Essays on educational inequalities
| Author(s) | Lee, Hojung | |
| Date Accessioned | 2025-04-21T16:45:51Z | |
| Date Available | 2025-04-21T16:45:51Z | |
| Publication Date | 2025 | |
| SWORD Update | 2025-04-20T22:01:41Z | |
| Abstract | This dissertation presents three empirical studies examining critical issues in U.S. education policy and finance—specifically, how policy design and institutional contexts either mitigate or reproduce inequities in school funding, instructional quality, and career readiness. Each chapter addresses a distinct dimension of K–16 schooling in the United States, and collectively they offer insights into the multifaceted ways that resources, instructional reforms, and career preparation intersect with equity goals. ☐ Paper One investigates Title I, the largest federal educational grant aimed at supporting low-income students in K–12 schooling. Using a stacked regression discontinuity design, I examine whether Title I truly supplements district budgets or crowds out state and local revenue. The findings suggest that, while large-scale displacement of operating funds is not apparent, some districts respond by reducing capital outlays and bond elections—especially those with larger Title I allocations. These results underscore how evolving institutional characteristics can affect district-level fiscal behavior. ☐ Paper Two (with Dr. Florence Ran) analyzes corequisite remediation in community colleges, a widely adopted reform intended to improve the success of academically underprepared students in college-level coursework. Using administrative data from the Tennessee community college system and employing difference-in-differences and event study analyses, this study shows that corequisite models improve gateway course completion for students across a range of academic readiness levels. However, these positive impacts vary by student preparedness, and students were more likely to drop out of the public college system after the reform—highlighting the need for additional supports. ☐ Paper Three (with Dr. Kenneth Shores and Arielle Lentz) examines high school Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs and their potential role in shaping future wage inequality. Linking Delaware’s administrative data with occupational wage information, this paper explores wage disparities across student subgroups and investigates the sources of these gaps. The results reveal notable differences in expected wages: female–male wage gaps arise largely from within-school factors, whereas racial and socioeconomic gaps primarily reflect across-school differences. These patterns suggest that high school career programs, though seemingly neutral, may inadvertently produce gaps in students’ future earnings. ☐ Taken together, these three papers illustrate how equity considerations are woven into the fiscal, curricular, and structural facets of U.S. education. By identifying unintended consequences of policy interventions, this dissertation provides policy-relevant evidence on how educational systems can better serve all students. | |
| Advisor | Shores, Kenneth | |
| Degree | Ph.D. | |
| Program | University of Delaware, Education and Social Policy Program | |
| Unique Identifier | 1517680562 | |
| URL | https://udspace.udel.edu/handle/19716/36058 | |
| Language | en | |
| Publisher | University of Delaware | |
| URI | https://www.proquest.com/pqdtlocal1006271/dissertations-theses/essays-on-educational-inequalities/docview/3192223764/sem-2?accountid=10457 | |
| Keywords | Community colleges | |
| Keywords | Academic readiness levels | |
| Keywords | Educational inequalities | |
| Title | Essays on educational inequalities | |
| Type | Thesis |