THE IMPACT OF ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT ON THE SENSE OF BELONGING AND ENGAGEMENT OF MILITARY LEARNERS ON THE COLLEGE CAMPUS
Afforded by access to G.I. Bill educational benefits, high numbers of military learners are enrolling on college campuses. The influx of military learners brings distinctive challenges to the college campus. Challenged by this growing population of students, higher education leaders are prompted to expand and promote institutional policies, processes, and support programs to support the academic success of military learners. The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of academic employment on the perceived sense of belonging and engagement practices of military learners. Military learners share many characteristics with other marginalized student groups, including those of, first generation, minority, and lower socioeconomic status. They do, however, possess distinctive academic and social needs that differ in comparison to their non-military undergraduate peers, including, strong cultural identities, difficulty transitioning to the civilian campus, lower levels of socialization, and lower levels of faculty, peer, and campus engagement practices. As a result, military learners may not benefit from traditional points of engagement and support programming. This study was guided by Strayhorn's model of sense of belonging and sought to extend the model to military learners engaged in academic employment. Data were gathered from 13 military learners who participated in focus group sessions held spring 2017. Research participants were military learners employed as tutors at a centralized learning center at a four-year public institution in the Southeast. The data revealed that academic employment positively impacted the sense of belonging and engagement practices of military learners employed as tutors. The research study found that military learners perceived academic employment to be instrumental to their establishment of sense of belonging, and academic employment amplified their engagement practices with peers and the campus community. Further, the study substantiates the relationship between sense of belonging, engagement, and academic employment. Results from the study suggest implications and recommendations for higher education leadership to understand, address, and support the specific needs of military learners. Study findings contribute to the literature on military learner success, engagement, and sense of belonging. Further investigations are recommended regarding the intersection of academic employment, sense of belonging, and engagement practices on the college campus.
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