College Persistence and Completion Report - Prepared by Abt Associates for Success Boston

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Rhys

College Persistence and Completion Report for Success Boston documents the initiative’s citywide strategy to double college completion rates for Boston Public Schools students. It outlines the theory of change based on cross-sector partnerships using data and mutual accountability, and describes the transition coaching model plus supports from higher education institutions. The report provides context on grant expansion funded through the Social Innovation Fund and summarizes the study focus and evaluation design.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages105

Reading Time4 h 25 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Introduction

About Success Boston Coaching

About This Report

Efforts to Improve College Enrollment and Completion

Barriers to College Enrollment and Completion

Research on Impact of Transition Coaching

Research on Success Boston Coaching

Evaluation Design

Study Design

How We Identified Students in the Sample

How We Test Program Impacts Using a Matched Comparison Group

How We Estimate the Average Impact of the Program for the Full Sample

How We Conduct Exploratory Analyses of Program Impacts

Data Sources

| Prepared by Abt Associates for Success Boston

| Success Boston Coaching
College Persistence and Completion Report
| | | --- | --- | --- | | | | | About Success Boston Success Boston is Boston’s citywide college completion initiative. Together, the Boston Foundation, the Boston Public Schools (BPS), the City of Boston, the Boston Private Industry Council (PIC), 37 area institutions of higher education, led by UMass Boston and Bunker Hill Community College, and local nonprofit partners are working to double the college completion rate for students from the BPS. Success Boston was launched in 2008 in response to a longitudinal study by Northeastern University and the PIC, which showed that only 35% of those BPS graduates who had enrolled in college ever completed a postsecondary certificate, Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree within seven years of graduation from high school. Success Boston’s theory of change is that cross-sector partnerships, guided by data and mutual accountability, will significantly change the post-secondary trajectory for BPS graduates. Its strategic framework focuses on helping Boston’s high school students “Get Ready, Get In and Get Through” college, then “Get Connected” to jobs. A core intervention of Success Boston’s is a transition coaching model; other key activities within this framework include improving academic preparation and offering as-needed supports through higher education institutions until students successfully attain a degree prepared to enter the workforce. In 2014, the Boston Foundation received a grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service to expand this effort. This $6 million Social Innovation Fund award gave the Foundation theresources necessary to expand Success Boston’s transition coaching model from serving 300 to 1,000 students from each of the Boston Public Schools classes of 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018. About Abt Associates Founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1965, Abt provides applied research and consulting services to government agencies, philanthropic, nonprofit, and commercial organizations around the world. Abt’s mission is to improve the quality of life and economic well-being of people worldwide. It applies its exceptional subject matter expertise, outstanding technical capabilities in applied research, and strategic planning to help local, national and international clients make better decisions and deliver better services. About the Social Innovation Fund This report is based upon work supported in part by the Social Innovation Fund (SIF) which unites public and private resources to evaluate and grow innovative community-based solutions with evidence of results. The Social Innovation Fund was a program of the Corporation for National and Community Service that received funding from 2010 to 2016. Using public and private resources to find and grow community-based nonprofits with evidence of results, SIF intermediaries received funding to award subgrants that focus on overcoming challenges in economic opportunity, healthy futures, and youth development. Success Boston Coaching (SBC) College Persistence and Completion Report October 2021 Prepared for: Elizabeth Pauley Antoniya Marinova Jade Franco The Boston Foundation 75 Arlington Street, 10th Floor Boston, MA 02116 Written by: Tamara Linkow Kelly Lack Erin Bumgarner Austin Nichols Tori Morris Abt Associates 10 Fawcett Street Cambridge, MA 02138 With: Beth Gamse Gamse Partnership Acknowledgements The Success Boston study team would like to thank the students, coaches, nonprofit organizational leaders and staff, higher education partners and staff, and the Boston Foundation staff. Their many contributions to the study are deeply appreciated. We are the beneficiaries of their generosity of time and spirit, which was instrumental in the preparation of this report. The report would not have been possible without the contributions of many staf

FAQs

What is Success Boston and what goal does it target?

Success Boston is Boston’s citywide college completion initiative aimed at doubling the college completion rate for Boston Public Schools students.

What is the core intervention described in the report?

A core intervention is a transition coaching model, supported by improving academic preparation and providing as-needed supports through higher education institutions.

How was the initiative expanded beyond serving 300 students?

In 2014 the Boston Foundation received a $6 million Social Innovation Fund grant to expand the transition coaching model from 300 to 1,000 students from each of the Boston Public Schools classes of 2015–2018.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Rhys