University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

The Class of 2015: where we lose them & where they go

(USC Thesis Other)

The Class of 2015: where we lose them & where they go

PDF

Download a page range

Download transcript

Copy asset link

Request this asset

Transcript (if available)

Content

The Class of 2015:
Where We Lose Them & Where They Go
Carlos A. Galan
Educational Counseling
Master’s of Education
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
Degree Conferral Date: Spring 2018

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 2

Table of Contents
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 5
Background ..................................................................................................................................... 7
Literature Review............................................................................................................................ 9
Latinx ........................................................................................................................................... 9
College Readiness........................................................................................................................ 9
Summer-melt ............................................................................................................................. 10
Latinx and Community Colleges ............................................................................................... 11
Latinx Students, Community Colleges and Impact on the Economy ........................................ 12
Conceptual Framework ................................................................................................................. 13
Bourdieu’s Theory of Social Reproduction ............................................................................... 13
Social capital .......................................................................................................................... 14
Cultural capital ....................................................................................................................... 14
Field. ....................................................................................................................................... 15
Habitus ................................................................................................................................... 15
Research Methodology ................................................................................................................. 16
Subject of Study......................................................................................................................... 16
Why Qualitative Methods .......................................................................................................... 16
Data Collection .......................................................................................................................... 17
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 3
Trustworthiness ......................................................................................................................... 19
Data ............................................................................................................................................... 20
Numbers..................................................................................................................................... 20
Narratives on Summer-melters, Persisters, and Students to Workers ....................................... 22
Summer-melters ..................................................................................................................... 22
Persisters................................................................................................................................. 24
Students to workers ................................................................................................................ 26
Narratives, Why We Lose Them? ............................................................................................. 27
Taking too long to transfer ..................................................................................................... 27
Lure to the world of workers .................................................................................................. 28
Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 30
Recommendations ..................................................................................................................... 35
Engage students during the summer ...................................................................................... 36
Provide academic coaching and mentorship. ......................................................................... 36
Monetary incentives and job opportunities ............................................................................ 36
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 37
References ..................................................................................................................................... 39
Image 1. Intended Post-Graduation Plans Class of 2015: Year 1 ................................................. 47
Table 1. Educational Attainment for Blacks, Latinx, and Whites ................................................ 48
Table 2. Educational Attainment and Income ............................................................................... 49
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 4
Table 3. Intended Plans at the Community College ..................................................................... 50
Table 4. Enrollment History: 2015-2016 ...................................................................................... 51
Table 5. Academic Life, Subgroups ............................................................................................. 52
Table 6. Living Conditions, Subgroups ........................................................................................ 53
Appendix A: Formal Interivew Protocol ...................................................................................... 54
Appendix B: Informal Interview Protocol .................................................................................... 55

