Developing a sense of belonging in the classroom: community college students taking courses on a four-year college campus

Abstract

In 2005, Louisiana implemented the Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education: 2001 (Board of Regents, State of Louisiana, 2001) to restructure its higher education system in an effort to provide its citizens with high quality postsecondary educational choices. This restructuring forced its two-year and four-year institutions to redesign their developmental education programs. Subsequently, several two-year institutions partnered with four-year institutions to offer developmental courses on the four-year college campuses. However, little is known about the experiences of the two-year students in these settings, especially as they relate to classroom experiences. Thus, this phenomenological study explored the academic-social experiences of 20 students enrolled at the two-year college and taking classes at a four-year institution. The study was done in hopes of garnering a better understanding of factors that impact integration and persistence. This article focuses on how the students developed a sense of belonging in the classroom, and it makes connections as to how these students’ experiences may impact integration and persistence and/or transferability to four-year institutions. Additionally, recommendations for research and practice are presented.