Introduction
Eighty percent of the school districts in the State of Colorado are defined as rural by the definition recommended by the Rural Education Council in the Colorado Department of Education in 2022 (CDE). More than 9.3 million students across the United States (U.S.) are educated in rural schools. However, students educated in rural areas continue to experience significant barriers to accessing postsecondary education. Some challenges these students may face when entering postsecondary education include financial barriers, limited transportation to campus, housing insecurity, broadband issues, and restricted access to supportive services that significantly impact student success.
As the economy grows and workforce demands increase, ensuring that all high school students have the skills necessary to access postsecondary education or enter the workforce becomes increasingly essential. Rural students are less likely than their peers to enroll in higher education. Financial barriers continue to play a significant role in these outcomes. Rural students face additional barriers, such as lower parental education attainment, lower academic achievement, family dynamics, and systemic constraints. Enrollment continues to grow in community colleges and institutions that offer vocational programs, trades, and certificates. However, despite the growth in these sectors, rural students still need to be provided the tools necessary to access, succeed in, and complete postsecondary education. To help rural communities overcome barriers, it is essential to create opportunities for young adults to be heard by stakeholders, community members, educational institutions, and decision-makers on what resources they need the most. Evidence suggests that investing in effective education is vital to the nation’s future.
Our results showed that more than one-third of the respondents identified facing barriers to accessing postsecondary education. The top five systemic barriers that individuals identified in descending order of prevalence were:
- Financial burdens or the cost of tuition
- Food and housing insecurity
- Feeling like they lacked academic preparation
- Transportation to school
- Preexisting work obligations
Defining Rural Colorado
The U.S. Census Bureau formally defines “rural” as “any town or community not considered an urban area.” Urban areas consist of urbanized areas and urban clusters. Urbanized areas typically have a population of 50,000 or more, and urban clusters have a population of at least 2,500 and less than 50,000. For this research, we excluded six counties in Colorado that we defined as urban: Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Denver, Jefferson, and Larimer. Therefore, the rest of the counties in the state were considered rural, totaling 58 rural counties across Colorado.
