Adapting College-Going Cultures for a Digital World: A Case Study of Six California High Schools

This paper reports on the qualitative findings of a four-year, federally funded study of the impact of a digital college access intervention and school culture on college-going outcomes, such as college applications, FAFSA and CADA completion, and college enrollment.Specifically, the paper explores the college-going cultures of 6 of the 45 participating Title I schools across California.Using McClafferty, McDonough and Nunez's (2002) nine principles of college-going culture, we explore the 6 sites to determine whether schools with welldeveloped college-going cultures are more likely to succeed in implementing a digital intervention.Additionally, we explore whether the McClafferty et al. (2002) framework is sufficient to evaluate the role technology plays in developing schools' college-going cultures. Adapting College-Going Cultures for a Digital World: A Case Study of Six California High SchoolsThe organizational culture of a school can play a critical role in students' college prospects, particularly those from first generation and low-income backgrounds (Corwin, Venegas, Oliverez & Colyar, 2004;McDonough 1997). In 2002, McClafferty, McDonough & Nunez published nine principles of a college-going culture to provide concrete strategies to guide schools and practitioners in improving their college-going cultures.This paper aims to build onto McClafferty et.al.'s framework by reporting on findings from a four-year, federally funded study of 45 Title I high schools across California designed to determine whether participating in a game-based intervention can be used to cultivate college knowledge and elevate college-going outcomes (Author identification removed for blind review).The paper focuses on qualitative case study findings from six of the participating schools with attention paid to the impact of technology on college culture. ObjectivesThe overarching objective of the project is to improve college enrollment for low-income and minoritized youth.Research objectives focus on better understanding the role that a school's college-going culture and digital infrastructure play in facilitating innovative college access practices.The primary objective of this paper is to share findings from the large-scale study by using McClafferty, McDonough & Nunez's (2002) college-going culture framework, with an additional focus on technology. Theoretical FrameworkSchool culture is an important predictor of student success in the college application process (Coleman, 1966;Falsey & Heyns, 1984;McDonough & Calderone, 2006).Research suggests that school cultures which prioritize college application and enrollment -through frequent and clear communication with students and parents, collaboration with faculty and staff, and strong support from leadership -are better able to positively influence students' college aspirations (McDonough, 1997;Hossler, Schmit & Vesper, 1999;Hill, 2008).This paper employs McClafferty et al. (2002) to assess college culture across a large dataset.The model includes nine principles: college talk, setting clear expectations, ensuring accurate and up-to-date information & resources, creating or expanding a comprehensive counseling model, incorporating college knowledge and requirements into testing and curriculum, encouraging faculty and family involvement, building college partnerships, and articulating college goals throughout K-12 schooling.We also extend the McClafferty et al. (2002) framework to include technology in our assessment of college-going cultures.Given the