Community colleges continue to experience high levels of student attrition and low degree/certificate completion rates. Given extant literature, there appears to be a need to reexamine how interactions between students and the institution, and students and institutional agents are taking place, with the aim of identifying institutional practices that deleteriously or positively impact degree completion and thus guide colleges to develop action plans to improve conditions for student success. This study examined how factors such as institutional commitment to students, mattering, sense of belonging, interactions with diverse peers, perceptions of the campus climate, engagement/involvement, socio-academic integrative experiences, and goal commitment collectively affected community college students’ intent to persist to degree completion. The proposed model tested the tenability of seven propositions examining how the above constructs interact to influence intent to persist. The sample consisted of 2,088 multiply diverse community college students. The conceptual model was grounded on Astin’s (1991) Input-Environment-Outcome model and was tested in the context of structural equation modeling. Multiple group invariance analyses for race/ethnicity were conducted. The conceptual model explained 28% of the variance on intent to persist for Asian students, 21% for White students, and 19% for Latino/a students. Results indicated that transition support from family/friends exerted the highest effect on intent to persist across all racial/ethnic groups, followed by engagement/involvement, perceptions of mattering, interactions with diverse peers, GPA, goal commitment, and socio-academic integrative experiences, albeit varying by group. This study was the first in the literature to empirically demonstrate a causal effect between institutional commitment to students and perceptions of mattering. Mattering, in turn, exerted a moderate to strong influence on engagement/involvement, socio-academic integrative experiences, sense of belonging, and indirectly on intent to persist. Evidence in support of an omnibus “student development and success” construct, as alluded to by Wolf-Wendel, et al. (2009) is also presented. Of import to these findings is that while this construct explained a significant proportion of the variance for engagement/involvement, belonging, mattering, and interactions with diverse peers, the individual factors exerted an independent effect on intent to persist. Implications for theory, research, and practice are also discussed.

Community colleges continue to experience high levels of student attrition and low degree/certificate completion rates. Given extant literature, there appears to be a need to reexamine how interactions between students and the institution, and students and institutional agents are taking place, with the aim of identifying institutional practices that deleteriously or positively impact degree completion and thus guide colleges to develop action plans to improve conditions for student success. This study examined how factors such as institutional commitment to students, mattering, sense of belonging, interactions with diverse peers, perceptions of the campus climate, engagement/involvement, socio-academic integrative experiences, and goal commitment collectively affected community college students’ intent to persist to degree completion. The proposed model tested the tenability of seven propositions examining how the above constructs interact to influence intent to persist. The sample consisted of 2,088 multiply diverse community college students. The conceptual model was grounded on Astin’s (1991) Input-Environment-Outcome model and was tested in the context of structural equation modeling. Multiple group invariance analyses for race/ethnicity were conducted. The conceptual model explained 28% of the variance on intent to persist for Asian students, 21% for White students, and 19% for Latino/a students. Results indicated that transition support from family/friends exerted the highest effect on intent to persist across all racial/ethnic groups, followed by engagement/involvement, perceptions of mattering, interactions with diverse peers, GPA, goal commitment, and socio-academic integrative experiences, albeit varying by group. This study was the first in the literature to empirically demonstrate a causal effect between institutional commitment to students and perceptions of mattering. Mattering, in turn, exerted a moderate to strong influence on engagement/involvement, socio-academic integrative experiences, sense of belonging, and indirectly on intent to persist. Evidence in support of an omnibus “student development and success” construct, as alluded to by Wolf-Wendel, et al. (2009) is also presented. Of import to these findings is that while this construct explained a significant proportion of the variance for engagement/involvement, belonging, mattering, and interactions with diverse peers, the individual factors exerted an independent effect on intent to persist. Implications for theory, research, and practice are also discussed.

