ED451859 2001-02-00 Minority Student

Retention and Academic Achievement in

Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.

ERIC Development Team

www.eric.ed.gov

Table of Contents

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Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in Community

Colleges. ERIC Digests..................................................... 1

DIVERSE STUDENTS, DIVERSE NEEDS.................................2

ENHANCING RETENTION AND LEARNING..............................3

ROLE OF FACULTY........................................................... 5

CONCLUSION.................................................................. 5

REFERENCES.................................................................. 5

ERIC Identifier: ED451859

Publication Date: 2001-02-00

Author: Szelenyi, Katalin

Source: ERIC Clearinghouse for Community Colleges Los Angeles CA.

Minority Student Retention and Academic

Achievement in Community Colleges. ERIC

Digests.

THIS DIGEST WAS CREATED BY ERIC, THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

INFORMATION CENTER. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT ERIC, CONTACT

ED451859 2001-02-00 Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in

Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.

Page 1 of 7
ACCESS ERIC 1-800-LET-ERIC

The American college campus, like society as a whole, is experiencing an expansion of

racial and ethnic diversity. According to the U.S. Bureau of Census, ethnic minorities

represented 28 percent of the population in 1998. By 2050, minorities are projected to

account for 47 percent of the population (Aragon, p.2). These demographic trends are

also apparent in the enrollment patterns of American colleges and universities: ethnic

minorities accounted for more than half of the 30 percent expansion in student

enrollment between 1976 and 1994 (Aragon, p.2). As a result of their geographic

accessibility, open-doors admissions policies, and reduced costs, community colleges

are especially likely to serve a diverse student body. Currently, ethnic minorities

comprise approximately 30 percent of student enrollments at American community

colleges (Laanan, p.19).

With the continuing diversification of the student population of community colleges,

problems concerning the educational attainment and retention of ethnic minority

students persist (Sanchez, p.35). While in 1997 22.8 percent of all associate degrees

were awarded to minority students, a 7 percent increase from 1987, compared to their

share of total student enrollment, minorities remain underrepresented in degree awards

(Aragon, p. 3). This reflects general trends throughout higher education, in which

minority students tend to have lower persistence and graduation rates, as well as lower

levels of academic preparedness and achievement, compared to their white

counterparts (Jalomo, pp. 8-10). This Digest, drawn from "Beyond Access: Methods and

Models for Increasing Retention and Learning Among Minority Students" (New

Directions for Community Colleges, Winter 2000), reviews recent approaches and

models for diverse learning environments, with specific emphasis on fostering the

retention and educational achievement of ethnic minority students at community

colleges.

DIVERSE STUDENTS, DIVERSE NEEDS

The culture-specific values and experiences that students bring to the educational

environment may significantly contribute to their individual learning preferences. For

community colleges, shaping the instructional climate of classrooms in a way that best

benefits the individually and culturally influenced differences in learning styles, value

systems and educational preferences of their student population holds special

significance.

Educational Choices

Community college students are influenced by a variety of distinct factors when making

educational and career-related decisions. In the case of minority students, family and

academic support factors emerged as playing a significant role in enhancing academic

achievement and success (Laanan, p.23). In a nationwide study, using data from the

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Page 2 of 7 ED451859 2001-02-00 Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in

Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.
Cooperative Institutional Research Program housed at the University of California, Los

Angeles, Laanan found slight differences between the educational choices made by

minority and non-minority students. Of eight items studied, minority students were more

likely than white students to report that the following factors were important reasons for

college attendance: (1) parental influence; (2) inability to find a job; (3) desire to gain a

general education; (4) desire to improve reading and study skills; (5) desire to become

more cultured; and (6) desire to learn things that interested them. White and minority

students placed similar emphasis on getting a better job and making more money as

reasons for attending community college (Laanan, pp. 27-29).

Learning Styles

Research indicates that a close association exists between students' cultural

background and their preferred learning styles. Students' individual learning preferences

are typically accompanied by culturally determined tools that influence the way they

process information and, depending on the fit between teaching and learning styles,

facilitate or hinder their educational achievement (Sanchez, pp. 37-38). Sanchez cited

two concurrent studies examining the impact of culture on the learning preferences of

Hispanic and Native American college students in the southwestern United States. In

comparison to white students, both Hispanic and Native American students exhibited a

high propensity for participation in active, concrete learning experiences, cooperative

situations, and elaborative processing (p. 42). Similarly, African-American students'

achievement appears to be positively related to oral experiences and interpersonal

relationships (Palma-Rivas, p. 78).

ENHANCING RETENTION AND LEARNING

The successful integration of students into the college environment is a crucial element

of raising retention rates. Some common efforts at community colleges to achieve such

integration are freshman seminars, mentoring programs, and strategies developed to

create a supportive campus climate.

Freshman Seminars

The freshman seminar, otherwise referred to as student success course or extended

orientation course, may provide a suitable environment for facilitating interventions to

improve students' persistence. Freshman seminars assist students in identifying

campus resources, establishing relationships with other students and with faculty

members, and assessing and improving their academic and life management skills

(Stovall, p. 46). Students who have enrolled in a student success course generally earn

higher grade point averages, complete a larger number of first-term credit hours, and

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ED451859 2001-02-00 Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in

Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.

Page 3 of 7
increase their persistence and graduation rates (p.52). Stovall, in a recent study

examining a Midwestern public rural community college, found that enrolling in a

success course may be particularly beneficial for ethnic minority students. When the

academic achievement of course participants and nonparticipants was compared,

participation was associated with a .872 rise in first-term grade point average for

minority students, as opposed to a .401 increase for white students (p. 47).

