Mary Cashen Doctoral Candidate, School of Education, UC Irvine
Mary has completed her third year in the Educational Policy and
Social Context program at Irvine. Her dissertation research
focuses on issues of access and equity for marginalized youth in
the transition from high school to college or the workforce.
Developing my skills by writing a policy brief during my time
at UC Davis will increase my skill set to better communicate
pressing policy issues.
This research is largely driven by the years she spent teaching
in disadvantaged Los Angeles K-12 schools, and her experience
founding a charter school. Mary examines how poverty affects high
school course selection, analyzing the effects of sex differences
in career and technical education course completion on
post-secondary enrollment.
For decades, high school students have taken technical training
classes that prepare them for jobs, but little research has
examined the impact these classes have on whether those students
go to college.
The Center for Poverty & Inequality Research at UC Davis seeks
applications from graduate students who are interested in
visiting the Center in order to expand their understanding of the
causes and consequences of poverty.
