Impacts of the COVID 19 Pandemic on Community College Students: A Counterstory

By Colin Thorneycroft, Griffin Hubner, & Sophie Slusher

Abstract

We asked students why they went to community college and not a 4-year college, and e investigated how COVID-19 may have affected their choices. The question we wanted to answer related to the motivations and reasons behind why some students chose to specifically go to a “junior” college, instead of a “real” college. Our team used a class of English students attending College of San Mateo for our research. We had our participants write a short (2-4 page) memoir on why they chose to attend CSM. We used two main research methods: 1) our first method used first-hand accounts from community college students; 2) our second method, however, utilized pre-existing research on the effects of the pandemic to show how it hampered students in many ways, where we found literature showing the disastrous effects it had on K-12 students. Our research found that the pandemic affected our target research groups in a multitude of ways. As many of our first-hand accounts came from high school students, our research is mainly based on them. K-12 students were found to have severely reduced scores and grades, as well as negatively impacted mental health and outlook. Many firsthand accounts specifically noted that the 2020 lockdown substantially changed their educational plans.

Introduction

Why do students choose community college? In today's world, you might think of community college kids as academic outcasts or kids who don't care about education. If we dive deeper into that you might think that community college kids are lazy, unmotivated or just simply lack the idea that higher education is important. It's easy to put labels on people without knowing their background or their personal motivations for their decisions in life. What may seem odd to some can be seen as normal for others. But if we're talking about community college, no one ever seems to dive deeper into just why students choose it in the first place. No one ever considers the external factors from the world and society that drive their decision. A major external factor that is often overlooked is the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on not only students but people, in general. It's no secret that the pandemic wreaked havoc on many things but it could argued that it had the biggest negative impact on the education system. This massive external factor drove many students toward a direction of community college, and it serves to counter the existing narratives as to why students choose community college. Students' experiences with the Covid-19 pandemic refute the pervasive narratives surrounding community colleges.

Literature Review

Legal scholar, Richard Delgado, is the originator of the concept of majoritarian narratives. Examining his work is the key to understanding the nature of narratives around community college. Majoritarian narratives, as defined by Delgado (1989), states, “the stories or narratives told by the ingroup remind it of its identity in relation to outgroups, and provide it with a form of shared reality in which its own superior position is seen as natural” (p. 2412). To paraphrase, majoritarian narratives are stories told by a small group of powerful people to justify their power, even if it is not. In this case, the majoritarian narratives surrounding community college students are that they are not as smart, not as motivated, not willing to take big risks, don't have clear goals, or are not as financially stable as university students. Many members of American society are part of this negatively biased ingroup. University students, university graduates, high school teachers, parents with aspirations for their child, as well as the university plus faculty and staff, are the ingroup. The one thing that connects this rather large ingroup is their distaste and scorn for what they all deem as lesser forms of education. On the other hand, community college students are the outgroup, those deemed lesser by society at large. The majoritarian narratives around community college students are fictional stories that are told and influenced by the ingroup and backed by the power they hold on the education system. None of these narratives and stories are based on fact or reason but simply to influence the public on why they should pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for their education. Despite this, the distaste for community colleges has proliferated to such a degree that almost everyone in America has strong negative opinions of these schools.

These majoritarian narratives surrounding community college students are challenged by counterstories and critical storytelling. Aja Martinez (2020), a professor of English and a critical race scholar, defines counterstories as, “a method for telling stories of those people whose experiences are not often told, and… serve to expose, analyze and challenge majoritarian stories of racialized privilege” (p. 26) Jeramy Wallace (2023), a professor of English at CSM and a published author on the subject, defines critical storytelling as, “a form of writing that uses scholarship and the conventions of storytelling to critique and challenge social inequities and human suffering while offering a vision of social justice and human liberation” (p. 17).

