blog post Testimony: Enrollment Declines in California Community Colleges By Olga Rodriguez Nov 14, 2022 For a hearing of Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance, PPIC’s Olga Rodriguez presented research on pandemic-induced enrollment declines at community colleges—with the largest decreases among Asian, Black, and Latino students—and discussed strategies for boosting student access and educational attainment.
event Higher Education as a Driver of Economic Mobility Dec 12, 2018 Higher education is one of the main ways that Californians—especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds—can move up the income ladder. But too few Californians earn a college degree. PPIC researcher Sarah Bohn will outline findings from a new report that looks at the numerous benefits of a college degree, the challenges of improving college completion, and how to build upon recent progress and promote upward economic mobility for all Californians.
Policy Brief Policy Brief: The Future of Higher Education Enrollment in California By Hans Johnson, Cesar Alesi Perez, Mary Severance Jun 17, 2024 Higher education has long been a driver of economic mobility and well-being in California. While college enrollment and completion have long trended upward, the state population fell and higher education enrollment declined during the pandemic. How will California’s colleges and universities fare over the next two decades?
Report What Happens When Colleges Broaden Access to Transfer-Level Courses? Evidence from California’s Community Colleges By Marisol Cuellar Mejia, Olga Rodriguez, Hans Johnson Oct 7, 2019 California community colleges that have significantly expanded access to transfer-level courses—important steps toward degrees and transfers to four-year schools—have seen increased student success, particularly in English. Prompted by a new law (AB 705), placement and curricular reforms are now being enacted system-wide; it will be important to monitor their impact.
Report Getting to Graduation on Time at California State University By Jacob Jackson Nov 12, 2020 Students who take more than four years to graduate incur added costs—from paying extra tuition to forgoing years in the workforce. This report examines how a strategy of taking more courses in the first year at California State University may influence on-time graduation, while exploring how different groups benefit from a full course load.
blog post Ready for College? By Hans Johnson Mar 6, 2014 By several measures, a large and growing share of the state’s high school graduates are ready for college-level work.
blog post Training California’s Students for Well-Paying Jobs By Bonnie Brooks Jul 18, 2019 Completion of career education credentials at California community colleges has risen substantially, but some credentials create much larger earnings gains than do others.
blog post Reforming California’s Community College System By Hans Johnson, Olga Rodriguez, Marisol Cuellar Mejia May 31, 2019 Community colleges are implementing a number of reforms designed to help more students get a degree or a certificate or transfer to a four-year institution.
