The document discusses the Latino male education crisis and provides recommendations to address it. It begins with an outline of the presentation, which includes understanding the silent crisis in Latino male education data, research on Latino males in college, and moving from awareness to action. It then discusses administrator awareness of the issue, which varies, as well as factors that impact Latino male students' educational experiences such as family, finances, peers, and pride. The document concludes with two recommendations - increasing awareness of the issue and gaining buy-in by connecting Latino males to campus and community.

1. Setting the Tone:
The Latino Male Education Crisis
Victor B. Sáenz, PhD
Assistant Professor (UT-Austin) & Director, Project MALES
Sarah Rodriguez
Doctoral Student (UT-Austin) & Research Coordinator, Project MALES
May 4th, 2012
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

2. Outline of Presentation:
Ensuring the Success of Latino Males in Education
Understanding the Our Research on From Awareness to
Silent Crisis Latino Males in Action
• Latino Males in College • Project MALES
Education • Findings from our • Student Fellows Program
A look at the data qualitative study at Texas
colleges and universities
• Alternative • Visit to San Antonio
Pathways College
2
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

3. What are the conversations?
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

4. Understanding the CRISIS
facing Latino Males in Education
Stealth • Many are unaware of the depth of the gender gap;
Issue It’s a SILENT CRISIS
• Some are unwilling to discuss; some find it
Skeptics & counter-productive
Naysayers • Gender Equity Debate Persists!
What is
• High School Graduation
the • College Enrollment
Gender • Degree Attainment
Gap?
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

5. Latino Males & Females
18- to 24-Year-Olds With Less Than
a High School Diploma
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS), “Fall
Enrollment in Colleges and Universities” surveys, 1976 and 1980; and 1990 through 2009 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
(IPEDS), “Fall Enrollment Survey” (IPEDS-EF: 90), and Spring 2001 through Spring 2010, Table 235.
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

6. Latina/o Postsecondary Enrollment Trends
By Race & Gender
(Among all 18 to 24 year olds within group)
60
50 47.7
40 42.3
Percent
30 31.0
24.2
20
10 14.8
0
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2009
Latino Males Latina Females
White Males White Females
Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Current Population Survey Reports, School Enrollment—Social and Economic Characteristics of
Students, 1985–2009.
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

7. Texas Context (THECB data)
Texas Public Higher Education Almanac,2011: A Profile of State and Institutional Performance and Characteristics. (THECB).
African American Males
Hispanic Males
Texas Public Higher Education Almanac,2011: A Profile of State and Institutional Performance and Characteristics. (THECB).
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz 7

8. Latino Gender Gap Continues in
College Completion
Latina/o Bachelors Degrees Awarded (1977 to 2009)
80
Thousands
70
56.3%
60 diff.
50
# of BAs
40
30
20
10
0
Latina Females Latino Males
Source: Knapp, L.G., Kelly-Reid, J.E., and Ginder, S.A. (2010). Postsecondary Institutions and Price of Attendance in the United States: Fall 2009,
Degrees and Other Awards Conferred: 2008–09, and 12-Month Enrollment: 2008–09 (NCES 2010-161). U.S. Department of Education.
Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved September 1st, 2010, from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch.
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

9. 2010 Hispanic Degree Attainment (AA & BA)
(NCES,2010)
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 2010 Annual Social and Economic Supplement.
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

10. Projection of Bachelor’s Degrees Awarded to
Latinos by Gender: 1977 to 2040
(NCES,2010)
200,000
Projected 185779
151301
150,000
Hispanic males
Hispanic females 120644
116824
100,000 98058
78,898
61,634 75472
44,758
50,000
30,604 50,628
17,897 39,490
30,301
23,626
10,318 11,022 14,932
0
1977 1981 1990 1995 2000 2005 2009 2020 2030 2040
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 2010 Annual Social and Economic Supplement. Projections from 2011–2040 are based
on author’s linear interpolation calculations.
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

11. What is Happening to our Boys in the
Early Grades?
Over-representation in
Over-representation in
School Discipline
Special Education
Pipeline
Teaching Ranks
Elementary &
Education
Learning Styles
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

12. Latino Boys –
“Overrepresentation”
The problem of
“overrepresentation” Special Education Boys can retreat even
is worst for African Tracking for The phenomenon of further away from
American and Latino “behavior” problems stigmatization their schooling
boys in Special and At-Risk Labeling experience
Education tracks
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

13. Latino Boys – Middle School years
By middle school years
• They have been labeled “at-risk”,
• They have not gotten along well with their teachers who they
increasingly see as the enemy,
• They may feel more and more stigmatized for being singled out
as learning disabled or “not smart”
Boys in grades four through eight are twice as likely
as girls to be held back, and the rate is even higher
for boys of color (NCES, 2006)
They may have a difficult time rediscovering the
motivation to become successful learners
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

