Introduction Draft Low Graduation Rates

INTRODUCTION

Recommendations to Address the Problem of Low Graduation Rates among Hispanic Minority Students at Glendale Community College

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November 2, 2022

Introduction

Overview

The purpose of this study is to provide recommendations to the problem of low graduation rates among Hispanic students at Glendale Community College California. The problem is that despite the high levels of student satisfaction at Glendale Community College, only 32 percent of students complete their courses on time (Community College Review, 2022). This introduction section is organized into the organizational profile, which describes the project site, and the introduction to the problem, which provides the scope of the problem.

Organizational Profile

The study’s educational site is Glendale Community College (GCC), a public institution offering certificate and associate-level degrees in Los Angeles California (Glendale Community College, GCC, 2022). GCC was established in 1926 to provide vocational and academic instruction to the people of Glendale, La Crescenta, and Tujunga who lacked access to higher education (GCC, “About GCC”, 2022). The overall mission of GCC is to assist students realize their informed educational needs through comprehensive instructional programs and student services (GCC, 2022). GCC offers programs in four areas: basic foundation education in mathematics, writing, reading, and English as a second language to enhance students’ success college-level success; general education to enhance self-development and help students lead meaningful and enriching lives; technical and career education to enhance job advancement or employment opportunities; and post-secondary education to help students transition to four-year courses at a university (GCC, 2022). GCC commits to the values of open communication, equity, inclusion, collaboration, transparency in decision-making, innovation, and democratic governance (GCC, 2022). The institution offers financial and career counseling, as well as distance education programs to help students accomplish learning efficiently (GCC, 2022).

The college is highly diverse. Caucasians make up 52 percent of the student population, followed by Latino Hispanics at 25 percent (GCC, ‘College Profile’, 2022). African-Americans and Asians make up approximately 20 percent of the population (GCC, ‘College Profile’, 2022). Approximately 55 percent of the student body is female and most (38 percent) of the students are working towards obtaining an associate degree and transferring to a four-year institution (GCC, ‘College Profile’, 2022).

The institution has 1,074 employees, including 63 administrators, 204 full-time faculty, 485 adjunct faculty, and 322 classified staff (GCC, ‘College Profile’, 2022). It is headed by a president/superintendent, who is assisted by four vice-presidents and an administrative dean (GCC, ‘Administration’, 2022). The vice presidents (Administrative Services, Instructional Services, Student Services, and Human Resources) are assisted by the Deans, Associate Deans, and Program Managers of the various Sections (GCC, ‘Administration’, 2022). The president, Vice Presidents, Deans, and administrative Dean form part of the administrative cabinet (GCC, ‘Administration’, 2022). Major decisions, however, have to be approved by the six-member board of trustees (GCC, ‘Administration’, 2022).

Introduction to the Problem

The problem at GCC is that on average, only 32 percent of students complete their courses and graduate on time (Community College Review, 2022). According to the 2019 Student Success Score Card produced by the California Community Colleges Board of Governors, timely graduation rates are lowest among Hispanic students, who form the focus of this study (California Community Colleges, 2019). Data from 2019 indicates that 60.6 percent of Caucasian students completed their certificate or degree-related outcomes, as compared to only 36.1 percent of Hispanics students (California Community Colleges, 2019). State-wide data indicates a completion rate of 42 percent for Hispanic students, showing that GCC ranks lower than the state average in the completion rates of Hispanic students relative to those from other races (California Community Colleges, 2019b).

To address the problem of low graduation, GCC has, in the past, conducted satisfaction surveys to obtain students’ views on the campus climate and actions that could be taken to enhance student retention. In the 2019 survey, 93.9 percent of students reported that they were satisfied with the campus climate and 96 percent believed the instructional programs offered were of high quality, yet only 68 percent believed they were progressing towards their educational goal as quickly as possible (GCC ‘Student Satisfaction’, 2022). Recently, GCC began to offer distance learning modalities and academic counseling programs to enhance retention and ensure that students complete their courses on time. However, the institution has continued to report low graduation rates among Hispanic students.

Studies have shown that delayed college completion increases the risk of dropping out of college and results in lower post-college earnings (Witteveen & Attewell, 2021). GCC commits to helping students live meaningful lives and realize their best potential in the global community (GCC ‘Mission, vision’, 2022). However, the effects of delayed college completion inhibit this mission. The findings of this study will be beneficial in informing GCC’s policies as the management works towards realizing its mission.

Significance of the Research

Studies have shown that delayed college graduation affects chances of employment and reduces one’s post-college earnings by between 8 and 15 percent because employers tend to use delays as a proxy for low ability (Casalone & Aina, 2011; Witteveen & Attewell, 2021). For college students, finding ways to reduce time-to-degree and ensure that they graduate on time may increase their chances of employment and open avenues for higher post-college wages (Witteveen & Attewell, 2021). Moreover, delayed time-to-degree is associated with higher tuition cost and a high risk of losing financial aid (Casalone & Aina, 2011). For families, therefore, timely college graduation may prevent unforeseen financial burdens, particularly when an overstayed student loses financial aid and has to source for alternative funds to finance their pending semesters.

For institutions, delayed graduation increases the risk of non-completion, which influences how potential applicants perceive it, resulting in reputational concerns that limit the effective recruitment of students (Aina et al., 2019). The findings of the research may provide crucial insights to institutional policymakers on the factors that lead to delayed college graduation and strategies for addressing the same. Ultimately, high graduation rates may result in higher college ratings, a positive reputation, and better ability to attract students (Aina et al., 2019). At the national level, delayed college graduation denies the workforce the skills and manpower that these students would offer in post-college employment (Aina et al., 2019). Thus, identifying the factors that hinder timely college graduation may ensure that the workforce benefits from the additional skills and human resources that students offer in post-college employment, resulting in higher labor productivity and increased revenues (Aina et al., 2019). The research is timely because while a lot of studies exist on the factors hindering timely college graduation, most studies focus on four-year colleges, leaving community colleges understudied. The standards in community colleges differ from four-year colleges and the findings may not be generalizable to both settings.

Purpose Statement

The purpose of this study is to provide recommendations to help address the problem of low graduation rates among Hispanic minority students at Glendale Community College in Glendale, California. To realize this purpose, the study will employ both quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques. Quantitative data will be collected through an online survey that will be administered via the Google forms web-based platform to 50 students and 30 faculty at GCC. The researcher will invite interested students to participate through the Latino Student Association at GCC. They will attend several meetings organized by the association every week to advertise the study and invite interested participants to register their email address, where they will receive the link to the online survey. Faculty members will receive a call to participate vie e-mail and the link will then be sent to the willing participants.

As part of the qualitative data collection, the researcher will conduct semi-structured interviews with 10 Hispanic student leaders at GCC. The research targets 10 of the 15 leaders of the Latino Student Association on campus. The final data collection approach will be document review, which will seek to obtain insights about the institutional climate at GCC. Documents of interest for this review will include the curriculum map in use currently, admission guidelines, financial aid beneficiary records, faculty’s supplemental instruction reports, reports from past student surveys, and student class attendance registers.

Central Research Question

How can the problem of low graduation rates among Hispanic minority students be solved at Glendale Community College in California?

Definitions

1. Student persistence – “the desire and action of a student to remain in college until graduation” (Haverila et al., 2020, p. 359).

2. Student retention – “the ability of an institution to retain a student from admission to the university through graduation” (Haverila et al., 2020, p. 359).

3. Time-to-degree - “the total time, in calendar years, between initial enrolment in a post-secondary institution and subsequent degree attainment, regardless of whether or not the student was actually enrolled” (Shapiro et al., 2016, p. 5).