Desiree Zerquera

Hispanic-Serving Institutions: Patterns, Predictions, and Implications for Informing Policy Discussions

This article seeks to identify and assess the readiness of Potential Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs)—institutions located within Latino communities projected to increase the number of Latino/a high school graduates. Institutions are described based on evaluation of institutional missions, planning documents, programs, and marketing strategies—resulting in three institutional categories: unaware, aware, and committed institutions.

Latino Associate Degree Completion: Effects of Financial Aid over Time.

Lack of financial resources to pay for postsecondary education—perceived and actual—has been cited as a barrier to student access and persistence, particularly for Latino students. This study investigates the following question: “To what extent does financial aid affect the educational attainment of Latinos enrolled in Associate’s degree programs, and how do these effects change over time?” We find receiving aid of any type was positively associated with degree completion, though the effect declined over time.

Context Matters: A Critical Consideration of Latina/o Student Success Outcomes Within Different Institutional Contexts:

This article examined the effect of elements within Latina/o students’ institutional context on Latina/o student success outcomes. Findings highlight the significant role institutional contexts play in Latina/o success. Specifically, it was found that student success was lower for students enrolled at regional campuses and campuses that serve high proportions of students of color and higher for students at campuses with higher proportion of faculty of color. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

First-Year Faculty of Color: Narratives about Entering the Academy

ABSTRACT The experiences of first-year, tenure-track faculty have been missing in the literature about new or junior faculty. Furthermore, the extant literature about new faculty does not offer a critical outlook on how oppressive institutional structures shape how first-year faculty of color approach faculty work. Drawing from analytical narratives, the authors reframe how doctoral student socialization and new-faculty support systems are discussed, especially pertaining to first-year faculty of color. In doing so, and utilizing narrative inquiry as a methodological framework, the authors draw out the distinct voices of new faculty of color. The implications offered are important for scholars who study faculty experiences and for faculty advisors to doctoral students interested in the professoriate.

Faculty Views of “Nontraditional” Students: Aligning Perspectives for Student Success

Faculty serve as a primary point of contact for students in college, playing vital roles in students’ retention and attainment. The perceptions and beliefs held by these institutional actors are important for understanding the context that shapes students’ experiences while they are in college and potentially, long after they leave. The purpose of this work is to examine faculty members’ perceptions of nontraditional student experiences. Findings highlight faculty members’ awareness of students’ multiple roles and obligations; perceptions of student academic success, including barriers to succeeding; and the ways faculty connect with students and the types of connections they forge. The findings from this work highlight the need to consider more research on how the experiences of students who do not fit a traditional model are interpreted by those in positions of power at higher education institutions. As such, we add to calls for more work that considers these institutional actors explicitly and how they shape student success.

Leaving or Staying Home: Predicting Where Students Attend College:

Focusing on a cohort of high school students from a Midwest metropolitan region, this study combines multiple sources of data and uses a multinomial logistic regression to model student postsecondary choices with respect to whether and where to attend college. Specifically, we examined the enrollment patterns by proximity to the home region and factors associated with these college decisions. The results suggest that these students’ college choices were a process influenced by both precollege individual characteristics and social contexts. The findings also supported our hypothesis that acquisition of various types of capital and academic success of the school district (as one of several indicators of a college-going culture) were negatively related to student preferences for college proximity. These findings highlight the interplay between individual, family, community, and school at different levels as it influences college decisions of students from the deindustrialized Midwest region and regions alike.

Charting Ahead: Navigating Threats and Challenges to the Urban-Serving Research University Mission

The higher education context that our CUMU institutions must navigate is complex and begets challenges resulting from the distinct mission our institutions seek to uphold. The implications of these challenges give rise to impacts on everyone within the institution and consequently our constituents within the cities we seek to serve. Bringing together literature, emerging research, and points from discussions at the 2016 CUMU conference, this paper analyzes challenges and their implications and highlights the strategies being employed to navigate them. We consider the tensions inherent in the urban-serving university identity, the cost of serving urban regions, and the state structures that provide funding. All of these tensions have implications for commitment to mission, access for historically marginalized students, and the experiences of faculty within the institution. We also discuss strategic initiatives and efforts that reflect collaboration, strategic alignment, and innovation. This work is of value for those working within urban-serving universities, those who work to uphold their mission in higher education, and policy makers that shape the context of these institutions’ work.

Reimagining Doctoral Education

The School of Education (SOE) of the University of San Francisco (USF), an urban, Jesuit institution, serves nearly 1,100 students across more than 20 programs. Its mission centers around a commitment to “serving those most in need,” bringing in students who are educators and organizers, advocates and policy-makers, and those who aspire to make an impact to fulfill the university’s motto to “Change the World from Here.”