Latinx institutional agents: a narrative inquiry of how they employ their community cultural wealth at hispanic-serving community colleges in New England

Abstract

Latinx institutional agents' contribution to the development of a student-ready and relationship-centered campus environment is integral to the academic success of Hispanic-Serving Institutions in general, and for this study, Hispanic-Serving community colleges. The presence of Latinx institutional agents is a reflection of an institutional culture that is committed to working with, supporting, and serving the increasing Latinx student population on their campus. Furthermore, the ability of the Latinx institutional agents to employ their community cultural wealth during their interactions with students help improve an institution's retention, persistence, and completion rate of this student population. More importantly, Latinx institutional agents' use of their community cultural wealth as well as support for their work signals that the HSI federal designation is more than a moniker, but that it emphasizes its identity as a serving institution. This study will focus on how, when and where Latinx institutional agents employ their community cultural wealth, an act that is often unconscious, yet rooted in their own experiences. It is does experiences that provide Latinx students access to the resources and acquisition of the tools and knowledge needed to navigate social institutions with which they are not familiar.