As the price of college and its associated costs continue to rise, students are often left without the necessary financial resources to succeed in class and cover their basic needs. According to previous research, a student's ability to cover essential expenses poses a significant barrier to degree completion. Students' ability to cover expenses…

Effective governance requires high levels of trust and mutual respect among trustees who must commit to serving as stewards of the college's resources. This chapter describes rogue trustees, their tactics, and their negative impact on the governing process and college culture. The chapter includes strategies to mitigate the disruptive and…

The chapters in this volume of "New Directions for Community Colleges" highlight the intended roles of boards of trustees and illustrate areas in which board relations often go awry. This final manuscript brings together the themes of the volume, highlights lessons learned and presents recommendations moving forward. The challenges…

Student hunger directly impacts persistence rates and academic outcomes, ultimately yielding significant returns on investment through increased graduation rates, lifetime earnings, and state revenues. This article examines the critical issue of food insecurity among college students, with particular focus on community colleges where approximately…

While many tools exist to assess student content knowledge, there are few that assess whether students display the critical listening skills necessary to interpret the quality of a speaker's message at the college level. The following research provides preliminary evidence for the internal consistency and factor structure of a tool, the…

In this article, the authors explore how a photographer and artist-in-residence, worked with students in a community college arts classes to tell the photographic story of their dreams. This Literacy Through Photography (LTP) program gives young people cameras to tell the stories of their lives through their own images. Artist-in-residence…

The purpose of this study was to research the correlation between the academic achievement and enrollment data of students who attend Deer Park Community College who are majoring in Health Sciences. These students were categorized into four groups including subjects who are: traditional students who do not register for remediation courses;…

Institutions of higher education grapple with low retention rates, including community colleges, which have even lower rates. Historically, retention barriers include financial reasons, transportation issues, or lack of motivation. However, investigating the institution's role is also important. Institutional barriers come in the form of…

In this qualitative research study we illustrate how implicit biases held by college personnel hinders the educational success of Latino men attending urban community colleges in Texas. In particular, we identify how often well-intentioned educators are (un)aware of how often they perpetrate racial microaggressions against Latino men. Interviews…

There is a strident body of empirical research evidence that Higher Education in Prison (HEP) has a direct impact on reducing recidivism. Additionally for participants, it also increases the economic mobility and employability post-release. However, the ability to conduct randomly controlled trials with a distal measurement of recidivism is…

Persistence, along with retention and completion initiatives, are the focus of institutions of higher education, especially community colleges. There are initiatives that focus on student success that start at orientation and revolve around connecting the student to the college. Students often arrive on campus with a minimal understanding of the…

The existing body of research presents two contrasting views of community colleges, one portraying them as a "second chance" for individuals, offering an accessible route to higher socioeconomic status. The second views community colleges as a deceptive cover designed to divert marginalized people away from prestigious colleges and to…

In this final chapter, we reflected on the collective works presented in this volume by a diverse group of community college scholars and leaders. Through this reflection, we share how this scholarship sought to operationalize and enhance the definitions of equity-driven and social justice-oriented leadership in community colleges. After…

This chapter provides community college leaders with recommendations to develop a transfer sending culture for Latinx students who want to pursue a pathway to a 4-year college/university. Community college leaders can create a transfer sending culture for Latinx students by standardizing a transfer process so that all Latinx students who aim to…

Considering the range of social justice issues at the forefront of 21st Century American life, and the ways in which these issues manifest on community college campuses, leaders must examine their responsibility to confront inequities and promote change. Transformative leadership is a style of leading that explicitly acknowledges inequities within…