Equity-Minded Recruitment of Latinx Students into Community College Baccalaureate Programs.

Abstract: Large numbers of Latinx students begin their journey through higher education in the 2-year community college system with the aspiration to transfer and earn a bachelor’s degree, yet few Latinx students transfer. The result is inequity in transfer rates between Latinx students comparatively to White and Asian students. The legislative authorization that enables community colleges to confer bachelor’s degrees is a measure that has taken shape in 25 states and many institutions around the country. The community college baccalaureate (CCB) is an equity imperative for students without access to high-value baccalaureate degrees and a potential intervention to the transfer gap for Latinx students. Students need to know about CCB options, and the institutional website is one common communication tool. Using Yosso’s community cultural wealth framework to design interview questions, I conducted an evaluation of a CCB website to explore how Latinx students perceived the website. The study revealed students’ navigational habits and the perceptions of how students identified each type of capital on the website and recommendations made by students to improve the website. Key findings include students evidenced financial aid in all types cultural capital demonstrating how critical financial literacy is in the decision-making to pursue college. Another key finding centered around institutional storytelling on it’s website as a means to relay institutional values thus connecting with a prospective students’ own values as a recruit effort for Latinx students. Program recommendations and resources are provided for future practitioners.

Keywords: Latinx, community college baccalaureate, recruitment, website, cultural capital, user-design

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Reference: Sanders, T. (2023). Equity-minded recruitment of Latinx students into community college baccalaureate programs [Doctoral Dissertation, New Jersey City University].