Exploring Access to College and Career Resources in High/Low-Poverty Schools: An analysis of resource distribution in Maryland Public High Schools

Abstract

The present research examines inequities in college and career resources between High-poverty and Low-poverty schools in the Maryland State Public School system. This study utilizes data from Maryland State Department of Education Division and Assessment for the academic school year 2022-2023, which is considered public record. The units of analyses include 248 Maryland State Public High Schools, located in 23 Counties throughout Maryland. In SY2022-SY2023, there was a student enrollment of 409,729. This study examined data from 179 traditional high schools, 49 charter schools, and 20 vocational-technical high schools. Stratified sampling was used to examine 25 High-poverty and 61 Low-poverty schools identified by MSDE. Two analyses were conducted, an ANOVA and simple linear regression to examine disparities in resources distributed between High-poverty and Low-poverty schools. Results of analyses showed High-poverty schools received significantly less resources required for college and career preparation.