acase@tulane.edu / 1 / SamanthaHoyt

Extensive research has been conducted on college student retention and graduation and many studies have found certain characteristics to be predictive of successful completion of college. However, few studies have focused on a target population which is primarily Hispanic. This study examined the 1990 entering freshmen class of students at Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK), of which more than 68% were Hispanic. An attempt was made to examine characteristics that would predict success, defined as graduation from TAMUK. Data derived from institutional records and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board were examined using descriptive statistics and stepwise multiple logistic regression. Pre-college characteristics studied included age, gender, ethnicity, marital status, high school GPA (Grade Point Average), high school class rank, high school of origin, county of origin, and American College Test (ACT) and the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) scores. In-college characteristics studied included residency status, admission status, enrollment status, number of hours enrolled fall 1990, college major, the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) scores, developmental courses, semester GPA??s, academic standing, and finally, attrition, transfer or graduation status. The fall 1990 entering students were evenly divided between males (53.4%) and females (46.6%), were young (79% were age 19 or less), single (91.4%), and Hispanic (68.2%). Almost half (46%) of the students came from high schools within 50 miles of Kingsville. The mean college entrance exam scores (ACT=16.76 and SAT=766) were well below the national means of 21 and 999, respectively. Of the 1106 entering freshmen, 307 (27.7%) graduated from TAMUK within the 10 years under study. An additional 490 (44.3%) transferred to other state institutions, and 309 (27.9%) dropped out of TAMUK and did not enroll in any other state college or university. The fall-tospring attrition rate was only 16.5%; however, the fall-to-fall attrition rate was 50.0% at the end of the first year. Stepwise multiple logistic regression (backward) analysis revealed that only high school GPA and the ACT composite score were statistically significant predictors of graduation.

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The purpose of this study was to explore the postsecondary education transition experiences of graduates of Choctaw Central High School (CCHS) who received support from the Tribal Scholarship Program (TSP) to better understand the barriers to successful postsecondary completion and the means to overcoming those barriers. Successful transitions are key for students to persist to academic completion. Studies show that American Indian students have low rates of college completion and experience a variety of factors attributed to withdrawal from college. This study provided insight into college success experienced by American Indian students and an understanding of the opportunities for a college education their scholarship program provides. Suggestions for improving the preparation of students and operation of the scholarship program are offered. The participants in this study were CCHS graduates who received support from the TSP for postsecondary education. A case study with a survey component research design was used in this study. Data from a cross-sectional survey, interviews, and observations were collected. A total of 87 past and present TSP supported students participated as survey respondents. Purposeful sampling in the form of maximum variation was used to select 6 respondents for researcher conducted interviews. The findings of this study documented four themes that characterized the transition experience of respondents to postsecondary education. Additionally, within these themes three general barriers to successful postsecondary completion were revealed. The general barriers included: (a) racial conflict with peers or faculty, (b) being overwhelmed academically, and (c) having to care for a legal dependent. The themes and barriers are discussed in the context of three primary factors related to postsecondary completion for American Indian students: sociocultural, academic, and personal factors. Recommendations included: (a) assessing and addressing the unique needs of nontraditional students in the Tribal Scholarship program, (b) arranging for an after hour study and tutoring facility for Tribal Scholarship Program students who commute from the reservation to college, (c) beginning orientation to the Tribal Scholarship Program with 9th graders, (d) providing on-campus mentoring opportunities for Tribal Scholarship Program participants, and (e) expanding this research to public school graduates who participate in the Tribal Scholarship Program.

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In 2008, state legislatures provided $6 billion in financial aid to 2 million low-income young adults. When low-income young adults receive state financial aid and do not complete college, states lose their investment because fewer people with degrees will contribute to the state's economy. Declining states' budgets have led to (a) the rising cost of higher education, (b) state merit-based aid that has targeted nonminority students from affluent backgrounds, and (c) state need-based aid that has targeted students further along in their college career. State need- and merit-based aid may contribute to the lack of college completion among low-income freshman students who rely on financial aid. The purpose of this study was to explore the differences between state need- and merit-based aid as enrollment factors of low college completion among low-income students in the U.S. This study was grounded on Tinto's model of social integration. Secondary data collected by the National Center for Education Statistics on 101,000 freshmen who attended 1,360 postsecondary institutions in 2003-04 and 2008-09 were used for this study. Logistic regression was used to test and compare two models. Logistic regression tested the relationship between the predictor variables of state need- and merit-based aid and degree completion. This study's results revealed that state merit-based aid had a greater predictive value than state need-based aid as enrollment factors of college completion among low-income young adults. This study contributes to positive social change by providing state policy makers with research results to evaluate and formulate state financial aid policies that will increase access to financial aid and college completion rates among low-income freshman students.

