TOPS Report: Analysis of the TOPS Program from 2008-2017

Louisiana Board of Regents. 1201 North Third Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-3677. Tel: 225-342-4253; Fax: 225-342-9318; Web site: http://www.regents.state.la.us

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College Entrance Examinations; High School Graduates; Scores; Secondary School Curriculum; College Bound Students; Eligibility; Academic Persistence; Awards; Grade Point Average; State Legislation; Student Participation; Statistical Distributions; Graduation Rate; Educational Finance; State Programs; Program Evaluation; Tuition; Student Financial Aid; Honors Curriculum

The Tuition Opportunity Program for Students (subsequently renamed the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students, or TOPS) was created by ACT 1375 of the 1997 Regular Legislative Session. The first college freshman class to receive TOPS awards entered postsecondary education in the fall of 1998. ACT 1202 of the 2001 Regular Legislative Session requires the Louisiana Board of Regents (BoR) to prepare a report analyzing various aspects of the TOPS program.In accordance with ACT 1202, this report includes: (1) An analysis of the relationship between the high school courses taken and the student's score on the American College Test (ACT); (2) The number of high school graduates who are eligible for TOPS and subsequently enroll in college; (3) Persistence (retention) rates of TOPS students; (4) The number of and reasons for students losing award eligibility; and (5) Graduation data. Act 587 of the 2014 Regular Legislative Session added several additional requirements to the TOPS report, including: (1) Demographic information of program award recipients(race, gender, parent's income); (2) High school GPA and ACT scores of program award recipients grouped by mean, median, and mode; (3) Average high school GPA and average ACT scores of those who lost the award; and (4) Graduation rates of TOPS students by award type and year. Overall, the findings indicated that: (1) From 2008 to 2017, 88.9% of students deemed eligible for a TOPS award accepted the award and subsequently enrolled in a postsecondary education institution in Louisiana; (2) The average ACT score of all TOPS recipients between 2008 and 2017 was 24 and the average high school GPA (Core GPA) was 3.35; (3) From 2007-2008 to 2016-2017 the majority of TOPS recipients were white (76.3%) and female (58.6%); (4) Students who begin college with a TOPS award persist and graduate at a higher rate than non-TOPS students; and (5) The average ACT score of students who had their award cancelled between 2006 and 2017 was 23.0 and their average high school GPA (Core GPA) was 3.12. [Appendices are not included in this document. For "TOPS Report: Analysis of the TOPS Program from 2007-2016," see ED582885.]

ERIC

2019

ED591716