A paper authored by the Department of Teacher Education and Higher Education’s Dr. Delma Ramos, Dr. Cathryn Bennett of the Department of Justice and Policy Studies at Guilford College, and UNC Greensboro students Paul Nava and Akira Goodman has been recognized with the North Carolina Association for Research in Education (NCARE) with the 2024 Distinguished Paper Award.
The paper, entitled “Beyond Admissions and Financial Aid: How a College Access Program is Demystifying the College-Going Process for Latine Students in North Carolina,” studied responses to an open-ended survey stemming from program assessment data to examine how a four-day college access immersion program for Latine high school students in North Carolina demystifies college and supports Latine college students in realizing that college is a possibility, thus countering dominant narratives of exclusionary access to postsecondary education for racially and ethnically minoritized students.
The research was framed with Smith and Tinto’s (2022) student’s relational engagement framework to address the research question, “How is a college access program in North Carolina demystifying the college-going experience for Latine students?”
The group’s findings explain how the program empowers Latine students’ college-going pathways by reframing Latine identity and culture as assets, building confidence through intergroup exchange, enacting agency for college access, uncovering the hidden curriculum of financial well-being and college persistence, and disrupting exclusionary assumptions about college access.
The paper will be presented at the 2025 American Educational Research Association’s annual conference in April. The conference will be held in Denver, Colo.
About the Authors
Delma Ramos, Ph.D. serves as Associate Professor of Higher Education and Graduate Program Director for Doctoral Programs in the Teacher Education and Higher Education (TEHE) Department. Ramos’ work examines the experiences of minoritized populations in higher education from an equity and social justice lens. Specifically, her work critically examines how systemic inequities impact the success of first-generation, economically disadvantaged, and communities of color while elevating the assets, agency, and resistance these communities activate to navigate exclusionary college environments. Since her arrival to UNCG, Ramos has committed to examine and elevate the experiences of Latine college students in the Nuevo South, especially in response to the neglect and scarcity of research on the experiences of these communities in this region of the U.S. South.
Cathryn Bennett, Ph.D. serves as Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Justice and Policy Studies at Guilford College, Research and Evaluation Consultant with Every Campus A Refuge (ECAR) in Greensboro, N.C. She engages the discipline of Higher Education across issues of equity and access with historically minoritized populations, including refugee/formerly resettled, first generation, and Latina/o/x/e college students. Bennett’s research agenda prioritizes disrupting social inequities replicated in higher education.
Paul Nava, is a second-year master’s student in the Student Affairs Administration in Higher Education (SAAHE) program. He also serves as a grad assistant with the Division of Student Success at UNCG. His research interests include rural-Latine student experiences, college access, and DEI.
Akira Goodman is a second-year doctoral student in the Higher Education program at UNC Greensboro. Her research interests include examining culturally competent mentoring strategies for African American women in master’s graduate programs focused on higher education and student affairs. Through her research and professional roles, she is dedicated to creating inclusive and empowering educational environments for all students.
