3-062 - Supportive Relationships and Academic and Psychosocial Outcomes for Immigrant-Origin, Emerging Adults in Community Colleges

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Community colleges (CCs) provide a means to social mobility for an increasingly diverse population, in particular students of immigrant-origin. The social and academic integration of these students has important implications for students’ success and persistence in CCs. The papers in this symposium focus on the influence of supportive relationships on the social and academic outcomes of immigrant-origin, emerging adults in CCs. Paper one is a mixed-method study of help-seeking orientation of immigrant-origin emerging adults in CCs; results show that students engage largely in informal help-seeking due to their lack of capital knowledge and deep desire for interpersonal connection. Paper two is a quantitative study examining the relative influence of two dimensions of peer context on immigrant-origin CC student’s self-regulation strategies and behavioral and cognitive engagement; findings indicate only CC students’ perceptions of peer climate is directly associated with students’ study skills, and behavioral and cognitive engagement. Using a qualitative approach, paper three examines the role of language acquisition in access to and development of supportive peer relationships, and highlights three important ways the process of acquiring language creates differential experiences for immigrant-origin CC students. Finally, paper four uses a quantitative approach to test direct and indirect effects of relational engagement with faculty on student engagement and academic achievement. Findings show that relational engagement with faculty mediates the relationship between stereotype vulnerability and behavioral engagement. Together, these papers suggest that a diverse network of supportive relationships contributes to the social and academic integration of immigrant-origin emerging adults in CCs.

Sub Unit

• Social Relationships

Chair

• Naila Smith, Fordham University

Individual Presentations

• Help-Seeking Practices and Beliefs among Immigrant-Origin Emerging Adult Community College Students - Presenting Author: Sandra I. Dias, New York University; Carola Suarez-Orozco, University of California, Los Angeles

• Peer Contextual Influences on Community College Students’ Self-Regulated Learning and Academic Engagement - Presenting Author: Naila Smith, Fordham University; Sukhmani Singh, New York University; Carola Suarez-Orozco, University of California, Los Angeles

• ‘Students like me’: The Role of Peer Relationships for the Integration of Emerging Adult Language Learners in Community Colleges - Presenting Author: Tasha Darbes, City College / CUNY; Carola Suarez-Orozco, University of California, Los Angeles

• Immigrant-Origin Emerging Adults in Community Colleges: Stereotype Vulnerability, Student Engagement, and Academic Achievement - Presenting Author: Sukhmani Singh, New York University; Carola Suarez-Orozco, University of California, Los Angeles