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 5
Abstract
This paper centers on 125 students who, upon graduating from high school, committed to attend
a community college in the greater Los Angeles area. These students were part of a larger
graduating high school class composed of 250 students from an urban high school district that
predominantly serves low-income youth—Antonio High School. This study asks the following
research questions: a) What do students who enroll in community college do after graduating
from high school? b) Why do they leave community college? These questions are answered
through a qualitative methodology consisting primarily of interviews that occurred over the
course of two calendar years. Using Bourdieu’s theory of social and cultural reproduction, the
argument put forward in this study invites the reader to understand the importance of what drives
students out of community college, if one is to advance social mobility for Latinx students.
Findings demonstrate that a seemingly neutral system of higher education could become a great
contributor to the reproduction and maintenance of social inequality if students are not equipped
with the proper resources to navigate such a system as they graduate from high school.
Keywords: College Access, College Outcomes, Community Colleges, First Generation
Students, Latinx Students, Low-Income Youth, Persistence, Summer Melt.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 6
The Class of 2015:
Where We Lose Them & Where They Go
Latinx are a fast-growing population in the United States. The Campaign for College
Opportunity (2015) reports that although the overall percentage of students earning high school
diplomas and entering colleges continues to improve, Latinx are nevertheless underrepresented
in higher education and have the lowest rates of college degree attainment when compared to
other racial/ethnical groups, such as Whites and Blacks (See Table 1). This underrepresentation
is troublesome, especially when college participation and completion rates are tied to economic
opportunity. College graduates are more likely to have greater lifetime earnings than those with a
high school education. Furthermore, students who attend a four-year institution are more likely
to have higher earnings than their community college counterparts (Tierney & Hentschke, 2011;
Johnson, 2010; Chetty et al., 2017). This study serves as a follow up to a case study by Tierney
and Galan (2017) to answer the following research questions: a) what do students who enroll in
community college do after graduating from high school? and b) why do they leave community
college?
To answer this question, this thesis focuses on 125 out of 250 graduating high school
students from Antonio High School (a pseudonym). Each of the students in this study were
committed to continuing their education at a community college – i.e., to have applied or be
enrolled to start taking classes after graduating from high school. During the past two years, I
maintained contact with these 125 students. This study describes what happened to these students
using social and cultural capital lenses. More specifically, I employed Bourdieu’s (1986) theory
of social and cultural reproduction, which centers on power and the structures that perpetuate
inequality.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 7
I argue that if one is to advance social mobility for Latinx students who enter community
colleges, one needs to understand what drives these students out of community colleges.
Community colleges are a viable system for students to forge a path towards economic and
social mobility. Therefore, why are Latinx not completing their AA degrees or transferring to a
four-year institution or not obtaining vocational degrees once they enter this system? In unison
with Bourdieu’s work, I seek to demonstrate that a seemingly neutral system of higher education
could become a great contributor to the reproduction and maintenance of social inequality if
students are not equipped with the proper resources to navigate such a system as they graduate
from high school.
In what follows, I first provide background on students from Antonio High School and
focus on those who enrolled at community college. Then, I offer a review of the literature
pertaining to college readiness and Latinx students at community college. In doing so, I highlight
the challenges this population faces, as well as the importance of increased student success rates
if structural and economic inequities are to be rectified. Thirdly, I introduce the theoretical
frameworks that guide this study—and elaborate on Bourdieu’s Theory of Social Reproduction.
Afterwards, I present the data and proceed with a discussion of findings and recommendations
based on students’ narratives. I then conclude by presenting the implications of the current state
of Latinx students based on the data collected from these Antonio High School students.
Background
On a June afternoon in 2015, 250 students graduated from Antonio High School. All of
these students came from low-income backgrounds and had different post-graduation plans and
aspirations (See Image 1; Table 3). However, because of their college counselor’s effort to have
every graduating senior go to college, they all seemed to have solid post-secondary plans. The
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 8
result was a perceived high college-going rate. In short, upon graduation, of the 250 seniors who
graduated, 114 (46%) intended to enroll at a four-year institution and 125 (50%) intended to
enroll at a community college. The remaining 11 (4%) students either joined the army or entered
the work force (See Image 1). For the next few years, the post-secondary expectation for Antonio
High School graduates is the following: a student who matriculates into a four-year college or
university, who is on track to graduate, and who secures certain work experience through
internships. One also expects a student who enrolls at a community college to be on track to
transfer to a four-year institution (after two years) or to receive certain training, through
certificates and credentials that will enable success in the workforce. For someone who enters the
workforce after high school, the expectation is that the individual is able to secure financial
stability through training and promotions from an occupation. However, the data from the Class
of 2015 paints a less optimistic picture. There is a lot to be said about the different experiences
these students faced upon graduation. For the purpose of this study, however, I will focus on the
experiences of 125 students who entered community colleges.
I followed these 125 students who entered community college after they graduated from
high school. The numbers and narratives presented here exemplify the different realities for
Antonio High School’s Class of 2015. At the time of graduation, their aspirations revolved
around continuing their educational experiences, especially since their college counselor required
everyone to enroll at four-year or two-year colleges after graduation. However, as the memory
of high school began to fade away, their different realities framed their actions and choices - and,
sometimes, those realities had nothing to do with school.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 9
Literature Review
Latinx
Latinx are the fastest growing ethnic group in the United States, yet their rates of
educational attainment are far below the national average. Nationwide, of the students who
started at a four-year public university in Fall 2010, 34% graduated in four years and 63% in six
(NCS, 2017). Similarly, the four and six-year graduation rates for students, specifically in
California was 36% and 72%, respectively. Of students in the Fall 2010 cohort who enrolled in
public two-year colleges in California, 43% dropped out of higher education completely by 2016
without obtaining a degree. In California, almost half of the college-age students identify as
Latinx, yet only 12% of this population earns a bachelor’s degree (Campaign for College
Opportunity, 2015). These students are expected to represent the majority of people in
California’s workforce and its educational systems; hence, it is critical to understand the
educational experiences of Latinx students in order to understand the future of higher education,
the state, and the country. In this literature review, I first examine literature concerning barriers
to college enrollment and persistence among Latinx students. Then, I provide an overview of
research concerning Latinx students in community colleges and their impact on the US economy.
College Readiness
There is a difference between a student being eligible for college and ready for college.
For years, indicators of academic skills, such as high school grades and scores on standardized
tests, have dominated our conversation on whether or not a student is ready to attend college
(Conley, 2007; 2010; Roderick, Nagaoka & Coca, 2009). At community colleges, in particular,
student readiness is mainly predicted through placement tests, which attempt to measure
students’ skills in English and math. However, there is more to college readiness than
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 10
someone’s ability to do well on a placement exam or standardized test. As defined by Roderick,
Nagaoka, and Coca (2009), college knowledge is “the ability to effectively search for and apply
to college” (p. 185). According to these researchers, college knowledge requires four basic
skills: content knowledge and basic skills; core academic skills; non-cognitive or behavioral
skills; and the ability to effectively search for and apply to college. The problem with this
definition, however, is that it is primarily used to describe the set of skills necessary to gain
acceptance to a four-year college or university. In other words, college readiness literature often
focuses on the academic skills and knowledge necessary to apply and gain acceptance to a four-
year college (Conley, 2008; Tierney & Duncheon, 2015). Researchers have failed to define what
college readiness is for community college students, and if there is such a definition, it only
encapsulates academic competencies, such as high school grades and scores on placement exams
(Karp & Bork, 2014). In some instances, college readiness at the community college level also
includes onboarding technical practices, such as teaching students how to register for classes
and, in recent years, academic coaching (Felix & Trinidad, 2017). This study seeks to advance
such conversation by presenting students' narratives to illustrate and understand the challenges
and type of skills needed for marginalized students to thrive at community colleges.
Summer-melt
A student can have the academic skills and the knowledge to apply and gain acceptance
to college. The student can even take the necessary steps to enroll into college. However, as
described by Hoover (2009), college and university admissions officers expect that a percentage
of incoming freshmen will not matriculate at their institution. This phenomenon is referred as
summer-melt (Castleman & Page, 2013, 2014). From an optimistic perspective (in regards to
summer-melt), a student may not enroll in a previously intended college because he/she found a
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 11
better option to pursue his/her educational goals. From a pessimistic perspective, a student who
does not matriculate lacks the skills to persist during the college application and enrollment
process — matriculating onto college is part of persisting in this process. This pessimistic
approach has been documented by researchers focusing on the obstacles of first-generation, low-
income students and why students fail to enroll in college during their transition from high
school to college (Castleman & Page, 2013, 2014). Yet, much of the documentation happens for
students who have gained acceptance to a four-year college. There is little or no mention of
summer-melt happening among students who intend to enroll at a community college and do not
actually enroll. This study contributes to the literature in the field by tracking the experiences of
these students from the moment they graduated from high school. In other words, this work
pushes scholars to pay closer attention to what happens after a student has completed the
required steps to enroll at a community college, but fails to enroll. By highlighting this under-
studied topic, I seek to build a stronger understanding on what college readiness means for low-
income, first-generation, Latinx students who seek to advance their education through
community colleges.
Latinx and Community Colleges
Students who are traditionally underrepresented at four-year institutions are
overrepresented at community colleges (Kena, Hussar, McFalland, Brey and Musu-Guillete,
2016). Over 50% of African Americans and Latinx students enroll in a community college (Felix
& Trinidad, 2017). Researchers have continuously documented that underrepresented students
are also underrepresented in transfer rates to four-year institutions (Bensimon & Dowd, 2009;
