Examining Racialized Associations Between Institutional Characteristics and Community College Enrollment Trends After the COVID-19 Breakout

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session Ten
  In Roundtable Session: The Remix: Counterstories and Redefining Higher Education (Table 10)

Abstract

This quantitative study uses multivariate linear regression models to examine the relationship between enrollment trends among first-time degree-seeking Black, Latinx, and white community college students and institutional characteristics such as minority-serving status, size of the student body, student-to-faculty ratio, and average financial aid awarded. The preliminary findings suggest steeper enrollment drops among Black and Latinx students in minority-serving institutions and institutions that served 5,000 or more students in the early pandemic era. The student-to-faculty ratio was positively associated with upward enrollment trends among Black and white students. The amount of average financial aid awarded predicted enrollment drops among white students. In contrast, no significant relationship was found between Latinx and Black students’ enrollment and the amount of aid awarded.

Author

• Ayse Okur, University of Wisconsin - Madison
  Presenting Author