The Role of the Student-Institution Interaction in College Persistence

• In Event: 207 - Section on Sociology of Education Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 13. The Social Context of College Success

Abstract

This research examines community college students who were part of a multi-year Randomized Control Trial (RCT) which investigated Clifford Adelman’s concept of early academic momentum. That study relied on observable indicators to identify a target population of ‘reluctant’ students – those who did not initially opt for interventions to accelerate their progress toward degrees. Here, we argue that this conception did not capture all of the factors involved in student decision-making. Thus, further qualitative exploration of the reluctance concept became necessary. We proceeded in three ways: analyses of our recruitment call records; focus groups with calling staff; and face-to-face interviews with participating students (N=30).

We find the following: students are not completely marginalized by their institutions, nor do they completely fail to engage in academic life. Rather, and perhaps more interestingly, students may not have developed the requisite sensibilities to navigate the institutional hurdles that exist at many community colleges. At the same time, these institutions may lack the resources necessary to sufficiently respond to students’ myriad needs. Further, students’ obligations outside of school often necessarily preclude their more intense academic involvement. From this, we offer a more nuanced concept of student reluctance, which considers not only individual motivation, but also larger institutional and social forces. In this way, by elucidating the real lives and institutional experiences of community college students, we advance more sophisticated conceptions of both academic momentum and reluctance.

Authors

• Robin G. Isserles, City University of New York-Borough of Manhattan Community College

• Daniel Douglas, City University of New York-Graduate Center

• Jonathan Ryan Davis, City University of New York-Graduate Center