Native Hawaiian Community College Students: What Happens?

Abstract

Using a weighted database of approximately 3,000 students, this study involves the tracing of the postsecondary history of 2,516 students who identified as Native Hawaiian, graduated from high school between 1993 and 1995, and attended college. Virtually none of the students are 100% Hawaiian. Due to a long history of intermarriage, the Hawaiian race is almost entirely a mixture of Hawaiian and other races and ethnicities. However, all of the students identify with their Native Hawaiian ancestry. Our sample consists of 2 types of students; those who attended the Kamehameha Schools and those who graduated from another school but received postsecondary financial aid from Kamehameha. Our retrospective database allowed us to trace life paths almost a decade after high school, and to identify who attended a community college, who later transferred to a 4-year institution, and who graduated with a B.A. or 21 beyond. Results indicate that the majority of Kamehameha students began their postsecondary experience at a 4-year institution. A small group of students began at a community college and transferred to a 4-year institution with graduation rates competitive to the 4-year starters. A logistic regression equation found that high school grade-point average, socioeconomic status, college financial aid, and family support were significant factors in bachelor's degree attainment for the 2-year starters.

Table of Contents

“…Yet attendance at community colleges has been found to have a negative impact on persistence and attainment (Pascarella andTerenzini, 1991, 2005;Terenzini et al, 2001), often through the "cooling-out" function in which counselors steer students toward vocational programs and quick placement in the occupational structure (Clark, 1960). Transfer rates at community colleges are also associated with socioeconomic status, and community colleges that have high proportions of high-SES students also have high transfer rates (Wassmer, Moore, and Shulock, 2004), and socioeconomic status significantly predicts the likelihood that students will transfer (Hagedorn, Lester, Moon, and Tibbetts, 2006). Scholars in addition believe that community colleges' curricula, management systems, and disciplinary procedures reinforce movement into the lower strata of the occupational hierarchy, limiting student attainment (Bowles and Gintis, 1976;Brint and Karabel, 1989).…”

Adapting STEMM in Hawaiʻi: Necessary actions for one of the most diverse places in the United States

“…Other hindrances that also must be addressed for Native Hawaiians in regard to higher education are hesitancy to speak up and ask for help and a lack of childcare (Hagedorn et al, 2003). These can be especially penalizing for nontraditional students, such as parents, who already face significant barriers despite their positive impacts and diverse perspectives in college environments (Pearson, 2019).…”

Interaction between Community College Processes and Asian American and Pacific Islander Subgroups

“…This past event exemplifies the unfortunate history of Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) both in their long-standing concerns for education and equity. Today, in spite of AAPIs being among the most rapidly growing segments, we still know little about how such students negotiate their way through postsecondary education (Benham, 2006;Coloma, 2006;Hagedorn, Lester, Moon, & Tibbetts, 2006;Lei, 2006). Between 1995 and 2015, the fastest growing group of college students is projected to be AAPI undergraduates with an 86% increase (600,000 students) (Carnevale & Fry, 2000).…”

“…Opponents of this ''model minority'' stereotype worry this stereotype may hinder some AAPI subgroups that need appropriate and culturally responsive initiatives. As a result, numerous studies have called for research using disaggregated AAPI data to examine the academic success and college experience that may show vast differences among them (Benham, 2006;Hagedorn et al, 2006;Lei, 2006). Data broken out by specific racial groups are critical to understanding college experiences as potentially a way of improving student learning and academic outcomes in view of the diversity of AAPI students.…”

“…AAPI students are consistently studied as a homogenous group (Hagedorn et al, 2006). Together with the ''model minority'' stereotype, this grouping method has led many educators and policymakers to believe that AAPI students on average do extremely well in school (Benham, 2006).…”