Pre-College Factors in Racial Gaps on Graduation

A new study in The Journal of Higher Education finds that 61 percent of the variance on college graduation rates by race can be explained by factors in students' pre-college experiences. The factors include poverty, as experienced on a personal level and at the high schools students attend. The study was based on an analysis of a cohort of college enrollees in Texas, where 65.5 percent of white students graduated, compared to  51.4 percent of Hispanic students and 43.6 percent of black students. The study was conducted by Stella M. Flores oft New York University; Toby J. Park of Florida State University and Dominique J. Baker of Southern Methodist University.