Charter school to community college pipeline: examining the college access for African American and Latina/o students

College access in traditional comprehensive high schools has been extensively researched, yet there is a paucity of research that examines the charter high school college-going culture environment (Farmer-Hinton & McCullough, 2008; McDonough, 2004; Oakes, 2003; Zimmer & Buddin, 2007). With the dramatic increase in charter education on a national level, it is imperative to explore how charter school administration, staff, and teachers view college access, especially with the rise of African American and Latina/os enrollment within this sector (Cohen & Brawer, 2003; Kurlaeander, 2006; National Center for Educational Statistics, 2012). In addition, the scholarship on college access should be expanded to include how students and staff view community colleges as part of their college choice process. The purpose of this qualitative ethnographic case study is to examine how charter school personnel define college access for African American and Latina/o students, specifically regarding community colleges. The study attempts to answer the following research questions through a critical race framework: 1) How is college access defined in a charter school context?; 2) How do charter school personnel perceive community colleges?; and 3) What are the post-secondary aspirations for graduating African American and Latina/o charter school students? How do charter school personnel influence these aspirations? One-on-one interviews were conducted at a charter high school in southern California that has a high college-going rate for its graduating students. Specifically, I interviewed the principal, vice principal, a counselor, a teacher, and 8 senior African American and Latina/o students who were going through the college application process. In addition, I observed a guidance class session for students who were academically prepared to apply to a four-year university. I found that the college-going culture at the charter school was evident and that a "college for certain" motto was clear to all students. Students who participated in the study attributed much of their success to the relationships built with the charter school staff and the personnel had high expectations of their students regarding college after graduation. While attending college was the ultimate goal that the staff had for their students, attending a community college was sometimes seen as a stigma and only appropriate for those students who were academically under prepared. Staff members believed that the students overall were not socially ready to step out of the comfort zone of their community and enter diverse college campus environments. CRT theorists argue that colorblindness lowers the realness of the struggle that students of color go through. I found that African American and Latina/o students at CCHS were undergoing challenges that affected their ability to receive equal college access. On a national scale African American and Latina/o students continue to be pushed out of high school and college at higher rates than their white peers (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2012, Yosso & Solorzano, 2006). This study found that although charter schools boast a strong college-going culture, community colleges are still positioned as a deficit choice amongst students and staff. The relationship between charter high schools and community colleges needs to be further explored at various levels as both sectors serve such large populations of students of color.