In this case, the COVID-19 pandemic is the main counter-story that challenges previous notions of majoritarian narratives about community college students and the narrative of even enrolling in community college. Researchers state that the COVID-19 pandemic posed an unprecedented public health challenge for most of the world but had the largest disruption in the education system. According to their research of 151 college students, 95.7% of them reported they had experienced moderate to severe mood disorders. They were also asked on a scale of 0-10 how much their quality of learning was affected by the pandemic, the average score given was 7.6/10 (Hu et al., 2022). This means that the quality of learning and mental health were big challenges for students as a result of the pandemic. This study, and many others like it, support the counterstories that many students’ academics and mental health were negatively affected by the pandemic. These challenges do not conform with the majoritarian narratives because they disprove the previously stated narratives of community college by offering a real reason based on fact and research as to why students choose community college due to COVID's impacts. Majoritarian narratives about community college students, on the other hand, don't have facts or research to support their assertions.

Methodology

We examined the experiences of community college students through the lens of majoritarian narratives to find a correlation with the impacts of COVID-19. Specifically, we applied the concept of phenomenology and critical countestorytelling to the stories of community college students. Phenomenology, as defined by D.W Smith (2013), is “the study of structures of experience or consciousness” (p. 145.) Phenomenology applies academic analysis to human experience, identifying key elements and themes. Both phenomenology and critical counter-storytelling validate and utilize individual and group experiences as data. On the relation between phenomenology and data, Mayan (2009) states, “We make data and, in turn, create or produce knowledge about the phenomenon,” (p. 162). This common link is why phenomenological study is a cornerstone of critical counter-storytelling methodology. In "Qualitative Inquiry,” Solórzano and Yosso (2002) describe critical counterstorytelling as  “a theoretically grounded approach to research that… offers a liberatory or transformative solution to racial, gender and class subordination” (p. 24). To provide evidence and present a counterstory to combat a given majoritarian narrative scholars must have data. For this purpose, experiential knowledge is essential. In the methodology of critical counterstorytelling, “experiential knowledge of people of color is legitimate, appropriate, and critical to understanding, analyzing, and teaching about racial subordination” (p. 26). In addition to existing as evidence against majoritarian narratives, experiential knowledge can be utilized in crafting composite counterstories. These composite counterstories “can reveal experiences with and responses to racism and sexism as told in a third person voice” (p. 33). As the name suggests, these composite stories are based on many real experiences. Composite stories are a powerful tool in a counterstorytelling methodology. They can invoke empathy and disprove majoritarian narratives in a more accessible way. In our research, we utilized the experiential knowledge of community college students to synthesize a composite counterstory that disproved majoritarian narratives.

Research Methods

We utilized various forms of research in crafting a counterstory, including gathering both primary and secondary information. One of our primary sources of data was “Why Students Choose Community Colleges,” a collection of essays from twelve community college students describing their reasons for enrolling. Applying a lens of counter-storytelling methodology we coded for recurring themes within the essays. A few themes stood out to us, including mental health, online learning, and the pandemic. The impact of the pandemic appeared to be a major deciding factor in students' lives. This theme informed our research and writing.

Composite Counterstory

Rachel had been attending her local community college for a few months now. She’d been an average student in school. For various reasons, community college appealed to her, and she opted for that route. Rachel had been content with her experience at her school thus far. But whenever others asked her about her college there was always a sense of judgment. The many pitying looks and dismissive remarks had gotten to her, and she had begun to question her own decision.

Rachel stood in front of the hallway, mirror car keys in hand. She fidgeted with her clothes and hair contemplating if she had forgotten anything. Truthfully, she was stalling. There wasn’t a single part of her that wanted to go to her aunt’s birthday party. She dreaded having to engage in small talk with extended family and their many acquaintances. Most of all she dreaded the questions about school. At previous gatherings when people asked where she went to school, she told them self-assuredly, “I’m going to the local community college.” There were many reactions to that statement, few of them positive. Some looked at her with thinly veiled pity in their eyes, responding haltingly, “Oh… that’s nice.” Others were more forthright, exclaiming, “But you were such a bright girl, why community college?” It had worn her down. She had begun to question her own decision.

She shook her head, trying to dismiss the clamoring negative thoughts. No, Rachel knew why she went. It had started at the beginning of the pandemic. Once online learning began, she had far too much time by herself. She was miserable and struggling to keep up with online classes. But at home, she wasn’t surrounded by the constant discussion about universities, both from her peers and teachers. At her school, it had been presented as the only option. She began to reflect, was university even what she really wanted? None of the universities whose websites she scanned appealed to her. And if she were to apply, what major would she even choose? How was she supposed to decide without even taking any college courses?

