The Effect of the Texas Student Success Initiative on Dropouts and Student Retention at a District in the Northeast Area of Harris County

This study examined the impact of the Texas Student Success Initiative (SSI) on retention rates and dropouts in a district located in the Northeast area of Harris County. The Texas Student Success Initiative known as SSI requires students in the third, fifth and eighth grades to pass the state mandated exam in Mathematics and Reading in order to be promoted to the next grade. Students who do not pass the exams may be promoted via a grade placement committee with required interventions. In this study the researcher compared nine years’ worth of empirical data comparing two different cohort groups. The two cohort groups consist of the graduating classes of 2010 and 2011. The class of 2010 was not required to meet the Texas Student Success Initiative (SSI) standards for promotion while the class of 2011 was the first class required to meet all the requirements. The State of Texas compares dropout rates based on an entering ninth grade cohort. This study compares the retention and dropout rates between the class of 2010 and 2011. The comparison found that students in the class of 2011 had a higher dropout rate than the class of 2010. The class of 2010 did not have to meet the SSI requirement. Retention rates for the third, fifth and eighth grade classes were examined. The retention rates for the class of 2011 were higher at the third and eighth grades.