Minority Men in Community College

Interesting piece about an important stage of higher-ed for computing educators.  Community colleges are much more diverse than four-year colleges or universities.  The NSF BPC CAITE alliance is focusing on improving the matriculation from those community colleges into bachelors and graduate degree granting institutions in Massachusetts. This piece highlights three areas of challenge for these men.  The issues related to their identity reminds me of  Betsy DiSalvo’s Glitch work.  Their motivations for attending college are interesting and link back to the issues of identity.

This study draws on the experiences of 87 African-American, Hispanic, and Native American men who were enrolled in developmental math courses at four Achieving the Dream institutions to find out more about what affects the success of men of color in community college. The fieldwork explored how students’ experiences in their high schools and communities, as well as their identities as men of color, influenced their decisions to go to college and their engagement in school. The students offered their perspectives in their own words in three rounds of focus groups and interviews during the 2007-08 academic year

via Terms of Engagement: Men of Color Discuss Their Experiences in Community College — Overview.