Abstract
I am pleased to introduce the fourteenth annual collection of scholarly articles commissioned by the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE), which were presented at its 15th Anniversary National Conference on March 5 to 7, at the Hilton Orange County Hotel, Costa Mesa, California. In celebration of our 15th Anniversary, our theme was,
This year’s conference engaged participants through new concurrent session formats, which included: research papers, skill-based workshops, and symposia, along with posters and round-table sessions. We again featured pre-conference workshops and plenary sessions as we honored our Latinx courage and Conciencia via contributions to U.S. history. Our Latinx community continues to shape our country’s social, economic, and educational future. The following two articles exemplify this year’s conference topic.
Along with concerns about the declining affordability of higher education, attention to food and housing insecurity among postsecondary students has risen. Yet, few studies explore what food/housing insecurity means for the Latinx community. In “Food and Housing Insecurity for Latinx College Students: Advancing an Intersectional Framework for Inquiry” authors Antonio Duran and Anne-Marie Núñez employ intersectionality to recommend a research agenda to investigate food/housing insecurity for Latinx students. They interrogate how interrelated systems of power affect Latinx students’ access to basic needs and suggest strategies for addressing this issue.
Addressing Latinx student underrepresentation in STEM requires an assets-based reimagining of STEM experiences and pathways that facilitate student success. The article, “Latinx Students Charting Their Own STEM Pathways: Honoring the Assets of Their Identities and Communities” draws on data from two qualitative studies of Latinxs students pursuing STEM majors. Authors Blanca E. Rincón and Sarah Rodriguez found that Latinx students draw on at least six distinct forms of cultural assets to facilitate their personal and at times their peers’, persistence in STEM. Latinx students then utilize these cultural assets to develop culturally grounded understandings of themselves as STEM individuals.
These thought-provoking research studies in this year’s journal help bring these vital issues to the light and provide recommendations for further research, policy, and programs that can further the success of Latinx individuals in higher education. The Academy, led by the senior executives in institutions of higher education should revisit their policies and strategic initiatives to reflect our Latinx community’s contributions to the social, economic, and educational enrollments that are far outpacing any other student population.
AAHHE is, again, proud to sponsor the annual scholarly papers and appreciates our sustained partnership with the Journal of Hispanic Higher Education. Our mission to bring the findings of these scholarly papers to policymakers and leaders in higher education continues.
Dr. Loui Olivas, Founding President