First-gen Students at Community & Technical Colleges: A Discussion of Key Findings

Community and technical colleges are critical access points for higher education, particularly for first-generation college students. To understand the current state of first-generation student support programs and services at community and technical colleges across the United States, the Center for First-generation Student Success partnered with Phase Two Advisory to interview institution leaders, administrators, student services staff, and first-generation students and collect data from a national survey. In total, 38 two-year institutions across 22 states, as well as 23 first-generation students through focus groups at eight institutions, are represented in our qualitative data. We also gathered survey responses from 197 faculty, administrators, and thought leaders across 156 two-year institutions.

The First-generation Students in Community and Technical Colleges: A National Exploration of Institutional Support Practices report, available at no cost via firstgen.naspa.org, features the perspectives of administrators and student services practitioners who work daily to improve first-generation student outcomes, the voices of first-generation community and technical college students reflecting on their unique experiences, and analyses of the programs and approaches these institutions offer in support of first-generation student success.

This session will feature the principal investigators on this study to discuss learnings across the landscape and key findings while also providing evidence-based practices and recommendations for institutions desiring to advance first-generation efforts. While the report focuses on community and technical colleges, findings are applicable to other environments.

The Center also released First-generation Student Success: A Landscape Analysis of Programs and Services at Four-year Institutions which examines the uniquely complex first-generation identity, institutional mindsets and approaches, and practical insights for advancing changes along with a offering a robust set of recommendations for the higher education community to improve the experiences and outcomes of first-generation college students.

Learning Outcomes

Participants will:

• Learn about the current state of first-generation efforts at community and technical colleges across the US; and
• Gain greater understanding of both the challenges and emerging evidence-based practices utilized to meet these challenges when serving the first-generation populations; and
• Consider recommendations for short- and long-term approaches to systemically improving first-generation experiences and outcomes at community and technical colleges.