Education

Students: Don’t leave college money on the table by failing to file a FAFSA

The vast majority of college undergrads depend on some amount of financial aid to afford their education. But to get it, they have to fill out a FAFSA. Research shows that students in higher-poverty school districts are less likely to complete the FAFSA than students in wealthier districts. So far this year, which has been greatly disrupted by the pandemic, completion rates are down at all levels, especially in high-minority and Title 1 high schools.

An economist makes the case for school integration

Contrary to popular opinion, efforts to integrate schools in the 1970s and 1980s were overwhelmingly successful, says economist Rucker C. Johnson. Johnson argues that we must renew our commitment to integration for the sake of all Americans.

Urban Reads: Rucker C. Johnson

Acclaimed economist Rucker C. Johnson discusses his new book, "Children of the Dream: Why School Integration Works."

We’ll overcome COVID-19, but can we overcome 400 years of wrongs?

There has been a lot of discussion and speculation about the future of cities and how they will change following the pandemic. What will that future look like for Black Americans, who have been abused, exploited, ground down and lied to in the past? As we move into the future, what will change? And what will stay the same?

Per-student spending and state funding are lagging in Texas. Meanwhile, the window is closing on an accurate census count.

To ensure Houston ISD schools don’t miss out on important census-guided funding in the next decade, there needs to be a full and accurate local population count. Unfortunately, the city’s self-response rate trails that of the nation by close to 10%. And on top of that, the counting is now set to end a month earlier than originally planned.

Preparing Today’s Students for Tomorrow’s Texas Workforce

Motivated by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s 60×30TX strategic plan, this project examined the path to and through college and into the workforce for students in the Houston area and state of Texas.

Will tuition-free college increase college graduation rates?

This study determined the optimal tuition subsidy necessary to increase two- and four-year college graduation in Texas. The study also estimated the per pupil and total cost of potential subsidies, and compared how they might affect college graduation rates.

School-to-Work Linkages in Texas

This report examined school-to-work linkages among bachelor’s degree holders in the state of Texas. Linkage is a measure of how closely connected college majors are to specific occupations in the labor market.

Imbalance, inequality and the growing burden on working parents with school-age kids

While children attend K-12 public schools for an average of 1,195 hours per year, a full-time working parent averages twice as much time, about 2,450 hours per year, working and commuting. Now, as school districts prepare to reopen for the fall semester — whether in-person, virtually or a combination of both — administrators, teachers, parents and students are having to adjust their plans based what’s possible during the coronavirus pandemic.

As COVID-19 ebbs and flows, will there be a sea change in cities? It depends on whom you ask.

Surges, hot spots, reopenings and reclosings. As the pandemic’s jagged sawtooth trend line continues to cut across the nation, uncertainty remains. In the end, how much will the composition of urban and suburban areas change?

Cycle 1 of HISD’s College Success Initiative and Students’ Preparation for and Enrollment in College

This study examines the relationship between Cycle 1 of the Houston Independent School District (HISD) College Success Initiative and students’ preparation for, enrollment in, and persistence in college.

Transitioning to College and Work: Labor Market Analyses in Houston and Texas (Part 3)

Part 3 of the Houston Longitudinal Study on the Transition to College and Work (HLS) examined supply and demand for labor in the Houston area and Texas; in-demand occupations and skills in the Houston area; and early career wages and unemployment receipt among high school graduates from the Houston IndependentSchool District (HISD).

COVID-19 survey: Houston area is the hardest hit large metro in America

Jobless claims, along with COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations, are on the rise in Texas. And the social and economic impacts seem to be the greatest in the Houston metropolitan area.

Transitioning to College and Work: A Study of Potential Enrollment Indicators (Part 2)

Part 2 of the Houston Longitudinal Study on the Transition to College and Work (HLS) examined potential indicators of college enrollment school and district staff might use to identify and support students at risk of not attending college.

Summer Melt and Free Application for Federal Student Aid Verification

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) verification and its role in summer melt is examined in this brief.