KIPP DC: KIPP Through College (KTC) Program

The Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) is a national network of free, open-enrollment, college preparatory public charter schools operating since 1998. Established in 2001, KIPP DC currently serves more than 5,200 prekindergarten through 12th-grade students at 16 schools on six campuses in the District of Columbia. The KIPP Through College (KTC) program approach supports its students not only leading up to college, but through college.

Study Goals:

The purpose of this report is to present the program evaluation efforts and findings in one comprehensive document to answer the evaluation questions.

Research Questions:

The report included an implementation study and an outcome study. The research questions were:

• Implementation Study:
  • To what extent is the design of KTC being fully and correctly implemented?
  • To what extent does this design meet the needs of KTC participants?
  • What, if any, factors of implementation appear to affect KTC students’ participation in the program and their college success (e.g., college attendance)?
  • What recommendations and best practices can be identified?
  • What are the facilitators of and challenges to implementation of the program?
• Outcome Study:
  • Are KIPP DC’s KTC students more likely than non-KTC students to remain in their original high school placement?
  • Do KIPP DC’s KTC students remain on track to graduate more than non-KTC participants in DC?
  • Do KIPP DC’s KTC students have higher high school graduation rates than non-KTC participants in DC?
  • Do KIPP DC’s KTC students have higher college attendance rates than non-KTC participants in DC?
  • Are KIPP DC’s KTC students more likely than non-KTC students in DC to remain in their original college placement?
  • Do different types of KIPP DC’s KTC participants benefit in different ways (e.g., based on gender, type of high school they attend)?

Findings:

The report found the following:

• The graduation rate for KTC students was 81 percent, statistically significantly higher than the rate for non-KTC students.
• 34 percent of KTC students were listed as having enrolled in college compared to 29 percent of non-KTC students in Washington DC, and KTC students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch (FRPL) had a statistically higher enrollment rate than eligible non-KTC students.
• Using internal KTC data, researchers found that of the 81 percent of non-high school graduate alumni were deemed “on track to graduate” at the time. This rate was higher for female students than male students and for non-FRPL students compared to FRPL.

For more information, download the report volume 1, volume 2, and the report brief.