Research from higher education and social psychology has recognized feelings of belonging and perceptions of inclusion as important factors within the university student experience. Yet little research has examined the extent to which interracial contact may correspond with belonging and inclusion in the university setting. In the present study, I conduct secondary analyses of a 2016 campus climate survey of undergraduate students to examine the associations between interracial contact and three indicators of belonging and inclusion (e.g., feeling a sense of belonging, perceiving the campus to be welcoming, perceived university commitment to inclusion) among undergraduate students from different racial and ethnic backgrounds, and among racial and ethnic minority students (ALANA students) regarded as international students and as U.S. residents. Results indicate, overall, White students tend to report greater feelings of belonging and perceptions of inclusions compared to their ALANA peers. Greater interracial contact was generally associated with greater feelings of belonging and greater perceived institutional commitment to inclusion, yet these effects tended to be stronger among ALANA students than among White students. Black students tended to report lower feelings of belonging in comparison to other ALANA students; at the same time, no significant interactions were observed between interracial contact and racial/ethnic status among ALANA students from Asian, Black, Latino/a, or multiracial backgrounds. In addition, international ALANA students tended to report lower levels of belonging as compared to ALANA students regarded as U.S. residents. However, there were no significant interaction effects of interracial contact and international ALANA status in predicting students’ feelings of belonging and inclusion perceptions. The present study highlights how students’ racial/ethnic status can shape belonging and inclusion perceptions on the university campus, and how associations between interracial contact and key indicators of inclusion may vary among students whose racial and ethnic groups occupy different status positions in U.S. society.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-26T18:49:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao defesa.pdf: 514622 bytes, checksum: 8a176e7a251394f6609cdba7c12ca2bf (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-04-02 / The purpose of this research was to verify how professors of a private higher education institution perceived their participation in the University Counsel (CONSU) and how they saw the relationship of this participation to their institutional commitment. The specific objectives of this research were: a) to identify the types of decisions made in the CONSU; b) to identify the participation forms of the professors in the CONSU; and c) to verify if the professors´ participation in the CONSU affected their institutional commitment during the period 2005-2006. The choice of the CONSU as object of this study was due to the understanding that it is the responsible for the superior decision making process within the university institution. Nine members of CONSU participated in the research, being seven of them course coordinators and two professors elected by their peers. For the development of the study we chose the case study with a qualitative approach. As instruments of data collection were chosen a semi-structured interview guide and a document analysis of both the meetings minutes realized in 2005 and 2006 and the institutional bylaws and statutes. The data collection was done directly by the researcher and the data were analyzed according to the procedures of analyzes of qualitative data. Among the main results which were found, due to the existence of a superior counsel in the institution, stands out a management based on the collegiate model. Through her bylaws and statutes, she delegates decision making power to the participants of her superior administrative counsel. The information from the meetings minutes and the speeches from the interviews revealed that, in practice, only academic and pedagogical issues were decided by this board and it lacked decision making power on the financial management of the institution. In spite of not deciding on financial issues, all members of CONSU perceived as important the academic decisions they made, since they had effective reflection in the courses quality of the institution. The academicians who were members of the Superior Counsel manifested an affective commitment as support basis of their participation in the management of the institution. In their perception, to be part of this deliberative board made them feel more engaged with the institution. Participation in management led the academicians to a greater commitment to the institution and to the perception that participation in CONSU means the attribution of trust, opportunity and recognition as consequence of the work developed, leading to satisfaction and motivation in the work environment. / A presente pesquisa teve como propósito verificar como os docentes de uma instituição particular de ensino superior perceberam sua participação no Conselho Universitário (CONSU) e como viram a relação desta participação com o seu comprometimento institucional. Foram objetivos específicos da pesquisa: a) identificar os tipos de decisões tomadas no CONSU; b) identificar as formas de participação dos docentes do CONSU; e c) verificar se a participação dos docentes do CONSU tem relação com seu comprometimento institucional, no período de 2005-2006. A escolha do CONSU para ser o objeto de estudo deu-se por se entender que este é o responsável pela tomada de decisão dentro da instituição universitária. Participaram da pesquisa nove membros do CONSU, sendo sete docentes coordenadores de curso e dois docentes eleitos pelos pares. