College Access and Completion Among Boys and Young Men of Color: Literature Review of Promising Practices

This literature review examines challenges and promising practices for increasing college access and completion among boys and young men of color. While K-12 educators have focused greater attention on closing gender and racial/ethnic gaps in academic readiness for college, our review focuses on a more puzzling phenomenon. Wide gaps in college enrollment and persistence remain even among, for example, Black and Latino boys who reach the end of high school academically prepared for post-secondary education. Consequently, our review moves beyond issues of academic preparation to other factors that appear to mediate college access and success for boys and young men of color.