Rachel expressed her feelings to her closest friend on Facetime. “Have you thought about community college?” her friend spoke as the screen lagged. Later that day Rachel mulled it over. It seemed so simple she wondered why she hadn’t considered it. She wouldn’t have to commit to a major, she could take courses and decide later. She and her family wouldn’t have to worry about the cost of tuition or housing. Additionally, the acceptance rate for students transferring was higher than incoming freshmen at nearly every university. Rachel pitched the idea to her parents immediately. They were initially hesitant but when she laid out all her reasoning, they were quite supportive. The relief the decision gave her was immense.

Rachel mulled all this over in her head as she stood in the doorway. She felt a renewed sense of confidence. She knew why she decided on community college, and it didn't matter what others thought. If they pressed her on her decision, she would just give them her list of reasons. What more could they say to that? A contented smile spread across her face, and she confidently strode out the door.

Discussion

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive impact on many students, affecting their academic life and future plans. Firstly, the pandemic universally negatively impacted grades and academic performance. Studies conducted by NWEA indicate that “The COVID-19 pandemic has been a seismic and ongoing disruption to K-12 schooling…Observed declines are more substantial than during other recent school disruptions” (Kuhfeld et al., 2022, p. 1). It has been found through this research and previous research stated that the effects of the COVID-19 have absolutely been a massive setback for students and as a result, have caused them to pursue community college rather than university or other higher education. Most research that's been written today about the pandemic has not specifically been written about why kids choose community college because of the pandemic, putting our research on the cutting edge. Limitations of this research are that the data we have from our primary sources and the data coming from secondary sources have a relatively small number of people being surveyed as well as most research coming from a specific area of the country. Our primary sources for the autobiography essays are all from a small area of the United States as well as a fairly narrow demographic, mostly in regard to age. Other secondary sources had similar narrow demographic research in themselves. One article we reviewed for our secondary source wrote about college students in a small area of the Midwest and based their research on that small demographic. Most articles of research on the impact of the pandemic on colleges and specifically community colleges are based on small areas of research. Until there's a much larger study done on the subject by a larger government entity, the true impact of the pandemic on students and the driving force for their community college decision is relatively unknown.

Conclusion

When analyzing the ways in which COVID-19 influenced community college students, a clear counterstory emerges. During a time of universal turmoil and change, these students made a decision that was best for themselves, and that in itself is commendable. When examining the reasons students provided for their decisions, such as financial stability and flexibility, it is clear that these were calculated and deliberate choices. This assessment entirely shatters the majoritarian narratives that portray community college students as incompetent individuals who have no investment in their own futures. Ultimately, viewing any group as a monolith without considering the motivations of individuals results in an uninformed and inaccurate perceptions. Taking the time to understand the nuances of any phenomenon is always worthwhile.

References

Delgado, R. (1989). Storytelling for oppositionists and others: A plea for narrative. Michigan Law Review, 87(8), 2411-2441.

Hu, K., Godfrey, K., Ren, Q., Wang, S., Yang, X., & Li, Q. (2022). The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on college students in USA: Two years later. Psychiatry Research, 315. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114685

Kuhfeld, M., Soland, J., & Lewis, K. (2022). Test score patterns across three COVID-19-impacted school years [ED Working Paper 22-521]. Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://edworkingpapers.com/sites/default/files/ai22-521.pdf

Martinez, A. (2020). Counterstory: The rhetoric and writing of critical race theory. National Council of Teachers of English.

Mayan, M. (2009). Essentials of qualitative inquiry. In J. Wallace (Ed.), The people’s stories:Critical storytelling for social justice. (pp. 161-172). Cognella.

Smith, D.W. (2013). Phenomenology. In J. Wallace (Ed.), The people’s stories: Critical storytelling for social justice. (p. 145). Cognella.

Wallace, J. (2023). The people’s stories: Critical storytelling for social justice. Cognella.