college choice

Recent research on the impact of the Kalamazoo Promise on college choice

Posted on March 6, 2013. Filed under: college choice, Kalamazoo Promise |

The Upjohn Institute has just posted a policy paper written by my colleague Bridget Timmeney and myself called “The Impact of the Kalamazoo Promise on College Choice: An Analysis of Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center Graduates.” The study shows that The Kalamazoo Promise has led to a pronounced shift in the college-going patterns of Kalamazoo Public Schools (KPS) students who attend the Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center (KAMSC) — the region’s provider of an accelerated education in math, science, and technology.

Following the introduction of the Kalamazoo Promise in 2005, the percentage of KPS KAMSC students attending public, in-state institutions of higher education has almost doubled—a shift that reflects the program rules of the Promise, which covers tuition and fees only at public postsecondary institutions in Michigan. The percentage of non-KPS KAMSC students attending an in-state, public institution also rose in the post-2006 period but only very slightly, suggesting that the Promise has shifted college choices among the eligible student population.

The shift of KAMSC graduates to in-state, public institutions, in line with the terms of the Kalamazoo Promise, may have implications for future workforce development, since students who attend college in state are more likely to remain in Michigan after graduation.