Advancing What Works to Intentionally Serve Latino Students: Opportunities for Action - 2024

Engagement to Prepare Students and Families for College

Given the degree attainment needed to ensure the country’s economic and civic future, there is an opportunity to expand and enhance the engagement of students and their families in the college going process. Through strategic partnerships, bilingual services, mentoring, and high touch outreach, the following programs ensure students and their families are informed and supported as they navigate opportunities for post-secondary education.

First-Year Experiences Building Strong Foundations for Success

Institutions have the opportunity to be proactive with first-year students to ensure they not only enroll but stay with them. Intentional, well-designed, first-year support programs can have a significant impact on students transitioning to college or university, particularly Latino students. The following programs demonstrate such impact through practices like summer bridge programs, financial support, and academic planning. By providing additional services such as individualized mentoring, career exploration, bilingual services, and leadership development these programs not only support but empower students to navigate the complexities of college life with confidence and a sense of belonging.

Bilingualism Enhancing Academic and Career Connections

Given Spanish is a local and global language the demand for Spanish speakers in multiple professions will continue to be a need. Bilingual Latino students are uniquely positioned to have these needed language skills and the cultural contexts to better understand and serve others in their communities and in their future careers. The programs below leverage community partnerships, bicultural pedagogy, and experiential learning to support student academic and career success. Many of their alumni are becoming leaders and change agents in their professions.

Experiences and Partnerships Building Career Pathways

The more institutions can provide experiences and partnerships beyond the classroom then the more students can move directly into their career path, and into higher wages. Since most Latino students are working while attending college, these programs are intentional about career connections within their program of study. They use cohort groupings, mentorship, research opportunities, and employer connections to enhance their academic degree programs.

Gender-Based Learning Communities to Support Success

Gender-based programming has emerged as a transformative approach to address and mitigate the disparities faced by students based on gender, particularly within underrepresented communities. These programs engage parents, provide tutoring, utilize cohort groupings, and build strong mentoring relationships. These programs below build confidence, inspire ambition, and illuminate the possibilities that lie ahead, particularly in fields where they have been historically marginalized.