Examining Relationships Between Participation in a Freshman Transition Program and Persistence to High School Graduation

With the increased level of accountability now dominating education in America, administrators are constantly on the lookout for ways to improve their schools. One area of interest is the correlation between success in the ninth grade and long-term high school success. To help achieve ninth grade year success, many school have turned towards freshman transition programs. The purpose of this study was to examine whether a relationship existed between students participating in a comprehensive freshman transition program and higher persistence in high school graduation. This study examined cohorts of students who completed a comprehensive transition program, and their graduation status after four years of high school. Four-year cohort graduation status was collected for the two graduating classes before the implementation of the transition program, and for the following three years after implementation of the transition program. This data was compared using a chi-square to test for significance. The results of this study found a significant relationship between participating in the transition program and increased persistence to high school graduation.