Higher education institutions were not immune to the multitude of challenges that the Covid pandemic created in the past couple of years. Scholars have noted that the decline of student enrollment across two and four-year institutions is the most tangible metric, which revealed a disparity in who did not enroll during the academic year beginning in the fall of 2020 and up to the present day (Huie et al., 2021). Upon closer review of these reports, men of color, compared to other peer groups, had the largest decline in student enrollment trends. Specifically, Latino/x men who attended two and four-year institutions had some of the largest enrollment declines. Despite a decade of abundant educational research focused on these students (Cabrera et al., 2022), the pandemic thwarted institutional efforts to improve the enrollment, persistence, and educational outcomes of Latino/x men.

There are compelling reasons to reflect, refocus, and reframe our understanding of Latino/x men’s educational experiences and pathways in higher education. First, the historical patterns of educational attainment rates of Latino/x men illustrate that they are simply either not attending or not persisting towards a college credential or degree. For example, recent US Census reports revealed that Latino/x men, compared to their peers, have the lowest percentage of postsecondary completion rates (US Census, 2020). Next, despite national initiatives such as My Brother’s Keeper, that created a watershed moment in the plethora of research focused on men of color in educational systems (Dee & Penner, 2021), the recent pandemic crisis may have pushed this institutional agenda to the margins. Finally, there is a critical need to reframe the discussions among educational policy leaders and practitioners to create sustainable solutions with an asset-based perspective, which values and honors the inherent value of Latino/x men in higher education institutions (Ponjuán & Hernández, 2021). Suffice it to say, the pandemic has disrupted our fragile notions of “normalcy” of enrollment patterns, classroom delivery modalities, faculty-student engagement, mental health, and concepts of housing, food, digital access, and financial insecurities (Gonzalez-Ramirez et al., 2021; Pierce, 2021; Salimi et al., 2021). Based on these new and tangible realities of the pandemic, there is a need for community colleges and four-year institutions to develop a new purpose and promise to improve Latino/x men’s participation and success in higher education.

The pandemic has created an opportunity for higher education to develop a renewed sense of purpose and promise to help Latino/x men improve their pathways and success in higher education.

The Mosaic of Latino/x Men in Higher Education

Over the last decade and a half, our research project (Project MALES.org) has expanded the higher education research discourse on Latino/x men. We acknowledge that the monolithic term used to describe Latino/x men is myopic and limits our understanding of the diverse mosaic of these men who aspire to enroll, attend, persist, and complete a postsecondary degree. It is beyond the scope of this article to enumerate the countless iterations that make up Latino/x men’s individual identities, which include intersections of both invisible factors (e.g. gender fluidity and sexual orientation identity, neuro -diversity, mental health, immigration status, country of origin, and ethnicity) and visible ones (e.g., dialect, weight, race/phenotype, etc.). Each of these students deserves recognition, respect, and validation from educational leaders, faculty members, professional staff, and student peers (Garcia et al., 2018).

Educational leaders, faculty and staff need to acknowledge the intersectional identities of Latino/x men to create effective policies, programs, and practices for sub-group communities.

The Collateral Damage of the Pandemic on Latino/x Men in Higher Education

In spring 2022, the Project MALES research team received a research grant from the Trellis Foundation to understand the lived experiences of Latino/x men attending two- and four-year institutions in the South Texas region (e.g., Coastal Bend, Rio Grande Valley). In our study, we focused on the voices of Latino/x men, administrators, professional staff, and faculty members. These students provided nuanced and compelling narratives about how the pandemic severely affected their educational experience. For instance, non-traditional aged students, first time in college (i.e., enrolled since Fall 2020) described the difficulties of online class participation. In other cases, undocumented students revealed how their financial stressors (e.g., food, housing, and uncertain digital access) were alleviated by the institutional disbursement of federally funded CARES/HEERF funds. In more compelling instances, some gay and trans* students described the delicate balance they had to maintain between their involuntary return to their homes (some reported their family did not allow them to return) and the expression of their authentic selves. Overall, we continue to develop a deeper “patchwork quilt” understanding of Latino/x men who demonstrated resiliency, courage, strength, and determination. Unfortunately, many others could not return because they had a greater calling and commitment to contribute to their families with multiple jobs, sibling supervision and tutoring, or their fear of dealing with the uncertainty of online learning and isolation.

Higher education institutions need to assure those Latino/x men who feel disenfranchised by the effects of the pandemic that the faculty and staff will help them achieve the long-term benefits of college education and training.

A Promise to Help Latino/x men Achieve Educational and Personal Success

The pandemic has reframed our understanding of how higher education functions and how colleges serve our diverse study population. Our suggestions for organizational action steps, which emerged from our research work in South Texas, clearly suggest there is no quick or simple panacea to address the diverse needs of these Latino/x men enrolled in these colleges or those who dropped out due to the pandemic. Nonetheless, members of the board of trustees, institutional leaders, faculty members, and professional staff can still create a path to help Latino/x men to enroll, thrive, and succeed in college beyond the pandemic. We recommend four strategic areas for institutional leaders:

1. Enrollment Initiatives

Develop targeted outreach programs in coordination with local industries for Latino/x boys at middle and high schools to cultivate a college-going mindset that links to a specific career path.

2. Life/Work and Academic Balance Initiatives

Leverage institutional resources to dedicate a professional staff member to improve how student support services offices identify and connect with Latino/x men, who often feel confused and frustrated while seeking help.

3. Mental Health and Wellbeing Initiatives

Create academic support groups embedded in first-year programs, developmental courses, or key gateway courses for Latino/x men to develop a sense of community that helps them balance their competing academic and life demands.

4. Initiatives to Support Degree Aspirations

Disaggregate the Latino/x student data to explicitly look at Latino/x men by different characteristics (e.g., US veteran status, non-traditional age, academic degree programs) and determine key academic gateway courses that impede their progress. •

Author Bio:

Luis Ponjuán, PhD, member of the AAHHE Board of Directors, is an Associate Professor in the Higher Education Administration Program, Department of Educational Administration and Human Resource Development, at Texas A&M University.

References

Cabrera, N. L., Karaman, A. K., Ballysingh, T. A., Oregon, Y. G., Gonell, E. A., Lopez, J. D., & Deil-Amen, R. (2022). Race Without Gender? Trends and Limitations in the Higher Education Scholarship Regarding Men of Color. Review of Educational Research, 92(3), 331-369.

Dee, T. S., & Penner, E. K. (2021). My Brother's Keeper? The Impact of Targeted Educational Supports. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 40(4), 1171-1196.

Garcia, G. A., Patrón, O. E., Ramirez, J. J., & Hudson, L. T. (2018). Identity salience for Latino male collegians at Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), emerging HSIs, and non-HSIs. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 17(3), 171-186.

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Pierce, D. (2021). HEERF Today, Gone Tomorrow: In the Rush to Spend HEERF Dollars, Colleges Expand Financial Support for Students. Community College Journal, 92(2), 16-23.

Ponjuán, L., & Hernández, S. (2021). Different yet similar: The educational experiences of Latinx male students at Texas PWI, HSI, and HBCU institutions. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 20(4), 453-465.

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U.S. Census Bureau (2020, March 30). U.S. census bureau releases new educational attainment data, release number CB20-TPS.09 [Press release]. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2020/educational-attainment.html