foundation for Children.
About The Education Trust–New York
The Education Trust–New York works to eliminate the gaps in equity, opportunity and achievement that hold back too many students from reaching their full potential, especially those who are low-income or students of color, in order to enable all students in New York State to achieve at high levels—from early childhood through college completion. Learn more at www.EdTrustNY.org.