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Selected Works of Brad J. Hershbein
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The Effects of the Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship on Post-Secondary Educational Attainment: Implications for the Benefits and Costs of Generous and Universal College Subsidies
(2015)
  • Marta Lachowska
  • Timothy J. Bartik
  • Brad J. Hershbein, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research
Abstract

In order to study whether universal college scholarships can reduce inequality in education, we study one aspect of the Kalamazoo Promise that resembles a “natural experiment.” We use the fact that the surprise announcement of the scholarship created a large change in expected college tuition costs that varied across different groups of students based on past enrollment decisions. Using a differences-in-differences analysis, we compare the outcomes of Promise-eligible students to ineligible students, before and after the Promise. Outcomes studied include college enrollment, whether the student has obtained a college degree, and after-college earnings. We use the economical and racial diversity of the district to study group-specific effects.

Keywords
  • college scholarships,
  • college access,
  • college enrollment,
  • degree attainment,
  • postsecondary education,
  • higher education,
  • universities,
  • colleges,
  • universal policies,
  • place based policies,
  • inequality,
  • Kalamazoo Promise,
  • Kalamazoo,
  • Michigan
Disciplines
Publication Date
2015
Citation Information
Marta Lachowska, Timothy J. Bartik and Brad J. Hershbein. "The Effects of the Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship on Post-Secondary Educational Attainment: Implications for the Benefits and Costs of Generous and Universal College Subsidies" (2015)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/brad_hershbein/27/