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Mercado awarded doctoral fellowship

Micaela Mercado was awarded a doctoral fellowship by MDRC to work on her dissertation in NYC this summer. Created in 1974 by the Ford Foundation and a group of federal agencies, MDRC is best known for mounting large-scale evaluations of real-world policies and programs targeted to low-income people. The Young Adults and Postsecondary Education (YAPSE) policy area, which conducts research projects that gauge the impacts of programs designed to help low-income students succeed academically in college, hosted Mercado within MDRC. As a fellow, she was awarded a stipend to work on her dissertation, which focuses on understanding contextual factors that affect educational outcomes among low-income, minority, and first-generation community college students. She was also given the opportunity to meet with YAPSE staff and research associates and present her research findings at the end of the fellowship.