Supporting College Students Of Immigrant Origin

Explores the higher educational journeys of students of immigrant origin, providing policy, practice, and research implications.

Over 5 million college students in the United States – nearly one-in-three students currently enrolled – are of immigrant origin, meaning they are either the children of immigrant parents or guardians and/or immigrants themselves. These students accounted for almost 60% of the growth in higher education enrolment in the 21st century. Nevertheless, there is very little research dedicated to this student population's specific experiences of postsecondary education, with similar absences discernible within the realms of higher education policy and practice. Although college campuses are making important progress in building more inclusive spaces, conversations about climate and student care rarely account for the journeys of students of immigrant origin. Featuring 20 chapters written by more than 50 contributors, this book addresses this glaring omission. The authors examine how students of immigrant origin experience the road to, through, and beyond higher education, while, simultaneously, speaking to evidence-based implications for policy, research, and practice.

This groundbreaking volume is the first to concentrate specifically on the experiences, challenges, and triumphs of immigrant-origin community college students. Drawing on data from the Research on Immigrants in Community College Study (RICC), it looks at what community colleges can do to better help this growing population of new Americans succeed.

This groundbreaking volume is the first to concentrate specifically on the experiences, challenges, and triumphs of immigrant-origin community college students. Drawing on data from the Research on Immigrants in Community College Study (RICC), chapters highlight the unique needs of these students, the role of classrooms and campus settings, out-of-class time spent on campus, the importance of relationships, expectations versus outcomes, and key recommendations for policy and practice. The text integrates an array of important topics, including developmental challenges, language learning, the undocumented student experience, microaggressions, counseling center use, and academic engagement. Above all, this book looks at what community colleges can do to better help this growing population of new Americans succeed. “This book is a gift of hope and possibility to all of us who know that community colleges are the pathway to educational opportunity and equity for the students who, in the not too distant future, will be the face of America.” —Estela Mara Bensimon, director of the Center for Urban Education, USC Rossier School of Education “Offers detailed analysis and concrete recommendations on how community colleges could better serve students from immigrant backgrounds. It is a must-read for policymakers and practitioners in the field.” —Randy Capps, Migration Policy Institute Contributors: Cynthia M. Alcantar, Stacey Alicea, Saskias Casanova, Janet Cerda, Natacha Cesar-Davis, Monique Corral, Tasha Darbes, Sandra I. Dias, Edwin Hernández, Heather Herrera, Juliana Karras Jean-Gilles, Dalal Katsiaficas, Guadalupe López-Hernández, Margary Martin, Alfredo Novoa, Olivia Osei-Twumasi, McKenna Parnes, Sarah Schwartz, Sukhmani Singh, Cecilia Rios-Aguilar, Carola Suárez-Orozco, Marcelo Suárez-Orozco, Robert Teranishi

The Report examines the education impact of migration and displacement across all population movements: within and across borders, voluntary and forced, for employment and education. It also reviews progress on education in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In view of increasing diversity, the report analyses how education can build inclusive societies and help people move beyond tolerance and learn to live together.

Immigrant populations, growing quickly in both size and diversity, have become an important segment of the U.S. college student population, one that will profoundly transform the educational landscape and workforce in coming decades. Nevertheless, immigrant students in higher education are often inaccurately characterized and largely misunderstood. In response to this alarming disconnect, this monograph reviews and synthesizes the existing body of literature on immigrant students, with special attention placed on transitions to college and collegiate experiences. The authors lay a foundation for future research and draw out implications for policies and practices that will better serve the educational needs of this growing population. This is the 6th issue of the 38th volume of the Jossey-Bass series ASHE Higher Education Report. Each monograph is the definitive analysis of a tough higher education issue, based on thorough research of pertinent literature and institutional experiences. Topics are identified by a national survey. Noted practitioners and scholars are then commissioned to write the reports, with experts providing critical reviews of each manuscript before publication.

One child in five in America is the child of immigrants, and their numbers increase each year. Based on an extraordinary interdisciplinary study that followed 400 newly arrived children from the Caribbean, China, Central America, and Mexico for five years, this book provides a compelling account of the lives, dreams, academic journeys, and frustrations of these youngest immigrants.