“I Didn’t Become a Professor to Teach High School”: Examining College Educators’ Perceptions of Culture in Early College High Schools

ABSTRACT

Early College High Schools (ECHSs) represent a unique approach for educating minoritized students. As a hybrid, joining a traditional high school with a college or university, the central mission of ECHSs is to provide academic support and resources for students’ high school completion and substantial college credit. The success of the ECHS model appears in students’ rates of completion, college participation, and college degree attainment. With the unique merged context of K-12 and higher education, this exploratory study examined the perceptions of ECHS culture for participating higher education faculty and staff. Drawing on interviews from seven participants, we identified norms, values, beliefs, and assumptions that influence the ways our participants’ work within the ECHS setting. We include implications for research and practice.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. We use the term “minoritized students” instead of minority students or students of color to emphasize how the “history of structural and institutional actions” (Benitez, 2010, p. 131) creates the social construction of minority status (Stewart, 2013). In the context of this study, ECHS students commonly hold multiple minoritized identities (e.g., race, first-generation students, socioeconomic status) and experience intersectional societal oppression.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Amanda L. Mollet

Amanda L. Mollet is an assistant professor of higher education administration in the Department of Educational Leadership andPolicy at the University of Kansas. Her research focuses on issues of equity and inclusion within educational experiences of students with historically minoritized identities.

Matthew J. Stier

Matthew J. Stier is a Ph.D. candidate in Educational Leadership at the University of Iowa. Formerly a high school science teacher, his research interests include preparing educators to work collaboratively to support diverse learners with an emphasis on teacher leadership and professional development.

Jodi L. Linley

Jodi L. Linley is an associate professor of higher education and student affairs in the Department of Educational Policy and Leadership Studies at the University of Iowa. Her research focuses on institutional agents for social change and the higher education experiences of students minoritized by systemic oppression.

Leslie A. Locke

Leslie A. Locke is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Policy and Leadership Studies at the University of Iowa. Her research interests include leadership for social justice, schooling for students from marginalized groups, equity-oriented education policy, and qualitative methodologies.