Dowd, Cheslock, Melguizo, 2008). To put matters into perspective, The Beginning
Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study estimated that approximately 25% of ethnic minority
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 12
group members who attended a two-year college planned to transfer. However, after six years,
only 6% had transferred and earned a college degree (Hoachlander, Sikora, Horn & Carrol,
2003). Hence, the body of research emerging around this population in community colleges is
understandable. Indeed, a lot has been written about Latinx students in community colleges.
Nonetheless, there is a gap in the literature concerning community college students as they
transition from high school to community college. Research is mainly focused on students once
they have reached the community college system (Cerezo, Lyda, Beristianos, Enriquez &
Connor, 2013; Contreras & Contreras, 2015; Crisp & Nora, 2010; Hatch, Garcia & Saenz, 2016;
Ingram, Gonzalez-Matthews, 2013; Garcia & Garza, 2016; Lesure-Lester, 2003; Ojeda, Navarro,
Morales, 2011; Ponjuán, & Hernández, 2016).
This case study offers a unique perspective into the existing body of literature. Ninety-six
percent of the sample, 120 high school graduates who enrolled at these different community
colleges in the greater Los Angeles, identified as Latinx. Hence, this longitudinal study offers a
fresh perspective to the literature by encapsulating the experiences of these students from the
time they graduate high school and move to community college. Antonio High School graduates
offer a compelling incentive to better understand the various factors that affect Latinx students as
they transition to two-year colleges.
Latinx Students, Community Colleges and Impact on the Economy
In California, Latinx are the largest racial/ethnic group. The state is home to nearly 15
million Latinx; one in two children under the age of 18 are Latinx (Campaign for College
Opportunity, 2015). California community colleges enroll over 2.3 million students at their 113
institutions. The majority of Latinx undergraduates start their academic careers at community
colleges (Campaign for College Opportunity, 2015; CCCCO, 2017). If estimates are correct,
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 13
California is currently on track to face a shortage of 2.3 million college-educated workers by
2025 (California Competes, 2012). The number of students who enroll at community college is
high, but it is nearly impossible for California to meet the state’s current and estimated need for
college-educated workers without increasing the number of Latinx who graduate from college.
To this end, the community colleges and Antonio High School graduates represent where
California can find and fight for its future workforce.
Conceptual Framework
Bourdieu’s Theory of Social Reproduction
This study is framed around Bourdieu’s (1986) theory of social and cultural reproduction,
which centers on power and the structures that perpetuate inequality. The theory is useful to
inform how objective societal structures interact with and inform the subjective behaviors
exhibited by individuals. In essence, Bourdieu’s work can be applied to a number of academic
fields; when applied to education, his work is useful to understand how a seemingly neutral
system of higher education is, conversely, a great contributor to the reproduction and
maintenance of social inequality (Bourdieu & Passeron, 1990; Maton, 2005; Naidoo, 2004). He
likens success in higher education to a sorting machine that “designates those with cultural
capital, which is generally inherited as a result of social origin, as academically talented”
(Naidoo, 2004, p. 459). Students from higher social statuses are seen as academically talented
and will likely reap the benefits of higher academic rank and subsequent lucrative job offers. The
same students from privileged backgrounds are validated in their privilege under the guise of
meritocracy with corresponding success in higher education. In this manner, “the scholastic
hierarchies in [higher education] reproduce social hierarchies.” (Bourdieu & Passeron, 1990, p.
205). However, in order to understand such logic, it is important to define key concepts under
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 14
Bourdieu’s theory of social reproduction. Bourdieu is credited with being the first to theorize
social capital (Portes, 1998), and his conceptualization of cultural capital is arguably more
developed and cited in education research (see Baez & Musoba, 2009; Edgerton & Roberts,
2014). As Edgerton and Roberts (2014) argue, capital, in a Bourdieusian sense, might be
understood not as a status symbol, but as a toolkit. In what follows, I define key elements of
Bourdieu’s theoretical toolkit: social capital, cultural capital, field, and habitus.
Social capital. Bourdieu (1986) describes social capital as “the aggregate of the actual or
potential resources which are linked to possession of a durable network of more or less
institutionalized relationships of mutual acquaintance or recognition” (p. 248). One’s social
capital is dependent upon the amount and quality of resources within the network as well as the
size and maintenance of the network (Portes, 1998). Depending on the characteristics of one’s
network, social capital can assure access to resources and other forms of capital, including
cultural capital.
Cultural capital. This capital is always in a state of flux to perpetuate the social
hierarchy (Bourdieu, 1984). For example, a college degree is a marker of institutional capital,
because the degree gives access to higher paying jobs. The degree, however, loses its
comparative value if more people from the underprivileged classes earn a college degree. To
preserve the scarcity of their embodied cultural capital, the dominant or privileged group would
have to create additional requirements a master’s degree, professional training and relevant
employment experiences, such as internships as the basis for employment. Cultural capital,
however, cannot be understood without context as it varies from one region to another and it is
bound to time. So what was considered as cultural capital during a particular region and time in
place, could be easily disregarded in our current time. Thus, consideration of context is required
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 15
when applying Bourdieu’s social and cultural capital theory to an educational issue (Bourdieu,
1984; Bourdieu & Passeron, 1990; Edgerton & Roberts, 2014; Baez & Musoba, 2009). Context,
in Bourdieu’s theory of reproduction, is manifested in his concept of field.
Field. Fields are comprised of complex relationships, sites of competition, and have
context-specific forms of social and cultural capital (Edgerton & Roberts, 2014). Bourdieu
(1984) likens fields to worlds, or social arenas that have their own, often tacit, rules or principles.
Examples of fields can be any social world and can span anywhere from classrooms, to
organizations, to college campuses, to higher education in general. In these fields, agents are
engaged in “the pursuit of distinction” and competing for capital or power (Bourdieu, 1984, p.
226). The value of one’s social or cultural capital, then, depends on the field. Bourdieu and
Wacquant note that “capital does not exist and function except in relation to a field” (1992, p.
101). The relationship between capital and field are mutually constitutive as the competition for
capital is both “the process within, and product of a field” (Thompson, 2008, p. 69).
Habitus. Bourdieu uses habitus as a conceptual tool to understand and explain social
reproduction (1984). Habitus is described as the dispositions one learns at a young age as a result
of social class, culture, and family. One’s habitus is durable and can change, depending on what
the person experiences, thereby manifesting the interplay of the possible and the probable (Pinto,
1999). In other words, habitus mediates the relationship between subjective and objective
structures. Objective structures include the conditions that exist as a reality for all, while
subjective structures include the individual actions people take. The objective structures
determine much of one’s agency.
Habitus gives one a feel for the game in a field, or “le sens pratique,” which is roughly
translated to “a mode of knowledge that does not necessarily contain knowledge of its own
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 16
principles” (Bourdieu, 1990, as cited in Reay, 2004). One’s habitus shows others in the same
field whether or not one belongs in the field. Bourdieu (1984) employs a useful example of
handwriting to describe the context specific and unconscious nature of habitus ( p. 173). Like
handwriting, habitus is expressed differently depending on the field (e.g., paper, canvas, or
whiteboard). The handwriting may look slightly different but still bears a distinctive style. This
style is based on one’s habitus.
Research Methodology
Subject of Study
Antonio High School serves predominantly low-income Latinx students — 95% of the
2015 graduating class identifies as Latinx, and 93% qualified for free or reduced lunch at the
time of graduation. This study purposely centers on the greater area of Los Angeles. With over
4.8 million residents, Los Angeles is home to the largest number of California’s Latinx—one-
third of Latinx live in Los Angeles County (Campaign for College Opportunity, 2015). Los
Angeles is also home of the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD), which is
composed of nine different campuses. LACCD educates almost three times as many Latinx
students than all the University of California schools combined. Eighty-percent of LACCD
students are from underserved backgrounds (LACCD, 2017). Over-half of the graduating class
from Antonio High School enrolls in at least one of these nine different community colleges.
Why Qualitative Methods
This study employs a qualitative approach in order to provide rich description of the
different challenges that affect Latinx students’ educational outcomes as they navigate
community college. More specifically, this is a qualitative study of a group of high school
seniors from a low-income neighborhood who attend a school that serves as a feeder to its
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 17
surrounding community colleges. Qualitative research seeks to gather an in-depth understanding
of human behavior and the reasons that govern such behavior. Qualitative methods examine
the why and how of decision making, not just what, where, when, or who. In this light, a
qualitative methodological approach offers an opportunity to examine how students navigate life
as they enter different educational pipelines or the work force upon graduating from high school.
Studying the narratives of students provides an opportunity to better understand how to support
the needs of Latinx students as they start their educational career in community colleges.
Qualitative methods also explore aspects of student experiences in higher education that
numbers cannot articulate (Harper, 2007; Jones, Torres, & Arminio, 2013). In this case, for
example, a qualitative approach informs and captures the complexities of Latinx students as they
navigate post-secondary education at the community college level. Interviews were useful in
collecting qualitative data pertaining to the lived experiences of participants (e.g. Creswell, 2007;
Harper, 2007; Hesse-Biber & Leavy, 2010; Jones et al., 2013; Kvale & Brinkman, 2009;
Spradley, 1979). Through interviews, researchers can learn how participants describe their world
and what they see as meaningful from interviews. Interviews can be informal, occurring while
shadowing a study participant, or formal and tape-recorded in an agreed upon location (Spradley,
1979). Paired with the trust and comfort of a participant — the product of extended time in the
field — a researcher can collect valuable data from an interview.
Data Collection
At the time of graduation, students were given a graduation survey by their college
counselor. This survey documented students’ post-secondary plans. Analyzing the survey
responses enabled me to identify those students who intended to enroll at a community college.
As the study progressed, all students were over 18 and agreed to be interviewed. When they
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 18
graduated from high school, the students provided contact information through their school
survey and connected me to their social media accounts. Additionally, the high school college
counselor, a key informant, kept complete records about where candidates had applied, been
admitted, and enrolled in college. He also kept detailed records on how to contact students.
Moreover, these students formed close connections with one another. So, if one student did not
respond to an e-mail or phone call, it was feasible to ask somebody from the same group about
how to connect with such students. All of this enabled me to contact and speak with Antonio
High School graduates over the past two years.
