Relationships Between Dual Enrollment Parameters and Community College Success in Tennessee

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by acoobca

This non-experimental quantitative study examines how high school dual enrollment completion relates to the success of first-time, full-time community college students in Tennessee. It assesses associate degree completion and time to degree, comparing dual versus non-dual participants and testing effects of course count and subject areas. Using archival Tennessee community college data (2015–2018; 62,644 students), the study applies multiple statistical methods and finds that completing at least one dual enrollment course significantly increases associate completion probability and reduces time to completion.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Statement of the Problem

Purpose and research design

Funding and policy context in Tennessee

Motivation for expansion

Education policy backdrop

Relationships Between Dual Enrollment Parameters and Community College Success in Tennessee Victoria N. Mellons TBR – The College System of Tennessee Jill Channing East Tennessee State University Kwangman Ko East Tennessee State University James Lampley East Tennessee State University Amy Moreland TBR – The College System of Tennessee The purpose of this non-experimental quantitative study was to evaluate the relationships between completion of high school dual enrollment courses and subsequent success of first-time, full-time community college students as measured by completion of an associate degree and time to completion of the degree. In addition to comparing dual and non-dual enrollment student performance, the effects of the number of dual enrollment courses completed and the subject areas of those courses were evaluated. Student subgroups reviewed included gender, race, socioeconomic status, and prior academic preparation (ACT score). Archival data from Tennessee community colleges used in this study included 62,644 students across four years (2015-2018) comprising 11,949 dual enrollment students and 50,695 non-dual enrollment students. Six research questions were answered from these data utilizing independent samples t tests, twoway contingency tables using crosstabs, Pearson correlations, logistic regression, or descriptive statistics. Findings revealed that completing just one dual enrollment course significantly increased the probability of completing an associate degree, and this finding was consistent across all subgroups studied. In addition, dual enrollment students completed associate degrees in significantly less time. Completing more dual enrollment courses tended to further increase the probability of completing a degree and further reduce the time to completion. Keywords: dual enrollment, community college success, degree completion Education Leadership Review of Doctoral Research, Volume 10, Fall 2022 69 In the wake of the Every Student Succeeds Act, more emphasis has been placed on ensuring that America’s workforce receives some level of education beyond high school (DarlingHammond et al., 2016) . In response, states such as Tennessee have established aggressive college completion goals, and thus college readiness continues to garner considerable attention (Meehan & Kent, 2020) . Dual enrollment is an area of educational policy that has gained momentum to address college readiness as it can help students prepare for college in both academic and non-academic areas (Community College Research Center, 2012) . Students who have participated in dual enrollment and learned skills to manage the rigorous college work transition those skills to their courses in college (Fuline, 2018) . As a result, dual enrollment students have demonstrated improved performance in numerous high school and college success measures. From higher grade-point averages (GPA) and graduation rates in high school (Karp et al., 2007) to a greater likelihood of enrolling, graduating, and graduating on time in college (Giani et al., 2014), dual enrollment appears to be a program with wide-reaching impact. Added to the improvement gained by simply participating in dual enrollment, research indicates that the number and types of dual enrollment courses students take are linked to college success (Giani et al., 2014) . Students who accrue more dual enrollment credits demonstrate higher degrees of college success, as do students who take high-rigor core academic courses through dual enrollment. In addition, the effects of dual enrollment are often stronger for traditionally underrepresented or underserved populations (Henneberger et al., 2022) . With the long list of benefits and associated improvements in college outcomes, dual enrollment continues to expand and has been labeled as the “fastest growing movement in higher education in the 21st century”(Jones, 2014, p. 24) . Statement of the Problem Tennessee, as

FAQs

What is the study’s primary purpose?

To evaluate the relationships between completion of high school dual enrollment courses and subsequent success of first-time, full-time community college students in Tennessee.

How is community college success measured?

Success is measured by associate degree completion and time to completion of the degree.

What do the findings suggest about taking dual enrollment courses?

Completing one dual enrollment course significantly increases the probability of completing an associate degree and students complete degrees in significantly less time; taking more courses tends to further improve outcomes.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by acoobca