Recognized to Serve: Do (Emerging) Hispanic-Serving Community Colleges Expand Access?

ABSTRACT

Over the years, more colleges and universities have gained the designation of Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) and emerging Hispanic-serving institutions (EHSIs). The Hispanic-serving community colleges (HSCCs) have a dual mission of authentically serving both Latinx students and other marginalized student population. This study aims to examine if community colleges have effectively served this dual mission by expanding access for Latinx students, low-income students, and other students of color upon being designated with the EHSI/HSI status. To answer the research question, we used a national dataset which was drawn from multiple sources between 2010 and 2017 and a generalized difference-in-differences approach. Our findings show that the EHSI/HSI designation increased the proportion of Latinx students and low-income students, but this expansion can be at a cost of access for other students of color. Practical implications are provided, including continuous federal funding, strategic enrollment management, and constant consideration of the dual mission of HSCCs.

Notes

1. Following Garcia et al. (2019), we use the term “Latinx” as an inclusive term for “people who self-identify as having an ethnic, cultural, historic connection to Spanish colonization and the indigenous peoples of modern-day Mexico, Central America, South America, and parts of the Caribbean” (p. 32).