Straight from the Source — What Works
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Straight from the Source What Works for First-Generation College Students THE PELL INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF OPPORTUNITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION The Pell Institute for the Study of Opportunity in Higher Education The Pell Institute, sponsored by Senior Scholars the Council for Opportunity Adolfo Bermeo in Education, conducts and Marshall Grigsby disseminates research and Thomas Mortenson policy analysis to encourage Lana Muraskin policymakers, educators, and the Congressman Louis Stokes public to improve educational Vincent Tinto opportunities and outcomes of Wayne Upshaw low-income, first-generation, and disabled college students. Advisory Committee The Pell Institute is the first Sonya Anderson, research institute to specifically The Oprah Winfrey Foundation examine the issues affecting educational opportunity for Estela Bensimon, University of Southern this growing population. California For further information contact: Betsy Brand, American Youth Colleen O’Brien, Director Policy Forum THE PELL INSTITUTE Alberto Cabrera, for the Study of Opportunity University of Maryland, in Higher Education College Park 1025 Vermont Avenue, NW Heather Eggins, Suite 1020 Staffordshire University (UK) Washington, DC 20005 David Evans, Tel: 202-638-2887 Educational Policy Consultant Fax: 202-638-3808 Donald Heller, www.pellinstitute.org Pennsylvania State University Scott Miller, Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency Barmak Nassirian, American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers Raymund Paredes, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Thomas Wolanin, Institute for Higher Education Policy Straight from the Source What Works for First-Generation College Students DECEMBER 2006 THE PELL INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF OPPORTUNITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION by Jennifer Engle, Adolfo Bermeo, and Colleen O’Brien Acknowledgements This report was written by Jennifer Engle, Research Analyst; Adolfo Bermeo, Senior Scholar; and Colleen O’Brien, Director, at the Pell Institute. We want to acknowledge the pre-college program directors and staff in Texas for all of their assistance with arranging our visits, as well as for participating in interviews to help us better understand their work. They are an exceptionally helpful and dedicated group of people whose commit- ment to their students was inspiring to us. We’d also like to acknowledge the students for their willingness to share their personal stories with us and for their perseverance in over- coming personal obstacles such as arranging transportation or childcare just to participate in our research. Finally, we’d like to acknowledge the support of the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation without which we would not have been able to conduct this study. We heartily acknowledge the efforts of these individuals in the process of conducting this research. We also recognize that responsibility for the content of this report, including any errors or omissions, lies solely with the authors. Table of Contents Executive Summary . 5 Introduction . 9 Study Design . .11 Literature Review . 13 Characteristics of First-Generation Students . 13. Factors that Affect Access to College . 14. Factors that Affect Success in College . 17. Findings . 19 Raising Aspirations for College . 19. Navigating the College Admissions Process . 23. Easing the Initial Transition to College . 27. Relationships with Program Staff . 36. Conclusions and Recommendations . 39 References . 43 Executive Summary In recent years, college attendance for first-gen- Raising Aspirations for College eration students has had a high profile in Texas. First- Many first-generation students had no or low aspirations generation students—students whose parents did not for going to college prior to participating in pre-college attend college—have increasingly been the target of ef- programs. They did not think a college education was forts to increase college-going and completion rates in necessary to get a job and/or they did not think going the state. Such efforts demonstrate a growing recogni- to college was possible because they could not pay for it tion by state policymakers and educators that expand- or could not get in. What worked to raise their college- ing postsecondary opportunity to students who have going aspirations? previously lacked college access—namely the state’s large and increasing low-income, minority, and first- n Connecting college to job and career inter- generation populations—is critical to the future social ests. Activities such as career interest inventories, ca- and economic well-being of Texas. reer day programs and speakers, and job shadow and internship programs helped students explore their ca- Given such high-profile efforts in the state, it is impor- reer interests and options beyond unskilled labor or the tant to consider how first-generation students respond military, as well as helped them connect those career to the messages and programs being targeted toward aspirations to postsecondary goals and choices. them. With support from the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TG), the Pell Institute for the Study n Getting informed about college and how to of Opportunity in Higher Education conducted focus pay for it. Activities such as financial aid workshops groups with first-generation students in Texas to ascer- and college visits not only raised students’ aspirations tain which messages and services have the most impact about whether they could go to college, but also ex- on whether or not they enroll in college. The students, panded their perspective on what colleges were afford- recent alumni of pre-college programs, were either cur- able or within their reach. rently enrolled or about to enroll in two- and four-year n colleges and universities throughout Texas at the time Perceiving themselves as college material. of the interviews. Addressing gaps in preparation through tutoring and counseling helped students improve their academic First-generation students identified three crucial steps standing. Providing opportunities for learning beyond along the pipeline to college where support was most the scope of the high school curriculum allowed stu- helpful in making a successful transition from high dents to achieve at levels they thought impossible, such school: as placing into the top ten percent of their high school class. n Raising aspirations for college. n n Navigating the college admissions process. Understanding that college is possible. Some students thought it wasn’t possible for them to go to n Easing the initial transition to college. college and graduate because of the lack of college ex- Overall, first-generation students say it is the relation- perience in their families and communities. Engaging ships and trust they developed with pre-college program students with role models showed them that it was staff that allowed them to be receptive to the messages possible to succeed and demonstrated the potential for and services that these programs have to offer. Preparing improving their lives and the lives of others in their for and going to college is a “leap of faith” for these stu- families and communities by getting a college degree. dents because no one else in their families has done it n Getting personal and being persistent about before them. First-generation students and their parents college. Students were not always initially receptive must feel that they can trust program staff, who are their to outreach efforts from program staff about the im- guides through this process, in order to be able to take portance of preparing for and going to college. Some- that step forward for themselves and for their families. STRAIGHT FROM THE SOURCE 5 times it took months and even years before program first-generation students felt that pre-college programs staff were able to convince students that they should helped lessen some of the confusion and stress. Efforts and could go to college. Getting personal and being per- by program staff to reach out to and develop relation- sistent worked better than waiting for students to seek ships with students’ parents throughout the process help or merely pointing resources out to students. made parents feel more comfortable with and support- ive of students’ college-going plans. As one student Navigating the College Admissions Process said,“It helped them help me.” As the first in their families to go to college, most first- n Making connections in the community. Pre- generation students did not receive help from parents college programs were an important link between first- or other family members in the admissions process be- generation students and their parents and existing state cause of a lack of “college knowledge” — that is, how and local resources aimed at helping this population get to prepare for, apply to, and pay for college. Many of into college. Pre-college programs provided informa- the students were also the first generation to grow up tion about the college admissions process to students in this country. Furthermore, many students were not and their parents through their own activities as well as receiving much help from overburdened high school by referring students to available resources in the local counselors who could not talk with them about college community such as the state-supported GO Centers. until their senior year, which is late in the game. As a re- sult, first-generation students relied heavily on pre-col- Easing the Initial Transition to College lege programs and staff to make it through the college