Central Texas High School Graduate Data Center: Findings from the 2006 Senior Surveys

The Student Futures Project—formerly known as Creating a Central Texas High School Data Center—is a research partnership of the Ray Marshall Center, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, Skillpoint Alliance, and a growing number of Central Texas independent school districts (ISDs). The project is documenting and analyzing the progress of Central Texas high school students as they move onto colleges and careers. It relies on a combination of student surveys and linked administrative records to improve feedback and policy and program alignment for Central Texas ISDs in preparing students for the demands of adulthood and for success in the workplace. The purpose of the Student Futures Project is two-fold: 1) To provide ISDs, postsecondary institutions, and employers with comprehensive, longitudinal research on what high school students are doing after graduation, why they are making these decisions, and how a variety of educational, personal, and financial factors are related to their success in higher education and the workforce; and 2) To offer workshops, seminars, and applied research on best practices and applied research that will assist ISDs, the Education Service Center, and postsecondary institutions to increase the number of regional youth who obtain postsecondary academic and workforce credentials.Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, the Texas Education Agency and TGRay Marshall Center for the Study of Human Resource