Mentoring

Mentors, by providing career-related and psychosocial assistance to their proteges,

provide the individualized attention students need in dealing with the everyday problems

they encounter in the college environment. A widely used mentoring model is

AMIGOS(tm) -the acronym for Arranged Mentor for Instructional Guidance and

Organizational (or Other) Support. Under this model, after matching a protege with a

mentor on the basis of a careful assessment of both mentor and protege's personality

types, the pairs participate in problem-based activities, training and information sessions

about classes, assignments and other institutional resources. Mentors and proteges

also partake in social activities either within or outside the institutional environment.

AMIGOS(tm) is currently used by many organizations and educational institutions

nationwide. Preliminary findings suggest that there is a positive association between

participation in a mentoring program and the persistence rates of minority students

(Stromei, pp. 59-61).

A similar approach is taken by the Puente Project developed in California to facilitate

the retention and transfer rates of Hispanic students. The Puente Project was initiated in

1981 and is currently in use at 38 two-year institutions. The programs emphasize

culturally relevant instructional programs and pair students with Hispanic mentors and

counselors. The programs have achieved high retention rates and high transfer rates.

Almost half of the students who complete the Puente Project transfer to four-year

institutions (Zamani, pp. 99-100).

Campus Climate

Having a campus climate in which diversity is valued is an important factor contributing

to the comfort and educational success of minority students on community college

campuses (Clements, p. 71). In a conscious effort to create such a supportive

environment, Middlesex Community College in Massachusetts developed programs

with an emphasis on supporting cultural diversity and global awareness. Seven key

initiatives included: (1) changing the focus of the orientation program to emphasize the

importance of valuing diversity; (2) developing an easy-access program for

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Page 4 of 7 ED451859 2001-02-00 Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in

Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.
English-as-a-Second-Language students; (3) revising a portion of the student activities

budget to focus on programs that address issues of diversity; (4) creating international

student fellowships; (5) creating an international club on campus; (6) integrating the

appreciation of cultural differences into the freshman seminar curriculum; and (7)

developing a student improvisational theater troupe. Although minority student retention

still lags behind white student persistence at the college, the new programs reduced the

gap existing between the two groups (Clements, pp. 63-71).

ROLE OF FACULTY

Creating an environment in which minority students can thrive is also the responsibility

of individual instructors. White faculty members, who remain in the majority in most

community colleges in the nation, often emphasize the learning styles influenced by

their cultural background (Townsend, p. 90). However, these instructional practices may

not be congruent with the educational preferences of minority students. Townsend

suggested that an important step in overcoming these obstacles is to become aware of

how culturally determined frameworks shape one's attitudes toward teaching. Faculty

participation in study groups and workshops addressing issues of racial identity is one

way of facilitating conversations of the diverse needs of today's student populations (pp.

89-90). In addition, teachers should structure their instructional activities with

consideration to the diverse learning preferences represented in their classrooms

(Sanchez, p. 43).

CONCLUSION

Community colleges are engaged in a variety of efforts to facilitate the retention and

educational achievement of ethnic minority students. Successful efforts, whether

institution-wide or in the individual classroom, place a strong emphasis on consciously

building upon the diverse needs of the student population and facilitating the integration

of ethnic minority students into the educational environment. Studies conducted to

examine the effectiveness of these efforts indicate a positive contribution to retaining

ethnic minority students. In order to reap the full benefits of innovative practices, future

research is needed to further examine the programs already in place, with the ultimate

goal of developing models that two-year institutions can adopt and modify according to

the needs of their student bodies.

REFERENCES

This Digest is drawn from "Beyond Access: Methods and Models for Increasing

Retention and Learning Among Minority Students." New Directions for Community

Colleges, Number 112, edited by Steven R. Aragon. San Francisco: Jossey Bass,

Winter 2000.

Aragon, Steven R. Editor's Notes. (pp. 1-6)

Clements, Evelyn. Creating a Campus Climate in Which Diversity is Truly Valued. (pp.

ERIC Resource Center www.eric.ed.gov

ED451859 2001-02-00 Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in

Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.

Page 5 of 7
63-72)

Jalomo, Romero, Jr. Assessing Minority Student Performance. (pp. 7-18)

Laanan, Frankie Santos. Community College Students' Career and Educational Goals.

(pp. 19-34)

Palma-Rivas, Nilda. Using Technology to Facilitate Learning for Minority Students. (pp.

73-83)

Sanchez, Irene M. Motivating and Maximizing Learning in Minority Classrooms. (pp.

35-44)

Stovall, Martina. Using Success Courses for Promoting Persistence and Completion.

(pp. 45-54)

Stromei, Linda K. Increasing Retention and Success Through Mentoring. (pp. 55-62)

Townsend, Barbara K. Integrating Nonminority Faculty into the Minority Environment.

(pp. 85-94)

Zamani, Eboni M. Sources and Information Regarding Effective Retention Strategies for

Students of Color. (pp. 95-104)

-----

This project has been funded at least in part with Federal funds from the U.S.

Department of Education under contract number ED-99-CO-0010. The content of this

publication does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Department of

Education nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations

imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Title: Minority Student Retention and Academic Achievement in Community Colleges.

ERIC Digests.

Note: This digest is drawn from "Beyond Access: Methods and Models for Increasing

Retention and Learning among Minority Students." "New Directions for Community

Colleges," Number 112, Steven R. Aragon, Ed., San Francisco: Jossey Bass, Winter

2000.

Document Type: Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs)

(071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073);

Available From: ERIC Clearinghouse for Community Colleges, University of California

at Los Angeles, 3051 Moore Hall, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1521. Tel: 310-825-3931.

Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Academic Persistence, Community Colleges,

Educational Research, Educational Trends, Minority Groups, Two Year College

Students, Two Year Colleges

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Community Colleges. ERIC Digests.
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