Urban America and the Community College Imperative: The Importance of Open Access and Opportunity

Smith, Joshua L.; Vellani, Fayyaz

doi:10.1002/cc.10701

Cited by 10 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 2 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The enormous growth of community colleges has resulted in a re-examination by educators and legislators alike of the role of community colleges and the level of financial and political support necessary to effectively serve the academic and social needs of the community (Smith & Vellani, 1999). The National Center for Education Statistics in the annual report The Condition of Education (National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), 2001) summarized the following important trends:…”

Section: The Issue In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These include starting the enrollment process late in the admissions cycle, employment obligations, childcare, and the length of time between high school graduation and college entry (Fredda, 2000;King & Bannon, 2002;Smith & Vellani, 1999). These include starting the enrollment process late in the admissions cycle, employment obligations, childcare, and the length of time between high school graduation and college entry (Fredda, 2000;King & Bannon, 2002;Smith & Vellani, 1999).…”

Section: Other Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Large metropolitan community colleges across the nation struggle with the problem of supporting first-year students in persisting beyond the first semester of study (Smith & Vellani, 1999). Because of their unique mission of "open access" to a demographically diverse community with challenging social, economic, and academic needs, community colleges are faced with handling increased levels of developmental and remedial education, greater levels of student financial aid support, and a continuous debate with local and state legislators to see the "value" in community college education by increasing fiscal allocations and program support (Hsu, 1990;Kolajo, 2004;Ting, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Student Characteristics Related to Persistence for First-Year Community College Students

Hawley

Harris

2005

Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Pr

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This study analyzed student characteristics that impact persistence among first-year students attending a large, metropolitan community college. The Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Freshmen Survey was administered to first-time students during orientation. Factor analysis was used to classify students' personality and behavioral characteristics and discriminant function analysis was used to predict retention or attrition. The discriminant model accurately predicted retention in 78.8% of the cases. Findings suggested that student characteristics impacting persistence can be classified into three categories: barriers, motivations and aspirations, and expectations. Among the strongest predictors of attrition were the number of developmental classes required, the intention to transfer to a four-year institution, and the expectation that English as a second language could be a problem for college students. Among the strongest predictors of persistence were being African American or Latino, cumulative GPA, and the length of time students plan to spend at the college. Recommendations are shared for how community college administration, faculty, and staff can work with students and the community to raise student expectations, motivation, and preparation long before they become first-year college students. 117

show abstract

Section: The Issue In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Other Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Student Characteristics Related to Persistence for First-Year Community College Students

Hawley

Harris

2005

Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Pr

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Even though more than half of African American students are enrolled in community colleges (American Association of Community Colleges [AACC], 2014; Smith & Vellani, 1999), only 31% of public community college students go on to graduate with an associate degree in six years (Roach, 2009). In 2009-2010, African American students earned 13.7% of all associate degrees issued by community colleges, followed by Hispanics, who earned 13% (National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), 2014).…”

Section: Background Of the Study And Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

African American Students in the Community College Classroom with White Teachers

Erskine-Meusa

2017

JUMP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine African American student pedagogical experiences in classrooms with White teachers at a community college in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The intent of the study was two-fold: (a) to search for evidence of how culture shapes African American students’ view of themselves, and (b) to explore how African American student pedagogical experiences with White teachers shape their attitude about school. The results of this study revealed that many of the White teachers experienced by the research participants demonstrated some aspect of colorblindness in their pedagogical practices. The results also found that the African American community college students in this study valued the use of culturally responsive pedagogy in the classroom.

show abstract

“…seek to add to a line of research that questions whether community colleges can (and should) retain the historical commitment to open access policies and procedures while also trying to improve student success, retention and completion rates. Although there are those who may argue that the access mission is essential and must be protected (Shannon & Smith, 2006;Smith & Vellani, 1999), there are also some, including this study's researcher, who see an inherent unresolved tension between access and completion. The eventual resolution to this tension will have important implications for both community college students and for the current staff members at these colleges, most notably those who are most frequently tasked with serving as the student's guide into and through the world of higher education: the academic advisor.…”

Section: Chapter 1 Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Community college academic advisors and the challenge of access in the age of completion

Robinson

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Research question 3. To what extent are community college academic advisors comfortable with current graduation rates at their institutions? Do they believe current policies and procedures are designed to ensure student success? Qualitative Research question 4. To what extent do academic advisors support policies or procedures that would limit student access? Research question 5. How do academic advisors perceive the completion movement in terms of the work they do, their role as advisors, and their institutions? Significance of the Study Academic advising is the only structured service on a community college campus in which all students have the chance to have ongoing, one-on-one contact with a concerned representative of the institution (Habley, 1994), and thus academic advising services are often included as a cornerstone for completion and retention planning. Although there is evidence of a link between quality advising and student retention (Forrest, 1982; Kuh, 1997; McGillin, 2000; Tinto, 1987), there is precious little research that looks at the experience of academic advising from the academic advisor's perspective. If it is true that it is "hard to imagine any academic support function that is more important to student success and institutional productivity than advising" (Kuh, 1997, p. 11), then knowing more about the perceptions, concerns, and values of those performing that function is a worthy endeavor. This study also adds to the understanding about the relationship between access and completion. If there is to be a shift from an ethos of access to a commitment to completion, that shift must happen first in the office of the academic advisor. Advisors, who are in charge of so many of the key first interactions that a student has with an institution, are

show abstract

Urban America and the Community College Imperative: The Importance of Open Access and Opportunity

Abstract: Urban community colleges have unique missions geared to providing access and fostering community for the diverse student populations—majority minorities—living today in American cities.

Cited by 10 publications

References 2 publications

Student Characteristics Related to Persistence for First-Year Community College Students

Student Characteristics Related to Persistence for First-Year Community College Students

African American Students in the Community College Classroom with White Teachers

Community college academic advisors and the challenge of access in the age of completion

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About