During the summer and fall, I stayed in touch with students in a variety of ways. Email,
cell phones, Instagram, texting, Facebook, and informal meet-ups were all viable ways to
connect with a highly mobile, youthful, and busy group of interviewees. Even though the vast
majority of students remained living at home with their parents as they enrolled in community
colleges nearby, I also developed an online survey to gather data on students who could not meet
for a formal interview (See Appendix B).
As I conducted interviews with these students, 30% of the sample agreed to formalized
interviews where they sat down in a room that resembled a typical interview situation (See
Appendix A). Typical locations for interviews were at their homes, their former high school,
coffee shops, outside on their college campus, soccer fields, public parks, and street corners. As
students transitioned onto college or into the workforce, I met students at their campus or work
place; in a public space, such as an eatery, or when they came home.
As expected, when these individuals started to become more invested into post-secondary
roles, many of them stopped using social media and changed their phone numbers or e-mail
addresses. To address this problem, I tapped into their social networks. Needless to say, the high
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 19
school network for these students was relatively robust, at least for the two years after
graduation; of consequence, many students knew what other students were doing or what had
happened to them. In many instances, they shared my online survey with other members of their
graduating class if I could not get ahold of them. When I did not hear from a particular student, I
inquired about them to their peers. My inquiries mostly revolved around how to contact people
who were unresponsive. I also sought updates on how a particular person was doing.
During the first year of this study, no students avoided speaking with me; the most
common reason for not following up with me was that they had something else to do which took
priority, or they simply had forgotten to reply. However, during the second year of this project,
some students moved out of the country. In deeply tragic circumstances, students passed away;
others simply did not want to be part of interviews. These students were not interviewed, but
their accounts and experiences are still included in this data, given that other participants in the
study knew about their current situation.
Overall, during a two-year period, I conducted 60 hours of interviews; the shortest was 15
minutes, and the longest was one hour. I had a number of casual and informal meetings, as well
as numerous email, phone, and text exchanges. I also followed their use and comments on social
media, such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. I transcribed the interviews and
kept notes after every interaction with students. Furthermore, I met with my thesis advisor once a
month throughout the project to exchange ideas and figure out how the project should be
changed based on new data and emerging themes.
Trustworthiness
As I developed this text, my thesis advisor provided feedback as the text progressed.
Through discussion concerning the feedback, I was able to debate and refine my understanding
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 20
of the data and findings. How one “sees” or “hears” a comment is not absolute; there is not one
singular version of reality. This dialogue and feedback on the paper enabled me to refine the text
further when on occasion I had made an error of fact, or when a student disagreed with what I
had concluded; thus, I was able to see whether I had erred.
Through additional conversations with students as they provided feedback on the text, I
was able to further understand and redefine things that I had originally written or erred.
Additionally, if I had questions or was suspicious about something that their peers had said
during an interview, I was able to run data and my analytic notes by the respondents in order to
get the “truths” behind their stories. Participating in research activities also provided an
opportunity for the students to reflect on the choices they were making. All of this allowed the
participants to provide meaningful feedback on their narratives where analyzed, interpreted and
facilitated the member check in process (Scheibel, 1992).
I had a protocol for posing questions at the outset and took notes on the subjects’
answers. The protocol guided my initial inquiry across all of the sample; however, as I followed
these students over the years and these students made different choices for different reasons,
particular topics arose that required different questions. In what follows, I offer data that
transpired over time, reflecting three particular themes around these students from Antonio High
School.
Data
Numbers
When school started in the fall of 2017, each of the 250 students who once graduated
from Antonio High School were at different stages in their academic and non-academic lives,
none more so than the 125 students who enrolled in community colleges. Hence, I will focus on
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 21
the latter group of students. At the time they graduated from high school , these 125 students had
different reasons for entering community college: 72 of them planned to transfer to a four-year
institution, 16 planned to obtain a certificate degree or job training, and 37 students were
undecided about what they wanted to do as they entered higher education (See Table 3). Once
community college coursework started, these original intentions were transformed into further
subgroups that were shaped by time and the choices these students were circumscribed to make,
based on their evolving realities and life experiences. These subgroups then became: a) summer-
melters; b) students who remained enrolled at their community college; c) students who
stopped/dropped out of their community college and entered the workforce.
One-hundred twenty-five students from Antonio High School enrolled at a community
college after graduating from high school. By the end of the first year, 47 students remained
enrolled. Two years after graduation, only 22 of the 125 students remained enrolled at a
community college (See Table 4). Forty-five percent of these 22 students had GPA above a 3.0,
but they were not on track to transfer and will not be able to transfer without spending another
three years in community college given his current class-load and work responsibilities . In short,
between their first and second year of college, only 20% of all the students who entered
community college remained enrolled. In total, 103 students disappeared from the community
college system between the first and the second years: 71 of them “being stop/outs” or students
who enrolled for at least 1 semester and then decided to leave. The other 32 students were
“summer-melters” or students never enrolled in a community college after high school
graduation despite having completed the necessary steps to pursue a post-secondary degree while
in high school. None of these students were on track to graduate, transfer, or obtain a certificate
degree anytime soon.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 22
As community college students stopped attending their school, they entered the world of
work. Two years after graduating from high school, 53 out of 125 students had entered the
workforce without giving any signs of wanting to return to school. Once students stopped
attending community college, they seemed to enjoy working” and making money (as some of
them would say). With a few exceptions, even though they all worked full-time jobs (more than
30 hours a week), they mostly lived at home with parents, did not have any work advancements,
worked in service and/or manual service jobs, and earned minimum wage.
Narratives on Summer-melters, Persisters, and Students to Workers
The numbers of community college students from Antonio High School’s Class of 2015
tell a story that is difficult to understand without students’ narratives. In what follows, I present
students’ voices from three main groups that governed Antonio’s graduates who entered
community college. They are as follows: Summer-melters, Persisters, Students to Workers. The
purpose here is to highlight how a field functions to shape and constrain one’s habitus.
Summer-melters. This term refers to the students who had plans to enter community
college after high school but did not matriculate once the fall semester started. To put numbers
into perspective, 32 students out of 125 did not enroll in community college even though they
had previously applied and taken the necessary steps (e.g., applied for financial aid, completed
orientation, and registered for classes) to start taking classes. These students never accumulated
any college credits. At the time of graduation, though, seven planned to major in STEM, while
25 planned to pursue a career in a non-STEM field. Four of these students were married two
years after high school (although not to one another). These four students were women and
married older men within their own community. Three of them had children and were stay-home
mothers. The other summer-melters fluctuated between full-time and part-time employment. As
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 23
of this writing, 19 summer-melters were employed full-time, while 6 were employed part-time
and 4 were unemployed. With the exception of those who were married, they all lived at home.
Sixteen participants owned a car; 6 students had a car loan. However, all these summer-melters
admitted having some form of debt and, to some extent, they were still dependent on their
relatives for financial support.
While the reasons as to why students did not enroll in college varied, there was a general
theme: these students found their summer jobs appealing. In other words, their momentary
situation turned into a permanent one. For instance, when talking to Ramon, he expressed that he
needed a break after he had struggled in high school. In the meantime, he said, “he wanted to see
about working.” He applied to community college, he added “to have something to do after high
school because everyone seemed to have gotten something to do after.” When talking to Ramon,
it was clear that perhaps he never had the intention to enroll at a community college, but he was
open to the idea of going to a community college. He applied and took the placement test. He
even registered in classes. Nonetheless, he never set a foot on campus once the fall started.
Instead, he picked up a job at a clothing store in a mall nearby. Like Ramon, other students from
Antonio High School picked up part-time jobs during the summer and postponed their
enrollment. To be sure, during the summer, a lot of the students from Antonio High used the
summer to pick up extra hours at their respective jobs. These students included Miesha, who
worked at a CVS; Latisha, who worked at a clothing store; Esmeralda, who worked at Ross,
Esteban, who worked at gardening with his father; Barney, who worked at Universal Studios;
Ernesto, who worked at Target; and Caroll and Luis, who worked at the mall. The summer
offered these students the opportunity to earn extra cash to spend on leisure activities. However,
their stories in high school were different because they were expected to be back at the end of the
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 24
summer. Once they had graduated from high school, as Ramon put it, “going to school after high
school was optional. You can do it at any time. I want to work and make money for now.”
Persisters. Persisters refer to students who enrolled in a community college right after
high school and maintained continuous enrollment as this writing progressed, despite
encountering obstacles in their academic journeys. (Persisters are currently enrolled and did not
leave the community college for more than two consecutive semesters). In what follows, I
highlight the narratives of these students. Although these students have managed to remain in
school for two years, their academic lives are not all too optimistic. Looking back at the time of
graduation, 72 students intended to a four-year university, while 16 wanted to earn some sort of
certificate or training.
Two years after graduation, however, none of the 22 students who maintained enrollment
at a community college had been able to transfer or obtain a certificate degree. Currently, 18 of
these persisters still hope to transfer to a four-year institution, while 4 of them still want to earn a
certificate degree. The academic life of these students is further diversified when one takes into
account that 9 of these students are pursuing an education in a STEM field, and the remaining 13
are studying non-STEM related disciplines. Seven are enrolled part-time, while 15 are enrolled
full-time, yet 14 out of 22 have GPAs above 3.0, and 8 have a GPA below 3.0. Sixteen of these
students have earned more than 30 transferable credits, while 6 of them have less than 30
