This qualitative case study explored sense of belonging among 15 U.S.-born and foreign-born Latinx students at a community college designated as a Hispanic serving institution. To further explore sense of belonging among these students, semi-structured interviews were conducted with both groups of students. The results indicated that U.S.-born Latinx students contributed sense of belonging to instructors who displayed characteristics of equal treatment, genuineness, and support in and outside of the classroom. Instructors who displayed these characteristics made students feel more connected to the instructor and to the college as a whole. Results also indicated that foreign-born Latinx students credited their sense of belonging to being accepted by peers. Joining student clubs was a high contributor to their sense of belonging. Foreign-born students shared that if it were not for joining student clubs, where they share similarities with other students, they would not have felt like they fit in or belong in the college.
","abstract_html":"<p>This qualitative case study explored sense of belonging among 15 U.S.-born and foreign-born Latinx students at a community college designated as a Hispanic serving institution. To further explore sense of belonging among these students, semi-structured interviews were conducted with both groups of students. The results indicated that U.S.-born Latinx students contributed sense of belonging to instructors who displayed characteristics of equal treatment, genuineness, and support in and outside of the classroom. Instructors who displayed these characteristics made students feel more connected to the instructor and to the college as a whole. Results also indicated that foreign-born Latinx students credited their sense of belonging to being accepted by peers. Joining student clubs was a high contributor to their sense of belonging. Foreign-born students shared that if it were not for joining student clubs, where they share similarities with other students, they would not have felt like they fit in or belong in the college.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Cotuno, Raquel"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Ed.D. Doctor of Education","degree_level":"Dissertation - Public Access","degree_discipline":"Higher Education Leadership","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Jamal Scott","Dr. Nathanial Cradit","Dr. Patricia Granados"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2020,"date_issued":"2020-04-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2020-04-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:20:57Z","subjects":["Latinx Subgroups","Community College","Foreign Born","Sense of Belonging","Commuter Students","Qualitative Research","Hispanic Serving Institution","Community College Education Administration","Community College Leadership","Educational Leadership","Higher Education Administration"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/528","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Jamal Scott","Dr. Nathanial Cradit","Dr. Patricia Granados"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Cotuno, Raquel"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2020-10-21T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Higher Education Leadership"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation - Public Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ed.D. Doctor of Education"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Latinx Subgroups","Community College","Foreign Born","Sense of Belonging","Commuter Students","Qualitative Research","Hispanic Serving Institution","Community College Education Administration","Community College Leadership","Educational Leadership","Higher Education Administration"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/528"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This qualitative case study explored sense of belonging among 15 U.S.-born and foreign-born Latinx students at a community college designated as a Hispanic serving institution. To further explore sense of belonging among these students, semi-structured interviews were conducted with both groups of students. The results indicated that U.S.-born Latinx students contributed sense of belonging to instructors who displayed characteristics of equal treatment, genuineness, and support in and outside of the classroom. Instructors who displayed these characteristics made students feel more connected to the instructor and to the college as a whole. Results also indicated that foreign-born Latinx students credited their sense of belonging to being accepted by peers. Joining student clubs was a high contributor to their sense of belonging. Foreign-born students shared that if it were not for joining student clubs, where they share similarities with other students, they would not have felt like they fit in or belong in the college.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Sense Of Belonging Among Foreign-Born And U.S.-Born Latinx Subgroups At A Community College"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Jamal Scott","Dr. Nathanial Cradit","Dr. Patricia Granados"],"dc:creator":["Cotuno, Raquel"],"dc:date.available":["2020-10-21T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This qualitative case study explored sense of belonging among 15 U.S.-born and foreign-born Latinx students at a community college designated as a Hispanic serving institution. To further explore sense of belonging among these students, semi-structured interviews were conducted with both groups of students. The results indicated that U.S.-born Latinx students contributed sense of belonging to instructors who displayed characteristics of equal treatment, genuineness, and support in and outside of the classroom. Instructors who displayed these characteristics made students feel more connected to the instructor and to the college as a whole. Results also indicated that foreign-born Latinx students credited their sense of belonging to being accepted by peers. Joining student clubs was a high contributor to their sense of belonging. Foreign-born students shared that if it were not for joining student clubs, where they share similarities with other students, they would not have felt like they fit in or belong in the college.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/528"],"dc:subject":["Latinx Subgroups","Community College","Foreign Born","Sense of Belonging","Commuter Students","Qualitative Research","Hispanic Serving Institution","Community College Education Administration","Community College Leadership","Educational Leadership","Higher Education Administration"],"dc:title":["Sense Of Belonging Among Foreign-Born And U.S.-Born Latinx Subgroups At A Community College"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Higher Education Leadership"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation - Public Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ed.D. Doctor of Education"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:20:57Z"}