Making Education Work For Latinas in the U.S.

This study examines the existing knowledge base about promoting Latina educational success, defined as completing high school and then going on to secure a college degree. It also adds to existing research by examining two large data sets - one national, and one California-based for predictors of successful educational outcomes for representative samples of Latina youth who have recently been in high school and college. Finally, after identifying important predictors of success from the existing literature, and the examination of current data, the study incorporates case studies of seven young Latinas who illustrate pathways of women who are finding their way to educational success through high school, community college, and four year universities. Their stories provide a deeper understanding of the challenges that young Latinas encounter in our culture, as well as the promise they represent

Institutional Commitment to Policies and Practices that Support Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Post-Affirmative Action Era: Examining Sense of Belonging and Diversity Engagement.

This dissertation covers the following three topics: (1) how public and private institutions vary in their commitment to racial and ethnic diversity; (2) the connection between sense of belonging in college and interactions with diverse peers; and (3) participation in co-curricular diversity programs for African American, Latino, and White students. Using structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques, institutional commitment to policies and practices that support racial and ethnic diversity were characterized and relationships between students’ interactions with diverse others and college student outcomes were tested. This study found that public and private institutions differ in their articulation of commitment to racial and ethnic diversity and interacting with diverse others in college has implications for the transition to college and students’ engagement with cocurricular diversity programs during the first two years of college. These investigations have implications for three areas of significance for higher education practitioners: (1) administrators engaged in setting race-conscious policies in a dynamic sociopolitical environment; (2) academic/student affairs professionals concerned with the transition to college; and (3) student affairs professionals dedicated to facilitating meaningful cross-racial interactions on college campuses.Ph.D.EducationUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/61613/1/amlocks_1.pd

The Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program: Involving Undergraduates in the University\u27s Research Mission

The Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) was originally developed to increase the retention and improve the academic performance of underrepresented minority students at the University of Michigan. The program\u27s history, components and expansion will be covered. This session should particularly benefit those interested in learning about the structure of the program or are interested in developing their own such program