The primary purpose of this study was to determine the differences in the academic outcomes of first-year academically underprepared TN Promise-eligible college freshmen who participated in a college bridge program. A comparative research design was applied to existing data, including first-semester GPA, first-semester credit completion rate, first college-level mathematics course GPA, first college-level English course GPA, and fall-to-fall persistence rates. A random sample of 412 first-time freshman college students from five cohorts was analyzed using descriptive statistics for eight research questions. These findings indicated that there were no significant differences among college bridge participants and non-bridge participants. Non-bridge program participants performed slightly better than bridge program participants for all research questions, including first-semester GPA, first-semester credit completion rate, first English course GPA, and first mathematics course GPA. Similar results were also found for research questions that analyzed underrepresented participants. However, despite finding that non-bridge participants achieved minor but consistently higher performance outcomes, the fall-to-fall persistence rates for bridge participants and non-bridge participants were nearly identical. Additional analyses indicated that low-income bridge participants slightly outperformed their low-income non-bridge peers in first-semester GPA and credit completion rate, and first-generation bridge program participants and first-generation non-bridge participants performed almost identically, though no statistical significance was found. This study documented the short-term academic effects that college bridge programs can have on academically underprepared college freshmen. These findings resemble similar findings from existing bridge program research that likewise did not find improvements in student performance or outcomes. Additionally, this study along with ambiguous findings from previous research, might indicate that bridge program efficacy is highly reliant on program design, purpose, and target populations, and the concept is not a universal approach to prepare students academically and socially for the curricular expectations of postsecondary education. Implications for future research and recommendations for policymakers are discussed.

Colleges and universities face a critical challenge in addressing the educational needs of their academically underprepared students. With college dropout rates increasingly rising, post-secondary institutions must ensure that these students have both the knowledge and the skills necessary to succeed in higher education and beyond. The aim of this study was to investigate the learning and study strategies and skills of students participating in a university summer bridge program (SBP), which is a 6-week, high-school-to-college transition program for academically underprepared, at-risk, first-year students (as defined by the university). The relationships between SBP students' learning and study strategies and two measures of college achievement (first-year GPA and first-to-second-year persistence) were investigated using a two-phase, mixed-methods explanatory design. In Phase 1 of the study, the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) profiles of SBP students (N = 266) were examined. The LASSI, an 80-item, self-report questionnaire, is used to assess students' knowledge and use of various cognitive, motivational, and self-regulatory strategies that contribute to strategic learning. In Phase 2 of the study, semi-structured interviews were conducted to follow-up with purposefully selected SBP students (n = 4) during their sophomore year at the university. Results of the study found that selecting main ideas and test strategies (LASSI) scales were significant predictors of first-year college GPA. Motivation, as assessed by the LASSI, was a significant predictor of first-to-second-year college persistence. Interviews conducted in Phase 2 of the study expand on these findings. Implications for educational policy and practice are highlighted. / Educational Psychology

The Caribbean University's Pre-College Program (PCP) served as the conduit for the nation's academically underprepared high school graduates to matriculate to university and earn a degree. The PCP student enrollment increased annually since 2010; however, less than 70% of the total PCP students matriculated to an associate degree. Without a formal program evaluation, the empirical evidence into the factors that influenced PCP students' progress remained unknown. The purpose of this participatory-summative logic outcomes program evaluation was to measure stakeholders' perspectives of the ways in which the PCP's purpose, structure, and outcomes were manifested in the practices at the Caribbean University. A purposeful sample of 9 PCP students from the 2010 to 2015 PCP cohorts volunteered and received a 31-item Likert-scale College Persistence Questionnaire (CPQ) on-line survey to garner insights into the factors influencing the PCP learners' outcomes. Nine PCP faculty members and the deputy registrar completed separate versions of an online questionnaire. The PCP students' responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The open-ended responses were coded and analyzed. The PCP faculty members and deputy registrar's open-ended responses were coded, and thematically analyzed. Participants' responses identified institutional, curricular, and admissions criteria issues that influenced PCP students' low academic performance while supporting the PCP's program continuation. Findings and recommendations were included in an executive report for the study site. Providing the outcomes of this research to the leadership at the study site may lead to positive social change by supporting a second chance for this Caribbean nation's academically underprepared high school graduates who seek a college degree.

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