transferable credits. This picture suggests that, by the end of this year, the number of persisters
who will not to meet their educational goals is likely to decrease; thus, making the overall
number of students from Antonio High School still enrolled at a community college likely to
decrease, as opposed to increase.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 25
Twelve students were working full-time (40 plus hours) while still being enrolled in
school either part-time or full-time. Seven of them worked part-time, but their jobs required a
significant commute from campus and were not related to the field they were studying — this is
also true for those students working full-time. Three students reported to not be working because
they wanted to focus only on school. With the exemption of two students who were married and
moved out of their parents’ houses, the other students lived at home with their parents. Thus,
none of these 22 students were financially independent, and, like the summer-melters, they all
reported to have acquired debt of some sort (most often related to car payments).
The experiences of these persisters were varied in nature, yet there was a firm consensus
that, one day, they would be able to enroll at a four-year college and obtain a bachelor’s degree
or better job prospects through their educational training. A student by the name of Edgar
reflected on his time at a community college. He admitted that: “college is difficult, but it was
better to be in school rather than working multiple jobs. College is easier than working.” A
second student by the name of Cristobal wished “to be able to speed up his transfer process so
that he can transfer to a four-year school because being at a community college for too long felt
like a waste of time.” Christobal felt that dropping too many classes after his first semester
caused him to have a slow start in college. Nonetheless, his dream was to transfer to a nearby
university so that he could keep working towards a career to support his daughter. He did not
know much about how to speed up his transferring process; all he knew was that he needed to
keep taking classes. “I am not going to give up on that,” he said.
Indeed, some students believe college to be easier than working; however, the rate at
which these students stopped attending college is alarming. A sentiment of college not “being
easy” was present among most students. Echoing some of her previous peers, a female student
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 26
confessed: “college is really difficult. But the thought of achieving my dream career makes me
not want to give up. I consider myself lucky. Without my family’s support, I most definitely
would be working at this point in time.” The different responsibilities acquired by these students
made it difficult to focus only on school. Regardless, they were determined to make their dream
of transferring into a four-year institutors a reality. Jose articulated this point well during one of
our conversations while we both waited to get a haircut at a neighboring barbershop: “I am a
father now, I cannot really mess up. I want to go to college so I can have a better paying job.
With work, being a father, school can be difficult, I cannot afford to have gone to community
college and not get anything out of it.”
Students to workers. This is the group of participants who enrolled at a community
college but took a break from school and transitioned into the world of work. (A student became
a drop out after leaving the community college for two or more semesters and seemed to have no
intentions of coming back to school). Overall, there were 71 stop outs who entered the world of
work. Twenty-eight were pursuing a career in STEM, while 43 were pursuing a non-STEM field
of study; thirty were enrolled part-time and 41 were enrolled full-time. Furthermore, 18 had a
GPA above a 3.0, while 53 had a GPA below 3.0. They also left with some credits earned. For
instance, 46 of them left with less than 30 transferable credits, while 25 left with more than 25
transferable credits. All these students reported having economic insecurities or difficulties over
the past two years. As these students stopped attending community college, they all transitioned
into work. Forty-three were working full-time, 18 were working part-time, and 10 are currently
unemployed — the main reason for this was because 7 were stay-at-home mothers. Although 16
students from this group were married (6 to one another), the vast majority (69) still live at home
with their parents or with a family member in order to alleviate their household expenses. As of
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 27
this writing, only two students from this group are living on their own, and 25 of 71 of this
subgroup have children. Similar to the other groups, they reported having some sort of debt due
to the purchase of a car and/or living expenses. Salient themes for this population included mot
knowing what classes to take, losing financial aid, the need for work and not wanting to be in
school because it was taking too long.
Narratives, Why We Lose Them?
Taking too long to transfer. When Baltazar took the placement exam at a nearby
community college, he did not know what was as stake. The only thing he knew about the test
was that he needed to figure out what courses to take. He did not know that, depending on his
English and Math results, he could spend two or more years in a community college before
transferring. In our conversation, Baltazar confessed that he did not study for the placement
exam. On the day of the test, he recalls, the college counselor had taken a group of 40 students to
take this test. During the drive, a lot of his friends were “clowning” around and, even after the
test, a lot of them had joked about failing it and not knowing most of the answers. The result was
that Baltazar and most of the students who took the test that day were in at least one remedial
course for either Math or English. When I met with Baltazar two years later, he explained that
“he felt that he lost his patience at the community college. It took him too long to start taking
regular classes. So, he decided to look for a job and start seeing some money.” Alondra had a
similar experience. She explained that it felt that “she was never moving on.” She continued by
saying that “those classes felt like a repetition from high school. It felt as if she was taking ESL
classes with her high school peers despite having completed her AP literature course.” By the
third semester, she stopped attending school because of the birth of her child. Although her
boyfriend was supportive of going back to school, she wanted to focus on her baby. “School is
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 28
always going to be there. I cannot longer dedicate time to something that was not taking her
anywhere,” she said.
Like Baltazar and Alondra, the students who entered community college from Antonio
High School had to take at least one remedial course. They all felt anxious about how long it
would take for them to transfer. Although they remained enrolled in courses for at least one
semester, they eventually stopped attending school, as opposed to progressing through their
remedial sequences. There was a prevailing sentiment about wanting to be in school, but a
general agreement about school taking too long to yield benefits, especially because of the many
remedial courses these students had to take. Tyrone expressed this feeling clearly when he said “I
do not understand why a lot of my friends who went to a four-year college took so little time in
remedial courses. They only spent a summer. But for us at the community college, it be taking
forever to start taking regular classes.” He added: “if I knew it would take this long, I would had
tried to go to a four-year instead when I was in high school.”
Lure to world of workers. As students stopped attending community college, they
entered the world of work. These people seemed happy with their living conditions. They liked
to enjoy certain freedoms without the imminent worries of being in school. One student felt that
he was not missing much by not being in school: “chill, just working and chilling. I like working
better. College is just a waste of time.” Another student, almost echoing the words of his friend,
said: “it feels good to be able to hang out with friends without that many responsibilities while
spending my own money. I also get to spend time at home and be with my family.” Although
having a certain degree of freedom allowed these students to have spare time for activities they
seemed as convenient, these students were still living at home with their parents. Some
individuals switched jobs over the past two years. Their change in jobs was a lateral move, rather
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 29
than upward move into management. Nonetheless, it is important to recognize that these jobs
allowed these people to be able to buy their own things and that was a sense of accomplishment
on its own: “I am proud that I graduated from high school. Even though a lot of people thought
that I wouldn’t. I am proud of all the work I have been putting these last two years. I have been
able to buy a car.”
Even as they complained about their jobs, Antonio graduates found pleasure in doing
things that dealt with immediate gratitude: “My work can sometimes get annoying. Consumers
complain about things, but sometimes it gets slow. It is here when my coworkers and I have fun.
Plus, I get paid fairly well. I like my job a lot,” said one student. When these individuals started
to deal with more advanced responsibilities, their “well-paying jobs” were no longer enough
without immediate support from their families, their satisfaction also wore off. Take, for
example, German, a student who opted to not go to college even though he had been accepted to
a four-year college. German decided to enter the world of work. A pharmacy hired him; he
started making $18 an hour. At the time, it was great money. Since he was living with his
parents, he was able to save and eventually rent an apartment of his own. So, when I met him for
a second interview, he said: “people treat me as if I am undocumented. They put me to do all the
dirty work. Honestly, I think I should be in school, but I can’t go back right now. I got bills to
pay.” German did not seem so happy with his current situation. He had acquired more
responsibilities, and he was learning how to carry their load as he became a more independent
grown-up.
When these students first reported they had stopped attending college, they only wanted
to stop for a semester or two. However, they did not demonstrate any knowledge or enthusiasm
for figuring out what they needed to do to get back to college. The jobs these students secured,
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 30
even with little pay, allowed them to have access to an amount of money they did not have while
they were in college. The ability to buy clothes, to go out with a friend, to go to a movie, and
most of all, to buy a car were big incentives for these students as they weighed their options.
Richaro shared that he was torn between “spending more time in school or going to get some
money without having to worry about school." In this light, it is not surprising that Ricardo’s
and some of his peers’ activities after work were mostly focused on pleasure rather than
preparing for college or obtaining some sort of training for a particular career or occupation. The
most important point for this subgroup was that they could be with their friends and not have to
worry about school or homework. Individuals played video games, sports (e.g., basketball,
football, and most of all, soccer) and “kicked it” (e.g., going to clubs, smoking marijuana, or just
driving around).
Discussion
As students navigated through college and experienced their college life, they took
different decisions with regards to their education. These decisions were made either voluntarily
or involuntarily. Their pre-disposition as part of the working class influenced the decisions they
made during the time they were in school, as well as their transition into the world of work. As
students left their respective community colleges, they transitioned into service jobs that did not
provide any job security or career prospects. Two years after leaving high school, the raw
numbers provide a perplexing portrait of Antonio High School graduates. Aside from those who
never made it to high school graduation, the college-going persistence rate is extremely low if
employment projections are correct about the need for more college-educated entrants to the job
market. Antonio High School graduates come from a district in which college participation and
persistence is extremely low (Phillip, 2017).
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 31
The figures and narratives of community college students are alarming. By the end of
their second year in college, only 22 out of 125 students who entered community college
