Early childbearing, high school completion, and college enrollment: Evidence from 1980 high school sophomores

Although college enrollment and completion rates have increased over the past 30 years, access to higher education has not been uniform across racial groups. In addition to racial gaps, differences in tertiary education outcomes exist by gender. Gender gaps in college enrollment are larger in the Latinx community than in other racial or ethnic groups. In this paper, we use the October Current Population Survey (CPS) supplements for the years 1984–1992 and state and federal drug laws to measure the impact of the passage of the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act on the likelihood of college enrollment for young Latino men. Following the passage of the federal law, some states changed their drug laws around marijuana and cocaine possession and distribution. We use this variation in state law in order to explore whether states that have more lenient marijuana and cocaine laws also have a higher likelihood of college enrollment. We find that there was a four percentage point decline in both the likelihood of high school completion and that of college enrollment for Latinx men after the passage of the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act. Findings have implications for modifications to state drug laws and addressing the ways in which these laws impact educational attainment for students underrepresented in higher education.

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The impact of adolescent exposure to medical marijuana laws on high school completion, college enrollment and college degree completion

Drug and Alcohol Dependence ◽

10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2016.09.002 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 168 ◽

pp. 320-327 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Andrew D. Plunk ◽

Arpana Agrawal ◽

Paul T. Harrell ◽

William F. Tate ◽

Kelli England Will ◽

...

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

Degree Completion ◽

College Enrollment ◽

Medical Marijuana ◽

High School Completion ◽

College Degree ◽

School Completion ◽

Medical Marijuana Laws ◽

The Impact ◽

Adolescent Exposure

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The Relationship Between Immigration Enforcement and Educational Attainment: The Role of Sanctuary Policies

AERA Open ◽

10.1177/23328584211037253 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. 233285842110372

Author(s):

Daniel Corral

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

College Enrollment ◽

High School Completion ◽

State Governments ◽

Immigration Enforcement ◽

Political Leaders ◽

Undocumented Youth ◽

School Completion ◽

The Relationship

This study explores the association between sanctuary policies and the high school completion and college enrollment of Hispanic undocumented youth. Sanctuary policies, which city, county, and/or state governments implement, prohibit local political leaders and police officials from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement officers regarding the questioning, detention, and deportation of undocumented immigrants. This study uses data from the American Community Survey and applies a difference-in-differences design. On average, my preferred specification detected no association with high school completion or college enrollment. These findings suggest that although these policies may help counteract immigration enforcement, they may not reduce uncertainty enough to have a significant relationship with educational outcomes.

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