The Promise of Persistence: Expanding the Framework for High School Completion.

The article focuses on "persisting students," defined as high school students who remain enrolled on or beyond their expected graduation date without having earned a diploma. It highlights that persisting students are estimated to be as numerous as or more than dropouts but have received comparatively little research attention. The article synthesizes existing literature on persisters' demographic and academic characteristics, school contexts, and outcomes, noting that persisters disproportionately include male students of color, often attend alternative schools, and face significant adversities. It calls for improved identification and reporting of persisters, application of theoretical models from postsecondary persistence research, and expanded inquiry into their educational trajectories and postsecondary transitions to better inform policy and practice aimed at increasing high school completion and equity.