remained enrolled. None of those 125 students ever obtained a certificate or transferred to a four-
year university. These 22 students aspired to transfer to a four-year university. Yet neither of
them is likely to transfer out of their current institution or obtain a certificate within the next year
or so. Those students who had stopped attending college, showed no sights of wanting to return
to school.
The socio-economic and resource barriers lean towards a high possibility that the
community college students in this study will not receive a bachelor’s degree and are likely to be
in the workforce for low-income jobs. This point is exemplified by the experiences of Antonio
graduates who melted during the summer and entered the work force after high school
graduation or who left college to start working. In today’s economy, teenagers and young adults
who begin work without a higher education credential are at typically the bottom of the pay-
scale. Antonio graduates have been in the workforce for two years, yet their job prospects have
not improved. Furthermore, these individuals had neither family members who were part of the
middle class nor a social-support network to advise them about career options or possible next
steps in order to improve their earnings. Instead, as they started to undertake more adult
responsibilities, their perceptions of their work experiences and their career trajectories diminish.
The result is that all but a few are likely to face a career of low-wage jobs that cement their
position amongst the low socio-economic or working low- to middle-class.
The field operates in a manner that both constitutes and is constituted by notions of
capital. In the 1970s, the most traveled pathway to the middle class was a high school diploma.
Two in three workers had a high school diploma or less, but most of them were in the middle
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 32
class. Less than a third of workers at the time had a college education and the earning advantages
of college over high school were declining (Carnavela & Faules, 2017). The Latinx population
started to migrate to the United States during the mid-1980’s (Stepler and Brown, 2016). Since
then, the need for a college degree to compete in the economy has doubled. Hence, one of main
reasons why it is difficult for Latinx to make economic progress is that they cannot secure the
benefits that prior generations enjoyed from having good jobs that only required a high school
diploma. Now, Latinx need to acquire at least some college education to enter the middle class.
However, educational barriers become an impediment to obtain social mobility.
The field of education has many participants, and their economic backgrounds clearly
frame how they experience and participate in the field. Antonio High School is only one such
organization on the field. It is important to note that schools that are economically secure do not
have high dropout rates or low college-matriculation and persistence rates. Most students at a
wealthier city’s public school would not be enrolled at a community college only to drop out a
few months later, and most would not be joining the workforce as entry-level workers (Tierney
and Galan, 2017).
The students in this study entered community college as low-income students and either
remained low-income students or transitioned to low-income employment. Even though there
was a common sentiment about wanting to speed up their transferring process, no student
seemed to know how to do it. Instead, they navigated the field of higher education by trial and
error. They learned the consequences of scoring low on placement exam because of the
consequences they paid through their own experiences. They struggled to speed up their
transferring process. They learned that dropping too many classes put their academic life under
jeopardy; thus, delaying the transferring process shifted them towards leaving school and picking
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 33
a job. Without realizing it, these students also learned that picking up too many hours in a
summer job could potentially make them forget about their dreams of attending college. In short,
as students interacted with life after high school, they made choices that resembled their
upbringingsl; by consequence, it seems as if these students were resuming the roles their parents
took as low-income workers when the first immigrated to the United States. Thus, two
generations have not been able to secure what is believed to be essential cultural and social
capital to thrive in the US economy and open doors for upwards social mobility (a high school
diploma then; a college degree now).
Arguably, the social capital of Antonio High School did not allow them to navigate the
community college world with ease. This is true even for those students who dropped out of
community college or are still persisting. Even though persisters agreed that community college
was difficult, they did not reveal any connection to the college or to mentors who could guide
them to meet their educational goals. They spoke about mentors or additional support services at
their respective campuses as if they did not exist. No one in their family knew how to navigate
the community college. For example, Edgar knew and experienced that college was difficult, his
willingness to work hard and transfer was imminent, and, like Cristobal, he wished to be able to
able to speed up his transfer program. However, neither of them have mentors nor showed any
networks that could potentially enabled them to transfer or at least leave the community college
with a vocational degree. Their habitus had not been shaped or trained to succeed in post-
secondary institutions by mentors, family, or people who had gone to college. Additionally, the
consequences these students paid for not knowing how to navigate the community college
landscape, such as receiving a low-score on their placement exam, made them feel as if they did
not belong within this educational arena.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 34
Those students who dropped out of community college relied on a few networks to secure
jobs. These networks often consisted of as many as five people who had been working in service
sectors that did not require a college degree—mostly low-income jobs. The result was that
Antonio graduates were also led to low-income jobs with little access to promotions and, in some
instances, even health benefits. In keeping up with Bourdieu’s theory of habitus, these students
were pre-dispossessed to this life and, as they got older, they circled back to what they knew
based on the circle of friends, resources, and life-style they were used to experiencing. Students
like Ramon turned to the labor market to get an immediate return for their time because they felt
that school was optional, but getting money was not. This is not saying that these students did
not have any agency to make different life choices. The problem here is that their agency
recreated a social circle. They made a decision based on what made sense in the moment. Time
was of essence for this population, and if they felt that they were not getting an immediate return
for their education, they turned to their jobs where they were able to obtain immediate rewards
for their effort. Nonetheless, over the last two years, these individuals have neither been able to
obtain a degree, transfer from their post-secondary institution, or be able to obtain a promotion
within their employment field.
To be sure, a family from a middle class might send their child to a community college
and then have him/her transfer to a four-year college as a mean to save themselves from the
economic burden of paying for tuition at a four-year institution. Additionally, students from the
middle class would also develop wide networks of mentors and talk to different people as they
navigate college or the job search. For Antonio High graduates, however, going to community
college was the only way to continue with an education after high school. Students like Edgar
and Cristobal who were persisting in college had little understanding of transfer requirements.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 35
And - like German, Ramon, Barney, Latisha, Esmeraldo and the rest of the summer-melters -
they had little understanding of their earning potential beyond the notion that a minimum wage
might enable them to go out on a date, and eventually, buy a car. They did not have a safety net
to guide them after they had stopped attending college, so students like Alondra and Baltazar did
not return to college once they stopped attending college. Instead, they relied on what they knew,
so they either joined the community college system, like most of their peers, or stopped attending
college altogether and joined the work force through service jobs. In essence, these networks
pushed Antonio graduates out of higher education. As a result, the choices they made in
relationship to their social capital did not enable them to gain a foothold in a twenty-first century
economy. Their economic status worsened as they assumed adult-like responsibilities.
All of these elements – one’s economic, human, cultural, and social capital – interact on a
field with one’s habitus. Antonio graduates acted differently on the same field even though their
conditions were similar. Their ability to access cultural and social capital as they took on their
post-secondary choices varied. However, they mostly relied on what they knew as first
generation, low-income students. These students were raised as part of the working class. At
plain sight, these students had a certain freedom to carry out these choices; at the same time,
their freedom was pre-determined by what they knew as part of the working class.
Recommendations
When the college counselor from Antonio High School mandated his students to enroll at
a community college, he had the best intentions for the students he served. However, instructing
every single student to complete the required steps to enter an educational pipeline is only part of
the equation for improving college access and educational outcomes for underserved students.
From a practitioner standpoint, if one is to take the data presented in this study and make
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 36
recommendations to improve educational outcomes for future students from Antonio High
School, one has to think about possible ways to prevent summer-melt, equip students with
knowledge to navigate an unfamiliar system, and prevent them from entering the world of work
without returning back to school. In this light, three practical solutions are worth exploring: 1)
engage students during the summer; 2) engage students in academic coaching and mentorship;
and 3) offer monetary incentives and job opportunities that discourage educational drift.
Engage students during the summer. Antonio High School graduates suffered from
summer-melt. Thirty-two high school graduates from this sample never enrolled in a community
college after graduation. Instead, they were lured into the world of work. Community colleges
can engage prospective students during the summer through the inclusion of summer-bridge
programs. These programs can either allow students to enroll in classes or perform a job or
internship. In doing so, students will be engaged in activities that foster and reinforce the value
of entering community college as opposed to allowing students to roam free during the summer
with little or no guidance and allowing them to engage in activities that shifts them away from
school.
Provide academic coaching and mentorship. Even though 22 students still remain
enrolled in a community college as of this writing, they still do not seem to have an idea of how
to navigate the community college system or the transfer process. Providing these students with
active academic coaching and mentorship has the potential to enable students to find the support
and networks that can keep them engaged in meeting their educational goals.
Monetary incentives and job opportunities. A salient theme from the class of 2015
was the high rates at which students left community college to enter the world of work in order
to make money. These students never came back to school once they left. An offer of monetary
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 37
incentives to meet with academic mentors - or for carrying a certain unit load - could potentially
help students meet their personal needs without having to leave school. Additionally, if one is to
provide students with job opportunities, they ought to be opportunities that will enable them to
earn cash for their personal expenses while keeping them in school and reinforcing ideas of why
they should meet their educational goals.
Conclusion
The Truman Commission report, issued in 1947, changed the course of higher education
in the United States from “merely being an instrument for producing an intellectual elite” to
becoming “the means by which every citizen, youth, and adult, is enabled and encouraged” to
pursue higher learning (President’s Commission, 1947). This report recommended for
