An Investigation of the Factors Contributing to Successful Completion of Undergraduate Degrees by the Students Enrolled in the College Assistance Migrant Program

Abstract

Students from farmworker families are often cited as having deficits that prohibit completion of undergraduate degree program. Statistics regarding graduates of the College Assistance Migrant Program in a southwestern university have shown graduation rates that are similar to the general population of graduates at that university. This qualitative pilot study reveals some possible implications for how alleged deficits for completing college can be converted into assets.

Latina Baccalaureate Attainment: A Mixed Methods Case Study of a TRIO Intervention

“…For instance, Yosso, Smith, Ceja, and Solórzano (2009) found that Latina/o students at three different college campuses reported being subjected to a variety of racial micro-aggressions that left them "feeling like 'outsiders' within their own universities" (p. 680). These researchers also found-as other research has shown (i.e., Gonzalez et al, 2004;Zalaquett, 2005;Escamilla & Trevino, 2014;Ojeda, Castillo, Meza, & Pina-Watson, 2014;Rodriguez & Oseguera, 2015;Gonzales, Brammer, & Sawilowsky, 2015)-that Latina/o students respond to such negative racial climates by forming their own campus communities wherein their cultural wealth and ethnic identities are aligned with their "home communities." Such ethnic and cultural enclaves on campuses have been shown to enhance retention of Latina/o students.…”

“…While these gender roles are reflective of those within a larger societal context, the gender roles Latina adolescents from traditional families are often expected to fulfill promote that they not engage activities that may deliver them from the domestic realm. However, Escamilla and Trevino (2014) found that these cultural bindings which can place stress upon Latinas in particular can be destabilized once their families take an active role in the college going process. Alvarez (2010), for instance, has shown that when Latina/o parents and their daughters all participate in the process of selecting a college and navigating the path toward college enrollment, Latina students have smoother transitions from home to college.…”

“…Hence, while traditional Hispanic culture may promote that Latinas fulfill certain gender coded roles, these cultural and gender tropes are neither monolithic nor immutable. Research shows that once parents, even those who maintain a traditional Hispanic sensibility, take an active role in their daughter's ambition to attend college, her likelihood of enrolling and graduating increases (Gonzalez et al, 2004;Alvarez, 2010;Escamilla & Trevino, 2014;Hernandez, 2015).…”

“…Other research has found that family connectivity and the loyalty within the traditional Hispanic family structure helps Latinas enroll in, navigate, and successfully graduate college (Gonzalez et al, 2004;Gloria, Castellanos, & Orozco, 2005;Sy, 2006;Escamilla & Trevino, 2014;Gonzales et al, 2015). Further research shows that Hispanic students clearly obtain much of their most powerful support to attend college from their parents (Gandara, 1995;Gonzalez et al, 2004;Zalaquett, 2005).…”

“…Family-like programs on college campuses that promote social bonds among Latina students and between them and college faculty and staff have shown to enhance Latina persistence and graduation (Gonzalez et al, 2004;Escamilla & Trevino, 2014;Kuh, O'Donnell, & Reed, 2013;Gonzales et al, 2015). Gonzalez et al, (2004) also found that parents of Latina students were more prone to encourage their daughters' college aspirations when support systems were available on campus and when there was a clear presence of other Hispanic students on campus.…”