The impact of learning community involvement and campus climate on student satisfaction and the retention of Latino students at a highly selective private institution

UnrestrictedHigher Education has increasingly become more concerned with not only attracting students, but retaining them through to degree completion. As accountability has risen among institutions, so has concern for student retention. Attrition and retention patterns impact universities through college rankings and reputation, influencing institutional efforts directed towards retention programs and solutions targeted towards students at risk. The Latino population falls behind other U.S. population groups in persisting at the higher education level. Although greater access into higher education among Latinos has increased, access has not translated into degree attainment and may be due to difficulty integrating freshman year. Campus climate, the interdependence between the institution and the individual, plays an important role in the successful integration, academically and socially, of college students. A decrease in student confidence, due to poor campus climate perceptions, can affect attitudes about integration, ultimately lowering commitment levels at the institution. Without faculty, staff and fellow student engagement, self-efficacy and motivation can decrease, leading to less effort by students to build social and academic foundations vital for persistence in college.; The purpose of this study was to ascertain to what degree campus climate influences student satisfaction and departure decisions for Latino college students. Sixty-eight Latino students enrolled in a learning community during their first year at a private, four-year university were examined for factors influencing decisions to stay. Students were surveyed for quantitative data utilizing the Student Satisfaction Inventory (SSI) and of those, fifty-two participated in focus groups for gathering of qualitative data. Finally, sixteen students were interviewed in one-on-one, in-depth interviews for insight of perceptions of campus climate and retention during freshman year. Findings indicated the learning community provided an environment supportive, friendly and helpful for integration during freshman year, particularly at the social level. Academically, student responses were mixed; some indicating the learning community had social distractions, while others found it supportive to academic endeavors. Students expressed they would reenroll in a learning community again, had they to do it all over, and revealed, although they would have persisted to sophomore year anyway, it did make the process more enjoyable