scholarly journals Disrupting the Dominant Discourse: Exploring the Mentoring Experiences of Latinx Community College Students

10.28945/4510 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 057-078
Author(s):  
Gloria Crisp ◽  
Erin Doran ◽  
Vincent Carales ◽  
Christopher Potts

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this study was to better understand the sources of mentoring and ways in which mentors, as forms of social and familial capital, facilitate the development of capital among Latinx community college students Background: A more focused and nuanced understanding of the role of mentors in further developing Latinx students’ capital is needed to guide mentoring programs in designing asset-based programs that recognize and build upon students’ community cultural wealth Methodology: Drawing from Solórzano and Yosso’s (2001) work, we use asset-based, counter-storytelling as a qualitative, methodological approach to reframe the deficit perspective that is embedded in prior literature on Latinx college students. The sample included 11 Latinx community college students who participated in the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program. Contribution: Results suggest that mentoring programs designed to serve Latinx community college students may be more efficient and may provide more meaningful support by recognizing and building upon the assets and capital provided by students’ networks and communities. Findings: Interviews revealed that participants leveraged community cultural wealth in the form of mentoring networks established prior to and during college, to develop other forms of capital that enabled them to reach their educational goals. Recommendations for Practitioners: The paper provides practical implications for mentoring programs, initiatives that include a mentoring component, as well as more generally for institutional agents who support Latinx students. Recommendation for Researchers: Findings provide a foundation for future research opportunities that could further examine how supportive relationships with institutional agents promote the educational and professional success of Latinx community college students. Future Research: Several suggestions for future research are provided, including qualitative work that explores how students identify and interact with mentors and other institutional agents during college and how they utilize these relationships to navigate the college environment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 438-446
Author(s):  
Serena Johnson ◽  
Lissa Stapleton ◽  
Bryan Berrett

Abstract Deaf students are members of a linguistic and cultural minority whose background and experiences provide a unique backdrop for the navigation of higher education. Using the framework of Deaf community cultural wealth, this study examines the experiences of Deaf students in community college and their utilization of various forms of capital. Findings showed that they exhibited instances of resistant, navigational, social, and familial capital in accessing and persisting in higher education.



2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu (April) Chen ◽  
Soko S. Starobin

Objective: This quantitative study constructed a statistical model to measure family social capital and college social capital among community college students. The authors also examined influences of these two types of social capital constructs on degree aspiration. Method: This study utilized the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Student Success Literacy Survey (SSSL) to collect data in all 15 community college districts in Iowa. With more than 5,000 responses, the authors conducted descriptive analysis, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis. Results: College social capital was measured by three latent variables such as interaction with advisors, interaction with faculty members, and transfer capital. The three latent variables were further measured by 14 survey items. Family social capital was measured by six survey items that described parent–child interaction in high school. The SEM results indicated that college social capital had stronger direct influences on degree aspiration compared with family social capital. The impact of family social capital was delivered through the mediation of college social capital. Contributions: Findings contributed to the literature by emphasizing the important role of institutional agents in promoting degree aspiration. Intervention programs should be implemented to encourage interactions between institutional agents and underrepresented and disadvantaged students.



2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 79-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Grubb ◽  
Pamela H. Scott ◽  
Donald W. Good

Objective: The study assesses the impact of dual enrollment participation on remediation and completion for traditional first time, full-time freshmen at a community college in Northeast Tennessee. Method: This study began with the full population of 1,232 students who enrolled between 2008 and 2012 at a community college in northeast Tennessee the fall semester after finishing high school. The population was required to have American College Testing (ACT) scores, completely fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), enroll full-time as a degree-seeking student, and complete the first fall semester. Propensity score matching was utilized to eliminate self-selection bias and enable parametric comparisons using optimal matching of dual enrollment participants and non-participants while controlling for a range of covariates. Results: The analyses showed that community college students who participated in dual enrollment were (a) 9% or nearly 3.4 times less likely to take remediation, (b) 26% or nearly 2.5 times more likely to graduate in 2 years, and (c) 28% or nearly 1.5 times more likely to graduate in 3 years. Contributions: This study contributes to the literature showing that dual enrollment reduces remediation rates and assists in timely completions for community college students. Policy recommendations are to increase equitable participation, normalize dual enrollment for students academically able to do college coursework, align state terminology with the nation, and improve data for future research.



2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. p16
Author(s):  
Rose, Stephanie F. ◽  
Christian, Samantha A. ◽  
Sego, Anita ◽  
Demers, Denise

Very little evidence addresses college students’ perceptions of mental health and supportive services available to assist them with being academically successful since the COVID-19 pandemic began. This is also true for comparing community college students and university students. This study examines the concepts of how COVID-19 has impacted overall student-perceptions of their mental health. Data on perceptions was collected from both community college and university students. A total of 932 students completed a survey regarding their views of mental health, academic success and supportive services Relationships between perceived mental health and supportive services rendered significant findings. Perceived differences between perceived mental health and supportive services were also significantly significant in the data. Recommendations for future research is also explored.



