VOICES OF COLLEGE ASSISTANCE MIGRANT PROGRAM STUDENTS FROM REFUGEE BACKGROUNDS: AN ASSET-BASED APPROACH

Abstract

This dissertation study used an asset-based, qualitative approach to explore how refugee-background students who have participated in a College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) at four different universities describe and make meaning of their paths to and through college. This study advances our understanding of community cultural wealth (Yosso, 2005) and social capitals (Stanton-Salazar, 1995) as they relate to the educational experiences of refugee-background college students with a familial history of agricultural labor. Using a basic interpretive interview study methodology (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight current and former refugee-background CAMP students who were successfully progressing toward earning a bachelor’s degree at a four-year institution. Findings suggest that refugee-background college students with a family history of agricultural labor develop and utilize multiple sources of cultural, familial, and linguistic assets that when combined with institutional sources of supports, are key to overcoming systemic barriers to educational achievement. Implications for educational equity programs such as CAMP are discussed, including recommendations for developing policies, ongoing professional development, and programmatic practices that improve post-secondary outcomes for this distinct college student population. Continued qualitative and quantitative research is recommended to explore the experiences of refugee-background students with a familial history of agricultural labor and the impact of CAMP participation on educational outcomes within both two-year and four-year post-secondary institutions.