Finishing school: analysis of the “Complete to Compete” completion grant program at Elgin Community College

This dissertation investigates the Complete to Compete (C2C) completion grant program at Elgin Community College (ECC), specifically targeting community college students facing financial barriers to graduation. Utilizing simple data analysis and a qualitative approach, the study analyzes institutional graduation data, survey responses, and student interviews to examine how direct financial support influenced student persistence and degree completion. Results from the institutional data indicate that the C2C program was associated with higher graduation outcomes, with 82.5% of participating students completing their degrees compared to the institution’s historical average of 47.5%. Survey and qualitative findings revealed that the C2C program provided critical financial relief, reduced students' stress, enhanced academic engagement, increased institutional validation, and encouraged future-oriented planning. These holistic supports contributed substantially to the students’ improved academic outcomes. The research also critically examines the broader equity implications of such programs within higher education frameworks. Applying the concept of Whiteness as property (Harris, 1993), the study highlights how traditional institutional structures disproportionately disadvantage racially and socioeconomically marginalized students. In doing so, this dissertation argues for reimagining higher education equity through a "queering" lens—questioning conventional norms and advocating for systemic change in policy and practice.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Grantor

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2025

Author dc:creator

• Davin, David

Contributors dc:contributor

• Pak, Yoon
• Hood, Denice W
• Huang, David
• Kang, Hyun-Sook

• Completion Program
• Complete To Compete
• Retention
• Stop-out
• Persistence
• Community College
• Queering

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2025 David Davin

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/130106

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F130106