2013 ◽  
Vol 115 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xueli Wang

Background/Context Although much research has dealt with the factors that influence educational expectations, few studies have addressed recent high school graduates who attend community colleges as their first postsecondary institutions. As the costs associated with attending a four-year institution keep rising, community colleges increasingly serve as an affordable entry for many socioeconomically underprivileged students who aspire to earn a bachelor's degree and above. The question of sustaining these educational expectations—an essential precursor to the actualization of educational goals—becomes even more important knowledge to pursue. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study This research investigates socio-demographic, motivational, and postsecondary contextual factors underlying community college students’ baccalaureate expectations. The study highlights various influences affecting these educational expectations of community college students, thus improving the understanding of the relationship among student backgrounds, motivational beliefs, college experience, and the development of baccalaureate expectations. Population/Participants/Subjects This study is based on a nationally representative sample of spring 2004 high school seniors who were part of the second follow-up study of the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS: 2002) and who enrolled in a community college as their first postsecondary institution within two years of graduation from high school. Among the 12,500 students of the 2004 senior cohort who completed the second follow-up interview, roughly 3,000 students who attended community colleges as their first postsec-ondary institutions were selected as the study's sample. Research Design The proposed conceptual model was tested by using structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis. After fitting the SEM model for the entire sample and assessing its overall fit, a multiple group analysis was used to ascertain whether the structural model is invariant across gender groups. Findings/Results Results indicate that community college students’ baccalaureate expectations two years after high school were directly and positively influenced by their initial baccalaureate expectations during the high school senior year and their academic integration during the first year of college, but were negatively associated with the number of subjects for remedial work they received. In addition, socio-demographic backgrounds, parental expectations, and motivational beliefs of students indirectly affected subsequent baccalaureate expectations by directly influencing initial expectations. Motivational beliefs also exerted a direct effect on college academic integration, which in turn contributed to students’ subsequent baccalaureate expectations. Conclusions/Recommendations This study illuminates the importance of cultivating positive motivational beliefs, promoting academic integration, and improving remedial practices to help community college students move further toward their educational goals. This knowledge should help community college leaders seek innovative ways to better streamline student choices in alignment with their educational expectations.



2013 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 65-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Becky Wai-Ling Packard ◽  
Kimberly C. Jeffers

Community college students enrolled in science and technology fields face many challenges as they pursue transfer pathways to earn a 4-year degree. Despite clear links to student persistence, advising interactions that facilitate or inhibit transfer progress are not clearly understood. In this study, 82 community college students pursuing science and technology transfer-based programs of study participated in phenomenological interviews. Students described how professors, major advisors, and transfer office staff supported their progress by providing accurate information or referring them to helpful resources; students learned answers to unasked questions and stayed on track to transfer. Interactions impeded progress when initial advisors, in particular, provided misinformation, leading to frustration and costly delays. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.



2021 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
pp. 29
Author(s):  
Sarah L. Rodriguez ◽  
Maria L. Espino ◽  
Brian D. Le ◽  
Kelly Cunningham

This qualitative research study describes how a Midwest community college’s implementation of an Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (SSTEM) program influences engineering identity development for its students with financial need. Using a phenomenological approach, the study finds that the program enables community college students to have greater financial freedom and an ability to focus on engineering identity. In addition, the SSTEM program enhances student connections with STEM faculty, program staff, and peers. The study highlights the need for creating spaces for engineering identity development, developing connections between faculty, staff, and students, and enhancing transfer connections through different experiences. Future research might look to longitudinal designs and investigate additional contexts, engineering disciplines, gender differences, and programmatic structures to add nuance to these findings. The study suggests that practitioners might frame SSTEM and engineering experiences as opportunities for financial freedom and identity development and make further enhancements to transfer connections to four-year institutional partners. In terms of policy, the study suggests that policymakers consider identity development experiences an important aspect of funding SSTEM programs while enhancing programmatic support services available to students and placing greater emphasis on the collaborative actions, planned activities, and power dynamics between two- and four-year institutions funded by the SSTEM program.



2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 277-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
McKenna F. Parnes ◽  
Carola Suárez-Orozco ◽  
Olivia Osei-Twumasi ◽  
Sarah E. O. Schwartz

Objective: Although much research on community colleges focuses on institutional challenges or student deficits, emerging evidence suggests that student–instructor relationships have the potential to impact student success. The current study examined factors that could influence community college students’ development of relationships with instructors and how these relationships are associated with academic engagement and achievement. Drawing on literature exploring student–instructor relationships at 4-year institutions, we hypothesized that students’ relationships with instructors may partially account for the association between student demographic and relational characteristics and academic outcomes (i.e., cognitive and behavioral engagement, grade point average [GPA]). Method: Survey data were collected from 646 ethnically and racially diverse participants, many of whom were first-, second-, or third-generation immigrants, or first-generation college students. Employing a between-subjects, cross-sectional design, we tested the main study hypotheses of mediation through a series of path analysis models using Mplus. Results: Students with higher support-seeking attitudes and students with a mentor reported closer relationships with instructors, whereas part-time students reported weaker relationships with instructors. In turn, student–instructor relationships were significantly associated with both cognitive and behavioral aspects of academic engagement and GPA. Conclusion: This study provides insight into the various factors that may influence community college students’ development of relationships with instructors and highlights the direct and indirect influence of these relationships on student success. Implications for future practice include finding strategies that can be implemented at community colleges to foster student–instructor relationships. Future research should further explore these associations using longitudinal data to gain a deeper understanding of current findings.



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