Awilda Rodriguez
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About Awilda
Rodriguez’s research focuses on equitable access to college access through college preparatory coursework and related higher education policy. Overarching themes in Rodriguez’s writings include race- and class-based inequalities in rigorous high school course-taking; the determinants of college choice, and in particular college match; and the implications of college access policies on marginalized students. Rodriguez is primarily focused on two current projects: a qualitative study that understands the educational transitions of hurricane-affected students from Puerto Rico to Florida after Hurricane Maria and a randomized control trial of an informational intervention that seeks to reduce race-based gaps in Advanced Placement participation. Rodriguez’s work has published in academic journals such as Journal of Higher Education, Research in Higher Education, Review of Higher Education; as well as outlets such as the Chronicle of Higher Education, Diverse Issues in Higher Education, and Latino Rebel.
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Finds an additional AP course offering increased the Black-White AP course-taking gap in racially diverse high schools by 1.1 percentage points, net of other variables, using national school-level data from the Office for Civil Rights and an instrumental variable approach. Contradicts the common assumption that simply offering more courses will improve Black student participation.
Examines whether high school math courses aligned to the respective public flagships’ minimum math requirements, using high school-level data from the Office for Civil Rights. Shows high schools that serve predominantly low-income student-of-color have a higher probability of underalignment compared with most other high school types.