African American College Students’ Perceptions of Valuable College Experiences Relative to Academic Performance Jeanette Davis, M.Ed., PC and Cassandra Harris-Williams, Ph.D., PC Cuyahoga Community College League of Innovations Conference March 19, 2018 Factor Group 1 +4 #16 “involvement with a faculty mentor” +3 #05 “Connecting with people with similar interests through organizations” +3 #17 “Involvement with academic advising (professional) +3 #08 “Face-to-face encounters with professors” +4 #11 “Having a professor who interacts with students in the classroom” P, IMP, but non-significant -3 #25 “Participating in intramural sports” -3 #33 “Using the Writing Center” -4 #02 “Attending sports activities” -4 #15 “Involvement in managing a sports team” -3 #29 “Using the Career Center”

A Statement of Concern African American college students face numerous barriers and obstacles during their college experiences that may result in low graduation rates. Factor 2 +4 #13 “Having financial aid” +4 #18 “Involvement with faculty advisor within my major” +3 #06 “Courses that wer conveniently scheduled” +3 #31 “Using the Library or Library facility” +3 #10 “Having a professor who gets to know the student’s name”

Issues and Concerns Pre-college Experiences Social relationships Economic Characteristics Parental and Family Background First generation Academic and Social Adjustments

The Purpose of the Study To obtain subjective viewpoints of African American students at predominantly white institutions about the university based experiences that were most to least helpful in its contribution to their academic success. Academic success was defined by a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or better.

Theories of Retention Thompson & Fretz, 1991 Astin (1992) Tinto (1975) Person-environment congruence Student experiences are a collection of interactions between the student, the university, and the community. Astin (1992) I-E-O Model – input is affected by environment which results in outcome Tinto (1975) Commitment and intention

Schwitzer (1999) Social Adjustment Feeling “underrepresented”, “isolated”, “alienated” Situations, statements, or actions perceived as racist

Guiding Research Question What university-based experience(s) were most helpful to least helpful in contributing to your academic success?

Q-Methodology An examination of subjective concepts (McKeown and Thomas, 1988). The researcher obtained the concourse from group interview of 6 students at a Midwestern university (Concourse formation). 40 participants were asked to rank order the 35 statements (Q-sort). Interviews were conducted with five participants for follow-up and further explanation of their rankings. Factor 3 P and D +4 #01 Attending classes rather than distance learning +4 #21 Involvement with tutoring sessions +3 #33 Using the Writing Center +3 #11 Having a professor who interacts with students in the classroom +3 #31 Using the Library or Library facility N&D -4 #35 Working on campus -4 #02 Attending sports activities -3 #15 Involvement in managing a sports teams -3 #25 Participating in intramural sports -3 #03 Attending financial aid workshops

Focus Group Six African American students at a PWI-Focus group and four individual interviews IRB submitted to both universities Interview question: What university experiences do you perceive to be valuable contributors to your academic success at PWI (as defined by at least a 3.00 or better cumulative grade point average?

Descriptive Statistics Age – 18-23 years old Gender – 27 females, 13 males Types of students – Residential—35 students – 87.5% Commuter – 5 students – 12.5% Information about Parents 16 mothers and 9 fathers who had earned a bachelor’s degree or an advanced degree

Concourse Statements that were taken from the focus group will be used to ask students to rank order them from most valuable to least valuable. Attending workshops Having an advisor Having financial aid Having a “caring” faculty member

Factor 1: Making Use of Supportive People 17% of the variance Ages 18 and 19 Three females and two males loaded on this factor Sophomores with 30-35 credit hours All participants were residential Highest number of mothers with an advanced degree; 2 out of 5 Only group with father who had an advanced degree

Factor 2: Making The Best Use of Time and Funds 17% of the variance Ages ranged from 18-23 Four females and one male loaded on this factor All of the participants were residential students All sophomores had earned 30-44 credit hours With the oldest sophomore student, aged 23 Three of the 5 mothers had a bachelor’s degree and one of the fathers

Factor 3: Being Committed to Academic Success 18% of the variance Four female and two males loaded on this factor Ages ranged from 18-20 Largest group of 20-year old participants Largest number of earned credit hours, 30-45 Three commuters and three residential students

Findings from the Study Some African American college students value university- based experiences that allowed for faculty and peer relations. Some African American students value experiences that involved financial aid and completing graduation requirements in a timely manner. Some African American college students were committed to academic success and valued academic advising and other campus sponsored academic support services such as tutoring, Writing Centers, etc. Most of the participants in this study did not value sports or sports-related activities.

Q&A Any questions? What are the perceptions of the most helpful and least helpful college experiences that contribute to their success? How recently have you surveyed or conducted focus groups at your campuses to inquire about students’ needs? How do you insure that the three factors (findings) are realized at your campuses?

Thank You! Thanks for your time and attention. For more information, please contact Cassandra Harris- Williams, Cassandra.williams@tri-c.edu.