The DISD board of trustees reviewed college enrollment numbers from recent graduating classes May 12. From the classes of 2018 to 2021, overall DISD graduates who enrolled into college immediately after high school slid from 58% to 46%, a presentation from distract staff showed.
The sharpest drop between those years was from the classes of 2019 to 2020. Students heading to college dropped from 58% to 47% in those years. Brian Lusk, DISD chief of strategic initiatives, said a "major contributing factor" to the decline was the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the trend, the number of students enrolling into four-year schools has risen. A total of 28% of students in the class of 2021 enrolled into a four-year school, according to the presentation. That is up from 25% of the class of 2020.
DISD officials also reported an ongoing decline in enrollment to two-year schools: from 31% in 2018 to 19% in 2021. District staff attributed this trend to a rising number of associate degrees earned by students still attending DISD schools.
An update to the district’s college and career advising program is underway to address declining college enrollments, according to staff. Lusk said the district will seek to provide more program advisers to students in high schools by next fall.
A focus of the program moving forward will be to address “summer melt,” which district officials described as college plans falling through during the months following high school graduation. Advisors will ensure “all the pieces” are in place ahead of college, such as ensuring that required meningitis shots are received, according to the presentation.
“What we want to do is make sure all students have that path forward to a living-wage job,” Lusk said. “We want every student to know their advisors. By reducing the ratios and making them more even across Dallas ISD, we could have greater success.”
