Who is College-Ready?: Immigration Status Proximity on Latino Youths' High School Math Trajectories

• In Event: 21020 - Section on Sociology of Education Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 18: Intersectional Journeys: Navigating Identity, Race, and Mobility in Education

Abstract

This paper compares the college preparedness of Latino youth in Texas regarding their math course taking to that of non-Latino youth. To understand gaps in college-preparedness, I consider how student characteristics, especially those related to immigration background, may impact Latino youths’ math course-taking patterns throughout high school. I theoretically unpack how proximity to immigration status in Texas schools may challenge youths’ progress through course-taking pathways, like that in math. For the paper, I use linked survey and administrative data. The administrative data containing information on all students in Texas high schools between 2010 and 2019 provide an opportunity to describe and analyze disparities in math course taking among Texas youth by ethnicity and other demographic factors. The linked survey data allow me to use a single Texas school district, which is predominantly Latino with a high percentage of immigrant youth and families, as a case study to test the role of immigration background compared to other characteristics in determining the college preparation of Latino youth.

Author

• Katarina Huss, University of Texas-Austin