Developing Community College Students’ Scholarly Habitus through Intentional Mentor/Femtoring Practices

• In Event: Mentoring and belonging in student educational journeys

Abstract

This qualitative study analyzes how mentor/femtor relationships contributed to community college students’ development of scholarly habitus over a 10-week Summer Research Fellowship Program (SRFP). The SRFP engaged students in developing their own research proposals, through structured weekly seminars about qualitative research design, analysis, and interpretation with one-on-one mentor/femtoring. Through thematic analysis of students’ post-program reflections, we found that these intentional mentoring relationships supported students’ feelings of academic belonging. Two key themes, research support and relationship building, shape the findings and offer recommendations for effective mentor/femtor practices to empower and build students’ sense of scholarly habitus.

Authors

• Danielle Huddlestun, San Diego State University

• Marissa Vasquez, San Diego State University

• Cassandra Aaron, University of North Texas