Research about retention of nursing students has focused on either specific student characteristics or on nursing students at the university level. A problem experienced by a community college nursing program in Maryland is low completion rates, which can affect the institution and the nursing profession. This qualitative case study explored faculty-related factors leading to success of students in the nursing program at this school, so the low completion rate can be addressed. The conceptual foundations for this study were Tinto's theory of student retention and Jeffreys' nursing undergraduate retention and success model. The research questions addressed how faculty-related factors affected students' success in the nursing program. The study was conducted with 9 second year nursing students and 7 nursing faculty providing information through face to face interviews at a community college in central Maryland. Data analysis was conducted using inductive processes to code, identify, and analyze the themes. The findings of this case study suggested that students can benefit from improving their critical thinking abilities. The findings of this case study also suggested that faculty affect students' critical thinking abilities when faculty are approachable, provide a nurturing environment, and are helpful to students. A professional development workshop for nursing faculty and staff was developed based on the findings from these study results. This workshop will provide guidance to faculty and staff on strategies to assist student with improving critical thinking abilities. Implications for positive social change include addressing the nursing shortage by increasing the number of qualified nursing students from this program, understanding the perspectives of nursing students, and helping to meet the needs of nursing students.

College enrollment has improved among Black and Latino students during the last several decades due partly to the influence of formal and informal mentors and increasing parental support of higher education. However, college completion for these underrepresented minority groups continues to lag behind graduation rates for White students. This research sought to examine whether pre-college relationships influence college completion. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Freshmen, this study tested the direct and indirect effects of social capital from pre-college networks, including parental capital and mentor capital, race and gender on college completion utilizing logistic regression. The results indicated that one form of parental capital, parental education, is positively associated with college completion for all students. Three forms of parental capital, however, were positively associated with completion for Black students. Contrary to hypothesis, mentor capital was not a significant predictor of graduation for any group. Furthermore, Black and Latina women graduated at higher rates and received more parental support for academic performance than their male counterparts. Implications for future research are discussed.

Dual credit, which allows students to simultaneously earn high school and college credit for the same course, is widely-implemented across the country. Dual credit is thought to promote student success in higher education. However, there is limited research on whether dual credit courses taken in high school positively influence college-level outcomes. Using Ordinary Least Squares and Logistic analysis to control for student background characteristics, this study examines the relationship between dual credit and student success in college, specifically freshman grade point average and college graduation. The study examines an existing dataset from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board that includes approximately 35,870 students. Results suggest that dual credit positively influences college outcomes. / text

abstract: As of 2018, 61% of all jobs in Arizona require additional training/education beyond the high school diploma. With only 35% of Arizona’s population holding a post-secondary degree, there is high demand and need for more Arizonans to complete degrees or certificates in the coming years. As the largest minority population in the state and one-third of the college-aged population, Latinx students are not successfully attaining these degrees. While Latinx degree attainment has increased, this increase was due primarily to higher rates of high school and degree completion of Latinas. Of those Latino males that continue to post-secondary education, the majority (71%) will enroll at the community college level. However, the road to academic success at community college is dim. Despite their high enrollment rates at community college, 13% will leave after their first year, 35.2% after their second, and 56.7% after six years (Urias & Wood, 2015). Research on Latino males in higher education has been primarily focused on access, persistence, and retention at the university level. Further, research has been centered on identity, critical race theory, language behaviors, and engagement of Latino males in higher education. Little to no research has been done to identify the factors, characteristics, or the internal will that propels a Latino male community college student to complete their degree. This research is intended to contribute to this void in research, utilizing a human behavioral theoretical approach to address the phenomena of Latino male attrition. This exploratory mixed method research approach incorporated both qualitative and quantitative instruments to test the validity of the Theory of Planned Behavior as a plausible model to assess intention of Latino males to graduate from community college. The research examined whether intention to graduate could be assessed on the behavioral beliefs associated with a Latino male’s attitude, perceived norms, and their perceived behavioral controls towards completing a degree. Further, the research sought to determine that if the theory could accurately assess intention, could the model assess differences in intention for first-year versus second-year students, and currently enrolled students versus those who have dropped out. The premise was that if the theory is an acceptable model to predict intention, the study could also model behavioral interventions to support Latino male student persistence and completion. The results indicate that the Theory of Planned Behavior is an acceptable model to assess and predict behavioral beliefs that drive Latino male intention to graduate from community college. Latino male students’ attitudes toward degree attainment is the most significant factor in predicting their intention to graduate. Additionally, behavioral beliefs of enrolled students are significantly different than their peers who dropped out. However, there is no significant difference in the behavioral beliefs of students in their first-year of enrollment versus those in their second-year of enrollment. Using the theory’s behavioral intervention implementation strategy, the research provided implications for practice that support Latino male student recruitment, retention, and completion measures for community colleges. Additionally, the research provides implications for future research that supports more studies on Latino male community college degree attainment, and for preparing more Latino men for the workforce needs of Arizona. / Dissertation/Thesis / Appendix L - Regression Codes / Doctoral Dissertation Community Resources and Development 2020