ERIC Number: EJ1091891
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1066-8926
EISSN: N/A
Community College Student-Parents: Priorities for Persistence
Peterson, Sally
Community College Journal of Research and Practice, v40 n5 p370-384 2016
This study of community college student-parents used interpretive phenomenological analysis of interview data contributed by 15 participants from three Mountain West Community Colleges. The participants qualified by the following criteria: had delayed college entrance by 2 years or more, had a child not yet in kindergarten, were full-time students in an associate degree program, worked part-time, and had 15 credits or more toward their degree. This study revealed what it meant for student-parents to have success while they addressed the challenges of balancing work, home, child care, and academic responsibilities. The student-parents described experiences that required prioritizing responsibilities, managing time effectively, securing needed support services, addressing stress, developing strategies for study and parenting, and maintaining a positive mindset. The findings include quotations that describe the challenges of each student-parent; whether individually unique, conflicting, or shared by the subset of this nontraditional student group. The student-parents shared a common sense of resolve to use prioritizing strategies as they made decisions affecting their degree completion. Student-parents had the common goal to obtain a better life for themselves and their children.
Descriptors: Community Colleges, Academic Persistence, Phenomenology, Nontraditional Students, Family School Relationship, Adult Students, Parents, Family Relationship, Parent Responsibility, Two Year College Students, Higher Education, Parent Child Relationship, Child Rearing, Academic Achievement, Employed Parents, Reentry Students, Full Time Students, Associate Degrees, Part Time Employment, Time Management
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Two Year Colleges; Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Colorado; Montana; Wyoming
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A