Enhancing Institutional Undocu-Competence through Establishing Undocumented Student Resource Centers: A Student-Encompassed Approach

In response to the barriers that undocumented students face in postsecondary education, some colleges and universities are striving to enhance their undocu-competence – the capacity to serve, support, and advocate for undocumented students. One way that institutions are demonstrating this is by establishing Undocumented Student Resource Centers (USRCs). This qualitative study examined the ways in which USRCs support undocumented students and contribute to institutional efforts at enhancing undocu-competence. Findings indicate that USRCs are student-encompassed spaces that provide customized and comprehensive care for undocumented students. Moreover, despite being under-resourced, their impact is campus-wide, largely through building and sustaining undocu-allies. Implications for research and practice are included