Gaining an understanding about the barriers in transitioning from high school to college is crucial to improving college access and matriculation—particularly for low-income families and first-generation college-goers. These obstacles include many factors, such as: Lack of access to resources at home or school Not having a rigorous college-preparatory curriculum or not taking advantage of these courses Misperceptions about the college-going process. This volume introduces innovative and effective ways to ease the transition process. One essential question examined is the role of high schools and whether they should take a more active role in preparing students for college. While some interventions in this issue are designed for school-wide implementation, others are more targeted and focus on certain aspects of the college process such as financial aid, but all recognize the role of high schools in shaping students’ college-going aspirations and behavior. By including the most cutting-edge and rigorous research on improving college access, this volume: Delineates the obstacles adolescents face in their transition from high school to college Increases understanding of the mechanisms contributing to gaps in college enrollment Highlights how interventions can help to ease these challenges. This is the 140th volume of New Directions for Youth Development, the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series dedicated to bringing together everyone concerned with helping young people, including scholars, practitioners, and people from different disciplines and professions.

Table of Contents:
Issue Editors’ Notes 1 Barbara Schneider, Justina Judy Executive Summary 5 1. Pathways to college and STEM careers: Enhancing the high school experience 9 Barbara Schneider, Michael Broda, Justina Judy, Kri Burkander This university-community partnership providing college mentoring and additional supports is having an impact on college-going rates and STEM interest in postsecondary education. 2. Research into practice: Postsecondary success in the Chicago Public Schools 31 David W. Johnson, Eliza Moeller, Mathew Holsapple A five-tenet framework guides the work of the Consortium on Chicago School Research in understanding and ameliorating the challenges facing low-income youth as they encounter the transition to college. 3. Lessons learned from a data-driven college access program: The National College Advising Corps 55 Eileen L. Horng, Brent J. Evans, anthony l. antonio, Jesse D. Foster, Hoori S. Kalamkarian, Nicole F. Hurd, Eric P. Bettinger A successful data-driven partnership between researchers at Stanford University and the National College Advising Corps has facilitated improved college access for low-income students. 4. The not-so-lazy days of summer: Experimental interventions to increase college entry among low-income high school graduates 77 Benjamin L. Castleman, Lindsay C. Page Peer mentoring and text messaging programs are shown to be helpful and cost-effective strategies for addressing the phenomenon of “summer melt” observed among low-income college-bound students. 5. Is traditional financial aid too little, too late to help youth succeed in college? An introduction to The Degree Project promise scholarship experiment 99 Douglas N. Harris Promise scholarships, such as The Degree Project, offer an alternative to traditional aid programs by making commitments to students early on in high school and providing motivation and encouragement as students prepare for college. Index 117