community colleges to be expanded nationally to provide universal access to postsecondary
education. Since then, community colleges have a long-standing history of working with students
from similar backgrounds as the ones from Antonio High School. Antonio High School has a
long-standing history of sending most of its students to community colleges. In this light,
community colleges play a pivotal role in preparing the nation’s workforce that otherwise would
not have an opportunity to higher education and therefore to its benefits.
Decades after President Truman’s report, President Obama called for community colleges
to increase their number of graduates by five million students over the next ten years. He also
asked for every American to commit to at least one year of higher education or career training so
that the United States would once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the
world (Obama, 2009). Ten years have passed since these remarks from President of Obama, yet
degree completion rates at community colleges are still a problem (Johnson, & Gao, 2017). The
experiences of Antonio High graduates represent the type of challenges faced by students who
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 38
enroll in community colleges across the country. They also represent the challenges experienced
by the ethnic group that is expected to become the majority in the state of California and in the
country. As the numbers of first-generation, low-income students increases, and governmental
and higher education and institutions place a major emphasis on retaining these students,
community colleges need to rethink how to equip these students with the cultural and social
capital needed to succeed in colleges and in the labor market.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 39
References
Baez, B. & Musoba, G. (2009). The cultural capital of cultural and social capital: An economy of
translations. In J.C. Smart (Ed.), Higher Education: Handbook of Theory of Research,
(pp.151-181). Netherlands: Springer Science.
Bensimon, E. M., & Dowd, A. (2009). Dimensions of the transfer choice gap: Experiences of
Latina and Latino students who navigated transfer pathways. Harvard Educational
Review, 79(4), 632–782.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press.
Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and
Research for the Sociology of Education (pp.241-258). New York, NY: Greenwood.
Bourdieu, P. 1990. The Logic of Practice. Cambridge, MA: Polity Press.
Bourdieu, P., & Passeron, J. C. (1990). Reproduction in education, society and culture (Vol. 4).
London, England: Sage.
Campaign for College Opportunity. (2015). The state of higher education in California: Latinos.
Retrieved from http://collegecampaign.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/2015-State-of-
Higher-Education_Latinos.pdf
Castleman, B. L., & Page, L. C. (2013). With a little help from my friends: Investigating the
impact of summer peer mentoring on timely postsecondary attainment among college-
intending high school graduates. Symposium presented at the Society for Research on
Educational Effectiveness annual spring conference.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 40
Castleman, B., & Page, L. (2014). The not-so lazy days of summer: Experimental interventions
to increase college entry among low-income high school graduates. New Directions for
Youth Development, 140, 77- 97.
California Community College Chancellor’s Office. (2017). California community college key
facts. Retrieved from:
http://californiacommunitycolleges.cccco.edu/PolicyInAction/KeyFacts.aspx
California Competes. (2012). The road ahead: Higher education, California’s promise, and our
future economy. San Francisco, CA: Author.
Carnevale , A. P., & Fasules, M. L. (n.d.). Latino Education and Economic Progress ... - CEW
Georgetown. Retrieved February 16, 2018, from https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-
reports/latinosworkforce/
Cavaye, A. L. (1996). Case study research: A multi‐faceted research approach for
IS. Information Systems Journal, 6(3), 227-242.
Cerezo, A., Lyda, J., Beristianos, M., Enriquez, A., & Connor, M. (2013). Latino men in college:
Giving voice to their struggles and triumphs. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 14(4),
352-362. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0029646
Chetty, R, Friedman, J, Saez E, Turner N, & Yagan D (2017, January). Mobility report cards:
The role of colleges in intergenerational mobility. Retrieved from http://www.equality-
of-opportunity.org/papers/coll_mrc_paper.pdf.
Conley, D. T. (2007a). The challenge of college readiness. Educational Leadership, 64(7), 23–
29.
Conley, D. T. (2007b). Redefining college readiness (Volume 3). Eugene, OR: Educational
Policy Improvement Center.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 41
Conley, D. T. (2008). Rethinking college readiness. New England Journal of Higher
Education, 22(5), 24-26.
Conley, D. T. (2010). College and career ready: Helping all students succeed beyond high
school. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Contreras, F., & Contreras, G. J. (2015). Raising the bar for hispanic serving institutions: An
analysis of college completion and success rates. Journal of Hispanic Higher
Education, 14(2), 151-170.
Creswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five
approaches. City, State: Sage.
Crisp, G., & Nora, A. (2010). Hispanic student success: Factors influencing the persistence and
transfer decisions of latino community college students enrolled in developmental
education. Research in Higher Education, 51(2), 175-194.
Darke, P, Shanks, G and Broadbent, M. (1998). Successfully completing case study research:
combining rigour, relevance and pragmatism. Information Systems Journal, 8(4),
273- 290.
Dowd, A., Cheslock, J., & Melguizo, T. (2008). Transfer access from community colleges and
the distribution of elite higher education. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(4), 1–31.
doi:10.1353/jhe.0.0010
Edgerton, J. D., & Roberts, L. W. (2014). Cultural capital or habitus? Bourdieu and beyond in
the explanation of enduring educational inequality. Theory and Research in Education,
12(2), 193–220.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 42
Felix, E., & Trinidad, A. (2017). Fulfilling the transfer mission at an urban technical college:
How a transfer center mediates baccalaureate aspirations for students. Community College
Journal of Research and Practice, 1-17.
García, H.,A., & Garza, T. (2016). Retaining Latino males in community colleges: A structural
model explaining sense of belonging through socio-academic integration. Journal of
Applied Research in the Community College, 23(2), 41-58.
Harper, S. R. (2007). Using qualitative methods to assess student trajectories and college
impact. New Directions for Institutional Research, 136, 55-68.
Hatch, D. K., Garcia, C. E., & Sáenz, V.,B. (2016). Latino men in two-year public colleges:
State-level enrollment changes and equity trends over the last decade. Journal of Applied
Research in the Community College, 23(2), 73-92.
Hesse-Biber, S. N., & Leavy, P. (2010). The practice of qualitative research. New York, NY:
Sage.
Hoachlander, G., Sikora, A. C., Horn, L., & Carroll, C. D. (2003). Community college students:
Goals, academic preparation, and outcomes. Washington, DC: National Center for
Education Statistics.
Hoover, E. (2009, July 20). In an uncertain summer, colleges try to control enrollment “melt.”
The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from
https://www.chronicle.com/article/In-an-Uncertain-Summer/47100
Ingram, T. N., & Gonzalez-Matthews, M. (2013). Moving towards engagement: Promoting
persistence among Latino male undergraduates at an urban community
college. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 37(8), 636.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 43
Johnson, H. (2010). Educating California: Choices for the future. Public Policy Institute of
California. Retrieved from http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/report/R_609HJR.pdf
Jones, S. R., Torres, V., & Arminio, J. (2013). Negotiating the complexities of qualitative
research in higher education: Fundamental elements and issues. New York, NY:
Routledge.
Johnson, H., & Gao, N. (2017). Improving College Pathways in California (pp. 1-29, Rep.). San
Francisco, CA: Public Policy Institute of California.
Karp, M. M., & Bork, R. H. (2014). "They never told me what to expect, so I didn't know what
to do": Defining and clarifying the role of a community college student. Teachers
College Record, 116(5), 1-40.
Kena, G., Musu-Gillette, L., Robinson, J., Wang, X., Rathbun, A., Zhang, J., Wilkinson-
Flicker, S., Barmer, A., and Dunlop Velez, E. (2015). The Condition of education 2015
(NCES 2015-144). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education
Statistics. Washington, DC. Retrieved from: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch.
Kvale, S., & Brinkman, S. (2009). Interviews: Learning the craft of qualitative interviewing.
London, England: Sage.
Lesure-Lester, G. (2003). Effects of coping styles on college persistence decisions among Latino
students in two year colleges. Journal of College Student Retention, 5(1), 11-22.
Maton, K. (2005). A question of autonomy: Bourdieu’s field approach and higher education
policy. Journal of Education Policy, 20(6), 687-704.
Merriam, S. B. (1998). Qualitative research and case study applications in education. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 44
Naidoo, R. (2004). Fields and institutional strategy: Bourdieu on the relationship between higher
education, inequality and society. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 25(4), 457-
471.
NSC data snapshot. (2017). Yearly success and progress rates for students who started college in
fall 2010. National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Retrieved from:
https://nscresearchcenter.org/snapshotreport-yearlysuccessandprogressrates25/
Obama, B. (2009, July 14). Remarks by the president on the American Graduation Initiative.
Washington, DC: The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. Retrieved from
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-by-the-President-on-the-
American- Graduation-Initiative-in-Warren-MI/
Ojeda, L., Navarro, R. L., & Morales, A. (2011). The role of la familia on Mexican American
men's college persistence intentions. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 12(3), 216-229.
doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0020091
Phillips, M., Yamashiro, K., & Miller, C. (2017). College going in LAUSD: An analysist of
college enrollment persistence and completion. Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles Education
Research Institute. Retrieved from: http://luskin.ucla.edu/study-tracks-college-
enrollment-rate-lausd-graduates/
Pinto, L. (1999). Theory in practice. In R. Shusterman (Ed.), Bourdieu: A Critical Reader.
Oxford, England: Blackwell.
Ponjuán, L., & Hernández, S. (2016). Untapped potential: Improving Latino males academic
success in community colleges. Journal of Applied Research in the Community
College, 23(2), 1-20.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 45
Portes, A. (1998). Social capital: Its origins and applications in modern sociology. Annual
Review of Sociology. 24(1). 1-24.
President’s Commission on Higher Education. (1947). Higher education for democracy: A
report of the President's Commission on Higher Education (vols. 1–2). New York, NY:
Harper.
Reay, D. (2004). ‘It's all becoming a habitus’: Beyond the habitual use of habitus in educational
research. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 25(4), 431-444.
Roderick, M., Nagaoka, J., & Coca, V. (2009). College readiness for all: The challenge for urban
high schools. The Future of Children, 19(1), 185-210.
Scheibel, D. (1992). Faking identity in clubland: The communicative performance of “fake ID.”
Text and Performance Quarterly, 12, 160–175.
Spradley, J. P. (1979). The ethnographic interview. New York, NY: Waveland Press.
Stake, R. E. (1995). The art of case study research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Stepler, R., & Brown, A. (2016). Statistical portrait of Hispanics in the United States. Pew
Research Center. Abril. Consultado el, 20-11.
Thompson P (2008) Field. In: Grenfell M (ed.) Pierre Bourdieu: Key Concepts, pp. 67–86.
Durham, NC: Acumen Publishing.
Tierney, W. G., & Galan, C. A. (2017). The Class of 2015: Understanding the cultural
conditions of academic success. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Tierney, W. G., & Duncheon, J. C. (2015). The problem of college readiness. Albany, NY:
SUNY Press.
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 46
Tierney, W. G., & Hentschke, G. (Eds.). (2011). Making it happen: Increasing access and
attainment in California higher education, the role of private postsecondary providers.
La Jolla, CA: National University System Institute for Policy Research.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 47
Image 1. Intended Post-Graduation Plans Class of 2015: Year 1

