Potts, Brett D.
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to compare high school graduates from the BlueValley School District to determine whether a relationships existed between thegraduates’ ability to attain a baccalaureate degree within 5 years of graduation and thetheir chosen high school academic preparation program, their ACT composite scorecategory, and a combination of academic preparation program and ACT composite scorecategory. This quasi-experimental quantitative study took place in the Blue Valley USD229 School District in Kansas. The sample included 626 Blue Valley District high schoolgraduates from the class of 2004 who attended one of the six state universities in Kansas.Chi-square tests of independence were conducted for each research question and followup analysis was conducted to provide more specificity to the results. Analysis of the datarevealed that statistically significant relationships existed between college degreecompletion and the chosen high school academic preparation program, as well as theACT composite score category. Additionally, the combination of the academicpreparation program and both of the ACT composite score categories also were related tocollege degree completion. Recommendations for further research included increasing thescope of the study to include a greater variety of colleges, students from more than onegraduating class, and a more diverse student sample. Another recommendation was forfuture studies to attempt to determine whether similar relationships exist across gender,ethnic, and socioeconomic categories. Finally, a study of the impact of variouselementary and middle school curricular programs on subsequent enrollment in morerigorous high school courses should be considered.