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo optou-se pelo estudo de caso com uma abordagem qualitativa. Como instrumentos de coleta de dados foram escolhidos um roteiro de entrevista semi-estruturada e a análise documental de atas de reuniões nos anos 2005-2006 e do regimento interno da IES. A coleta dos dados foi realizada diretamente pela pesquisadora e os dados foram analisados segundo os procedimentos de análise de dados qualitativos. Entre os principais resultados encontrados, cabe destacar que, pela existência de um conselho superior na instituição pesquisada, ela adota uma gestão embasada no modelo colegiado. Por meio de seu regimento interno, ela delega poder decisório aos participantes de seu órgão superior de administração. As informações das atas de reuniões e as falas dos docentes revelaram que, na prática, somente foram deliberados por esse órgão, assuntos acadêmicos e pedagógicos, havendo completa falta de poder decisório do colegiado sobre a gestão financeira da instituição. Apesar de não tomarem decisões sobre assuntos financeiros, todos os membros do Conselho Universitário perceberam como importantes as decisões acadêmicas tomadas, tendo reflexo efetivo na qualidade dos cursos da IES. Os docentes membros do CONSU manifestaram um comprometimento afetivo como base de sustentação de sua participação na gestão da instituição. Na sua percepção, fazer parte desse órgão deliberativo fez com que se sentissem mais comprometidos com a instituição de uma forma geral. A participação na gestão levou os docentes a um maior comprometimento com a instituição e à percepção de que a participação no CONSU significa atribuição de confiança, de oportunidade e reconhecimento pelo trabalho desenvolvido, proporcionando, nesse sentido, satisfação e motivação no ambiente de trabalho.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-18T17:54:07Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao defesa.pdf: 514622 bytes, checksum: 8a176e7a251394f6609cdba7c12ca2bf (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-04-02 / The purpose of this research was to verify how professors of a private higher education institution perceived their participation in the University Counsel (CONSU) and how they saw the relationship of this participation to their institutional commitment. The specific objectives of this research were: a) to identify the types of decisions made in the CONSU; b) to identify the participation forms of the professors in the CONSU; and c) to verify if the professors´ participation in the CONSU affected their institutional commitment during the period 2005-2006. The choice of the CONSU as object of this study was due to the understanding that it is the responsible for the superior decision making process within the university institution. Nine members of CONSU participated in the research, being seven of them course coordinators and two professors elected by their peers. For the development of the study we chose the case study with a qualitative approach. As instruments of data collection were chosen a semi-structured interview guide and a document analysis of both the meetings minutes realized in 2005 and 2006 and the institutional bylaws and statutes. The data collection was done directly by the researcher and the data were analyzed according to the procedures of analyzes of qualitative data. Among the main results which were found, due to the existence of a superior counsel in the institution, stands out a management based on the collegiate model. Through her bylaws and statutes, she delegates decision making power to the participants of her superior administrative counsel. The information from the meetings minutes and the speeches from the interviews revealed that, in practice, only academic and pedagogical issues were decided by this board and it lacked decision making power on the financial management of the institution. In spite of not deciding on financial issues, all members of CONSU perceived as important the academic decisions they made, since they had effective reflection in the courses quality of the institution. The academicians who were members of the Superior Counsel manifested an affective commitment as support basis of their participation in the management of the institution. In their perception, to be part of this deliberative board made them feel more engaged with the institution. Participation in management led the academicians to a greater commitment to the institution and to the perception that participation in CONSU means the attribution of trust, opportunity and recognition as consequence of the work developed, leading to satisfaction and motivation in the work environment. / A presente pesquisa teve como propósito verificar como os docentes de uma instituição particular de ensino superior perceberam sua participação no Conselho Universitário (CONSU) e como viram a relação desta participação com o seu comprometimento institucional. Foram objetivos específicos da pesquisa: a) identificar os tipos de decisões tomadas no CONSU; b) identificar as formas de participação dos docentes do CONSU; e c) verificar se a participação dos docentes do CONSU tem relação com seu comprometimento institucional, no período de 2005-2006. A escolha do CONSU para ser o objeto de estudo deu-se por se entender que este é o responsável pela tomada de decisão dentro da instituição universitária. Participaram da pesquisa nove membros do CONSU, sendo sete docentes coordenadores de curso e dois docentes eleitos pelos pares. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo optou-se pelo estudo de caso com uma abordagem qualitativa. Como instrumentos de coleta de dados foram escolhidos um roteiro de entrevista semi-estruturada e a análise documental de atas de reuniões nos anos 2005-2006 e do regimento interno da IES. A coleta dos dados foi realizada diretamente pela pesquisadora e os dados foram analisados segundo os procedimentos de análise de dados qualitativos. Entre os principais resultados encontrados, cabe destacar que, pela existência de um conselho superior na instituição pesquisada, ela adota uma gestão embasada no modelo colegiado. Por meio de seu regimento interno, ela delega poder decisório aos participantes de seu órgão superior de administração. As informações das atas de reuniões e as falas dos docentes revelaram que, na prática, somente foram deliberados por esse órgão, assuntos acadêmicos e pedagógicos, havendo completa falta de poder decisório do colegiado sobre a gestão financeira da instituição. Apesar de não tomarem decisões sobre assuntos financeiros, todos os membros do Conselho Universitário perceberam como importantes as decisões acadêmicas tomadas, tendo reflexo efetivo na qualidade dos cursos da IES. Os docentes membros do CONSU manifestaram um comprometimento afetivo como base de sustentação de sua participação na gestão da instituição. Na sua percepção, fazer parte desse órgão deliberativo fez com que se sentissem mais comprometidos com a instituição de uma forma geral. A participação na gestão levou os docentes a um maior comprometimento com a instituição e à percepção de que a participação no CONSU significa atribuição de confiança, de oportunidade e reconhecimento pelo trabalho desenvolvido, proporcionando, nesse sentido, satisfação e motivação no ambiente de trabalho.

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