11
No College

114
to a
4-Year
College
125
to Community
College
32
Summermelters
69
Remained
Enrolled One
Full Year
250
High School
Graduates

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 48
Table 1. Educational Attainment for Blacks, Latinx, and Whites
Group
High
school diploma
College
enrollment
Some post-secondary
education
Bachelor’s
Whites 94% 86% 74% 45%
Blacks/African
Americans
90% 83% 66% 32%
Latinx 83% 79% 45% 21%

Source: Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce analysis of data
from the US Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, 2016 and Restricted Use Education
Longitudinal Study (ELS), 2002/12

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 49
Table 2. Educational Attainment and Income
Group Median annual earnings
(overall)

Median annual earnings
Bachelor’s or higher
Whites $52,000 $70,000
Blacks/African
Americans
$40,000 $53,000
Latinx $35,000 $57,000

Source: Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce analysis of data
from the US Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, 2016.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 50
Table 3. Intended Plans at the Community College

Plans
Number of
students
Students who have/will meet
their goals as of Spring 2018
Still enrolled
Transfer to four-year
college/university

72 0 18
Earn a certificate/training

16 0 4
Undecided

37 NA NA

Total

125 0 22
COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 51
Table 4. Enrollment History: 2015-2018
Total number of
students to enter a
community college
Never enrolled
(Summer-melters)
Enrolled for 1 year
Enrolled for 2
years
125 32 69 22

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 52
Table 5. Academic Life, Subgroups
Subgroup

STEM
NON-
STEM
PTE FTE
GPA
>3.0
GPA
<3.0
Transfer
credits
earned
>30
Transfer
credits
earned
<30

Persisters
(22)

9 13 7 15 14 8 6 16

Summer-melters
(32)

7 25 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

Stop outs to work
(71)

28 43 30 41 18 53 25 46

Total
(125)

44

81

37

56

32

61

31

62

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 53
Table 6. Living Conditions, Subgroups
Subgroup
Living at
home
Married
Working full-
time
Working
part-time
Unemployed

Persisters
(22)

20 2 12 7 3

Summer-melters
(32)

28 4 23 3 4

Stop outs to work
(71)

69 16 43 18 10

Total
(125)

117

22

78

28

17

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 54
Appendix A
Formal Interview Protocol
1. What were your plans after graduating from high school?
2. What is the name of the institution you attended or planned to attend after graduating
from high school?
a. Are you still enrolled?
3. Tell me more about what has changed between the first and second year after graduating
from high school?
a. Probe: Why did you follow your plan?
b. Probe: Why did you not follow your plan?
4. How many college units have you completed?
a. What is/was your GPA?
5. How would you describe your life after high school?
a. Probe: Would you mind telling me how do you spend most of your time?
6. Tell me more about your college/employment experiences?
7. What has been difficult/easy about life after high school?
8. Why do you think you have succeeded at staying in school/employed?
a. Probe: when you have questions about college or employment, who do you ask
for help?
9. What are you thinking about doing this summer?
a. How about next year?
10. What are most of your friends doing?

COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND THE CLASS OF 2015 GALAN 55
Appendix B
Informal Interview Protocol (Online Survey)
1. What were your plans after graduating from high school?
2. Are you still enrolled/employed at this place?
3. Which of the following best describes your college GPA?
a. 3.5 or higher
b. 3.0 to 3.4
c. 2.5 to 2.9
d. 2.5 or lower
e. This does not apply to me; I never enrolled in school.
4. What has been difficult/easy about life after high school?
5. How would you describe your life after high school?

Abstract (if available)

Linked assets

University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Conceptually similar

PDF

Fulfillment of a regional college promise: lessons from the first year, first cohort

PDF

Everything you need to prepare for college in the palm of your hand: a mobile app for low income, middle school students

PDF

Impact of academic scholarships on persistence of first-generation low-income students

PDF

East Los Angeles Latinx student voices: navigating the path to a 4-year institution

PDF

Honorary mention: the untold stories of minoritized community college honors students

PDF

A school leadership approach to building a college-going culture for low-income Latinx students: high school case study

PDF

Persistence among low income community college students

PDF

Stress among undocumented Latinx students

PDF

High-achieving yet underprepared: first generation youth and the challenge of college readiness

PDF

Navigating the struggle: neoliberal meritocracy, Latinx charter school graduates, and the college transition

PDF

The lived experience of first-generation latino students in remedial education and navigating the transfer pathway

PDF

Building a college-going culture: a case study of a continuation high school

PDF

Impact of mentoring on former pre-college program participants: gaining while giving back

PDF

The graduate school experience: exploring help-seeking behaviors of female South Asian international graduate alumni after experiencing sexual harassment or sexual assault

PDF

College readiness: terms and conditions may apply

PDF

Oppression of remedial reading community college students and their academic success rates: student perspectives of the unquantified challenges faced

PDF

Assessing the impact of the Puente Project on Latino males in California community colleges

PDF

Visibly invisible: the experiences of black queer women on campus

PDF

Play-testing a video game prototype with low-SES college-bound urban high school students

PDF

Understanding undocumented students' resistance of acting white as they persist to gain access to college-valued information and resources

Asset Metadata

Creator Galan, Carlos A. (author)

Core Title The Class of 2015: where we lose them & where they go

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Master of Education

Degree Program Educational Counseling

Publication Date 04/11/2018

Defense Date 03/19/2018

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag college access,college outcomes,Community Colleges,first generation students,Latinx students,low-income youth,OAI-PMH Harvest,persistence,summer-melt

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Tierney, William G. (committee chair), Corwin, Zoë Blumberg (committee member), Venegas, Kristan Monique (committee member)

Creator Email cgalan@usc.edu,cgalan26@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-11788

Unique identifier UC11671072

Identifier etd-GalanCarlo-6213.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-11788 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-GalanCarlo-6213.pdf

Dmrecord 11788

Document Type Thesis

Rights Galan, Carlos A.

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA