Social Class Supports: Programs and Practices to Serve and Sustain Poor and Working-Class Students through Higher Education

by Georgianna Martin (Editor), Sonja Ardoin (Editor)

Overview

Historically, higher education was designed for a narrow pool of privileged students. Despite national, state and institutional policies developed over time to improve access, higher education has only lately begun to address how its unexamined assumptions, practices and climate create barriers for poor and working class populations and lead to significant disparities in degree completion across social classes.The data shows that higher education substantially fails to provide poor and working class students with the necessary support to achieve the social mobility and success comparable to the attainments of their middle and upper class peers. This book presents a comprehensive range of strategies that provide the fundamental supports that poor and working-class students need to succeed while at the same time dismantling the inequitable barriers that make college difficult to navigate.Drawing on the concept of the student-ready college, and on emerging research and practices that colleges and universities can use to explore campus-specific social class issues and identify barriers, this book provides examples of support programs and services across the field of higher education – at both two- and four-year, public and private institutions – that cover:·Access supports. Examples and recommendations for how institutions can assist students as they make decisions about applications and admission.·Basic needs supports. Covering housing and food security, necessary clothing, sense of belonging through co-curricular engagement, and mental health resources.·Academic and learning supports. Describes courses and academic programs to promote full engagement among poor and working class students.·Advising supports. Illustrates advising that acknowledges poor and working class students’ identities, and recommends continued training for both staff and faculty advisors.·Supports for specific populations at the intersection of social class with other identities, such as Students of Color, foster youth, LGBTQ, and doctoral students.·Gaining support through external partnerships with social services, business entities, and fundraising.This book is addressed to administrators, educators and student affairs personnel, urging them to make the institutional commitment to enhance the college experience for poor and working class students who not only represent a substantial proportion of college students today, but constitute a significant future demographic.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781000979176
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	07/03/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	432
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Georgianna Martin is Associate Professor of Counseling & Human Development Services at the University of Georgia (UGA). Dr. Martin completed her PhD in Higher Education & Student Affairs at the University of Iowa, Master’s degree in College Student Personnel at Bowling Green State University, and Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology at Millsaps College. Her primary research interests are on the social class identity and college experiences of low-income, first-generation students; the impact of college students' out-of-class experiences on key learning outcomes such as critical thinking and socially responsible leadership; and social/political activism. Dr. Martin is also a first-generation college student, a mother of three daughters, a wife, and a dog lover. She has published over 30 articles and book chapters and 6 books in the field of higher education and student affairs. Sonja Ardoin, Ph.D. is a learner, educator, facilitator, and author. Proud of her rural hometown of Vidrine, Louisiana, her working-class, Cajun roots, and her first-generation college student to PhD journey, Sonja holds degrees from LSU, Florida State, and NC State. A self-described scholar-practitioner, Sonja served as an administrator for 10 years before shifting to the faculty in 2015 and currently serves as associate professor of higher education and student affairs at Clemson University. Her career path includes experience in academic administration, academic advising, community engagement, fraternity and sorority life, leadership development, student activities, and student conduct. Sonja studies social class identity in higher education; college access and success for rural and first-generation college students; student and women’s leadership; and professional preparation and career pathways in higher education and student affairs. She stays engaged in the broader field through presenting, facilitating, and volunteering with ACPA, AFLV, ASHE, the Center for First-generatio

Table of Contents

Foreword —Russel Lowery-Hart Acknowledgments Introduction—Sonja Ardoin and Georgianna Martin Part One. Access Supports 1. Rural Scholars. Grounded in and Focused on Community Assets—Erica Eckert, LeAnn Starlin Nilsson, Wendy C. Pfrenger, and David M. Dees 2. Hoos First Look. The University of Virginia’s Student-Led Fly-In Program—Brandon Thompson, Joanne Lee, and Donald Cooper 3. Institutionalized Efforts Impacting Access and Success for Low-Income Students—Belinda Zamacona, Leslie H. Pendleton, and Cecilia E. Suarez Part Two. Basic Needs Support 4. Creating a Solid Foundation. Integrated Basic Needs Support—Molly C. Ward and Miguel Arrellano Sanchez 5. From the Ground Up. Building a Brand New Food Pantry Through Collaboration—Jordan Ratzlaff and Tricia R. Shalka 6. Establishing a Food Pantry on Your Campus. Insights and Lessons from Private Universities—Bridgette Behling and Erika Cohen-Derr 7. Clothing Programs. Dressed to Graduate—Maureen M. McGuinness 8. Enrolled but Excluded. The Barriers to Student Engagement Facing Low-Income Students in Higher Education—Brian G. Swenson 9. A Teal C.A.R.E. Approach to Social Class Supports—Rebecca Rampe Part Three. Academic and Learning Supports 10. Underresourced Students and Undergraduate Research. Lessons From a McNair Scholars Program—Ashley B. Clayton, Tiffany J. Davis, and Joseph R. Givens 11. Two Community College Programs Designed to Ensure Student Success—Tony W. Cawthon, Jenni E. Creamer, and Linda Jameison 12. A Class on Social Class. Lessons From a First-Year Seminar—Genia M. Bettencourt 13. Making Academic Materials Available for Free or at Minimal Cost—David J. Nguyen, Katy Mathuews, and Bradley Cohen 14. Let’s Talk About Class. Exploring Social Class Identity Through Intergroup Dialogue—Michelle L. Rogers and Adriana Ruiz Alvarado Part Four. Advising Supports 15. An Overview of Academic Advising for Poor and Working-Class Students—Karen Sullivan-Vance 16. Validating Approaches to Proactive Advising. A Promising Practice to Promote College Success Among Low-Income, First-Generation, and Racially Minoritized Students In a Comprehensive College Transition Program—Joseph A. Kitchen, Rosemary J. Perez, and Ronald E. Hallett 17. Micro to Macro. Expanding First-Generation, Poor, and Working Class Student Support Through Training—Carli Rosati and David J. Nguyen Part Five. Support for Specific Populations 18. Where Do We Begin? Establishing Support Services for First-Generation College, Low-Income, Working-Class, and Undocumented Students—Renata Mauriz, Julio Reyes, and Deborah M. Warnock 19. “Pursuing the Future We Want”. An Examination of the College Transition of Academically Talented Black American Collegians From Working-Class Communities—Jennifer M. Johnson 20. Beyond the Basics. Two Approaches to Comprehensive Support for Low-Income Students in Two Hispanic-Serving Institutions—Beth Lesen, Danielle Muñoz, Paul J. Rodriguez, and Brandon Cruz 21. Queering Social Class. Considering LGBTQ Students in Supportive Initiatives—Roman Christiaens, Mark Chung Kwan Fan, and Raivynn Smith 22. Fostering Success. Supporting College-Going Foster Youth on Campus—Sara I. Gamez and Kizzy Lopez 23. Supporting Poor and Working-Class Students’ Access to Professional Development During Doctoral Programs in Education—Sloane M. Signal, David J. Nguyen, Marilyn J. Amey, and Ramona Jean-Perkins Part Six. Supports Through External Partnership 24. Using the Art of Advancement to Support Poor and Working-Class Students—Christian K. Wuthrich and Cara Walker 25. The Old Dominion University Center for Social Mobility—Carin W. Barber, Ellen J. Neufeldt, John R. Broderick, Don M. Stansberry, and Yousef T. Abraham 26. Community Colleges Partnering with Community Based Organizations—Desiree Polk-Bland 27. Large-Scale Partnerships with Professional Associations. The Evolution of NASPA’s Socioeconomic and Class Issues in Higher Education Knowledge Community—Steve Jenks Implications and Conclusion—Georgianna L. and Sonja Ardoin Afterword —Georgianna L. Martin and Sonja Ardoin Editors and Contributors Index

Editorial Reviews

From the Foreword:

"Education and poverty are tied together in a nightmare of policy failures, bureaucratic culture, stereotypes those trapped by poverty, and professional inaction. Fortunately, this important and timely work from Georgianna Martin and Sonja Ardoin help us unpack the link between education and poverty. In doing so, the reports from and about social justice warriors provide the roadmap for higher education to change itself and then change our country.

I was inspired by the efforts captured within this book. You will be challenged by these examples of innovation, realization, and actualization. The editors effectively segment examples how higher education institutions see, hear, and support a class of students higher education usually ignores. I was moved by each chapter and initiatives showcased. I saw my own institutional transformation at Amarillo College located within the groundbreaking work you will read.

I know how powerful it can be when you see your students for who they really are and commit your entire institution to their success. I witnessed the transformation of knowing your student, loving her, and building yourself for her. At Amarillo College, we named our typical student Maria. She is woven into each page of each chapter of this incredible publication. I want you to meet and know her, because she will challenge you to rethink your own work in the context of the Social Class Supports: Programs and Practices to serve and sustain poor and working class students through higher education."

Russell Lowery-Hart, president

Amarillo College

“Utilizing the expertise of students, practitioners, scholars, and faculty, the editors have curated a robust compendium of resources to support poor and working-class college students in higher education. This volume should be read by anyone seeking to center the experiences of marginalized students on their campuses; validate poor and working-class students'strengths, assets, and struggles; disrupt the stratified system of higher education; and dismantle axiomatic cycles of social reproduction on the eternal journey toward social justice, equity, and inclusion.”

Krista Soria

Director of Student Affairs Assessment, University of Minnesota

"Martin and Ardoin have created a masterful resource that provides scholars, administrators in higher education, ans students a way to transform colleges and universities. This book represents an important advancement in conceptualizing social class and classism as a critical aspect in our intersectional approaches to create and sustain healthy living and learning environments."

William Ming Liu

Professor and Chair; Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education; College of Education, University of Maryland

"[This] is the book we all need right now! Martin and Ardoin have pulled together an exceptional group of professionals who share powerful stories, do meaningful work, and offer practical strategies to support poor and working-class students in higher education."

Jackie Thomas Jr.

Chief Strategist, Lone Star College-Tomball

"This long-overdue work offers proven strategies and keen analysis that will assist practitioners and decision-makers as they seek to increase access, remove barriers, and change mindsets to support poor and working-class students as they navigate institutions that were not built with them in mind."

Jeremiah Shinn

Vice President for Student Affairs, Louisiana State University

From the Publisher