Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Detroit has one of the highest urban poverty rates in the U.S., with 36% of all residents living in poverty, and is also one of the least economically mobile cities for children born into poverty (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017; Chetty, Hendren, Kline, & Saez, 2014). In other words, many children who are born poor in Detroit are likely to remain poor throughout their lives. Educational attainment offers a promising path out of poverty, yet rates of higher education among economically disadvantaged Detroit residents are particularly low. Only 17% of young people ages 25-34 years old hold a bachelor’s degree, half the national average of 35% (U.S. Census Bureau, 2016). Rates of college education are especially low among Black and Hispanic youth in Detroit, where just 12% and 6% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, respectively, well below the national average of 21% and 15% (U.S. Census Bureau, 2016).

This paper presents findings from a research partnership between the Detroit Regional Chamber, Metro Detroit institutions of higher education, Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), and researchers from the University of Michigan’s Youth Policy Lab. In this paper, we describe the landscape of college pathways and outcomes for Detroit high school graduates including current rates of college enrollment, persistence, and completion, both overall and within student subgroups. Additionally, we explore the characteristics and college planning/preparation resources available in Detroit high schools. Specifically, we address the following research questions:

• Among Detroit high school graduates, what are the rates of enrollment at 2-year vs. 4-year institutions, year-to-year persistence, credit accumulation, and graduation? How do these vary across student subgroups (i.e., educational preparation, gender, race, and socioeconomic background)?
• What college planning/preparation resources are available across Detroit high schools? Which are the strongest predictors of college enrollment and early college success, both overall and for traditionally underserved students?
• Among disadvantaged students who enroll at 4-year institutions, which high school-level factors are associated with higher levels of persistence, credit accumulation, and graduation?

Results show that while enrollment in four-year colleges has increased over the last decade, with over 30% of Detroit high school graduates currently enrolling in a four-year college, the majority of students are not finishing with a degree. The six-year graduation rate hovers just under 40%. This means than six in 10 students who start college do not earn a degree and that among all high school graduates only 17% are earning a four-year degree within six years of graduating. Analyses describing the availability and impact of high schools’ resources are underway. Preliminary findings show that while student characteristics (e.g., sociodemographic background and college “readiness”) account for much of the variation in outcomes, high schools also make a not insubstantial contribution. As just one example, among low-income students from Detroit, students’ background and preparation accounts for 87% of the variance in enrollment rates, but high schools explain another 13%. The APPAM presentation will explore the various characteristics and resources of high schools that predict differences in students’ patterns of college enrollment and success.