Opportunities for Brokerage: Social Capital and the Role of College Access Programs

• In Event: 2347 - The Practice of Social Justice

Abstract

For half a century, college access programs in the U.S. have aimed to reduce inequality of educational opportunity by designing school-based interventions to increase postsecondary enrollment among underrepresented students. These programs have reimagined the role of schools in facilitating college transitions for students from diverse ethnic/racial and socioeconomic backgrounds, who face additional obstacles in navigating the college process. Existing studies, however, indicate that college access programs have mixed results. Scholars have hypothesized that unequal distribution of college services within schools may explain some of the observed differences in program outcomes, but we still know little about how program components and organizational features of the school interact to produce different results. Drawing from a mixed-methods randomized control trial study of a college access intervention, this paper examines organizational practices that influence the distribution of intervention resources at two case study sites. Using qualitative data, we show how the college access program bolsters the capacity of schools via direct services. Program resources are further expanded by three types of brokerage practices within case study schools: referrals, collaborative actions, and norm-setting practices, which serve as channels of information not just for students but also for school staff who expand social capital in the schools. Additionally, our findings demonstrate that having an organizational member who promotes college access is important, but the positionality of such an advocate for college access matters most for promoting brokerage practices. Ultimately, this paper reveals how organizational practices influence the reach of college access programs within schools.

Authors

• Anthony Lising Antonio, Stanford University

• Diana Gabriela Mercado-Garcia, Stanford University

• Jesse Foster, Evaluation & Assessment Solutions for Education