Jason Jabbari, an assistant professor at the WashU Brown School, has received a one-year $300,000 grant from the Popolo Family Foundation to study why some students with limited resources persist and thrive in college while others leave before earning a degree.
The project, “Understanding and Improving College Persistence,” builds on a long-standing research-practice partnership with the Cristo Rey Network, whose schools serve students from low-income communities nationwide. Jabbari is leading the study with Shaun Dougherty, of Boston College; Lauren Russell, of the University of Pennsylvania; Lili Dodderidge, of Cornell University; and Fahv Jimenez, of Jimenez Strategy & Analytics.
The research will combine administrative records from Cristo Rey schools, corporate work-study data and National Student Clearinghouse records to identify factors associated with college persistence and to develop early-warning indicators for students at risk of leaving college before graduating.
The researchers also will conduct 60 in-depth interviews with Cristo Rey alumni to better understand challenges such as financial stress, mental health, access to advising, family responsibilities and campus belonging.
“Building on the insights from both phases, we will then co-design, implement and test scalable, evidence-based interventions — turning a clearer understanding of persistence into practical tools,” Jabbari said.