14. Latino Young Males –
Summary of K-12 Experience
Unequal distribution of
More likely to be
school funding, under-
under-resourced,
prepared teachers, high
under-staffed, racially-
teacher turnover, the
segregated, poverty-
flight of affluent
stricken, and neglected
families, poor
schools in the country.
leadership
More likely to attend
schools with high Increased police
presence in high
racial/ethnic schools with high
minority student ethnic percentages
populations
Systemic and
Structural
inequalities
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

15. Latino Males and the
College Experience
Role of Family in Success of Latinas should be
Adjusting to College
Adjustment (Social capital) examined more closely
• Males have problems • Family unit plays a major • Self efficacy
with “Help-seeking role in adjustment, coping
abilities, and persistence in
behaviors” (Gloria et college for Latina/o
• Degree aspirations
al., 2009, etc.) students
• What can we learn from
this research literature
• Difficulty in finding safe • Role of Mothers (female
spaces or a sense of figures) is key
community
• What about Fathers?
• Cultural mismatch &
academic demands can
lead to feelings of
isolation and
depression, (Cole &
Espinoza, 2008).
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

16. The GOOD NEWS:
A Growing Chorus
National • College Board Advocacy & Policy Center
• Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP)
Organizations are • Excelencia in Education
taking notice • Gates, Kellogg, Helios, Spencer, Lumina, Kresge
• State of Texas: Closing the Gaps 2010 Action Plan
State/Federal
• Department of Education increased focus on
policymakers see the Men of Color in higher education (NSF)
challenges • APLU Minority Male STEM Initiative
Where do we go • From Awareness to Research to Action
from here?
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

17. Our Current Research…
17
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

18. Qualitative Research Design
• Research Collaboration between various K-12 ,
community college, and four-year universities
SITE VISIT
• Learn about experiences of Latino male students
• Gauge awareness among stakeholders
PURPOSE • Explore challenges to institutionalizing an initiative
targeting Latino males
METHOD • 38 focus groups with190 students
• 61 interviews with administrators, faculty, & staff
• Conducted Interviews/focus groups Fall 2010
TIMELINE through Spring 2012
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

19. Texas Research Sites
Tarrant
County
College
UT-
Austin
& ACC
Lone
Star –
CyFair &
North
Harris
UTSA;
Alamo
Colleges
South
Texas
College
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

20. Administrator Awareness
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

21. Administrator Awareness of the
Latino Male Achievement Gap
Varied Greatly
 Awareness as a continuum
 National vs. Institutional trends
 Proximity to issue in daily work
No Full
Cognizance
“Keenly aware
“Not on the & called to
radar” action”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

22. “We don’t even acknowledge it because to acknowledge
something means that you have to do something about it.
So we won’t acknowledge it”
- Administrator, male
“I think that if faculty and staff and even our students
knew about the crisis about Hispanic males and how
many of these students are not progressing, they are
not being retained, they are not graduating; then I think
there would be more of a movement toward providing
assistance and creating…initiatives that will change our
campus and bring everyone together about this issue so
it would expand awareness.”
- Administrator, male
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

23. Administrators aware of the Latino
male achievement gap often met
resistance in promoting awareness
and garnering support.
 Focus on serving all, rather than subgroups
 “Not a problem here”
 Will be a detriment to other “causes”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

24. 24
“There's not a huge learning gap that exists
between the subgroups. I mean one or two
points but it's not significant..”
- Administrator, male
“I don't specifically focus on Latino males or
Latino females. I focus on the kids.”
- Administrator, male
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

25. 25
“I think there is just a fear, or a reluctance, to
really have targeted outreach towards Black and
Latino males. I don’t know if people are worried
about a backlash. I could care less about that, but
we have got to do a much better job of meeting
the needs of that population.”
- Administrator, male
“…the first question that came about was, ‘Well,
what about women? Don't women have it
harder?’ That's first thing that came out of their
mouths…we have to be sort of sensitive ...”
- Administrator, female
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

26. 26
Factors that Affect Students
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

27. Many Factors Impact Latino Male’s
Educational Experiences and
Success
 Family & Finances
 Peer Influence
 Connections to Campus (or lack thereof)
 Pride
 Desire for Mentoring
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

28. Students feel a sense of obligation
to their families and may choose
work over education.
“Like, they just want to go straight into work.
And practically, work for Latinos is construction.
So they just know construction, and that’s what
they’ll do…they just want to get money right
away. If not, the other reason is that they have
family. Because they have a child or their
family needs help, so they have to support
them.”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

29. Peer influence is Dual-Edged:
“I think it’s also your influences from friends. If
your friends go to college, you’re more likely to
go to college. If your friends don’t go to college,
you’re more likely not to go to college…who
you hang around with, how your friends act.
What they’re doing, it affects everything,
especially around our age group, the younger
group of Latinos.”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

30. Latino males articulated feelings of 30
isolation and disconnection on
campus
“I felt lonely! First day on campus, I felt lost. I did not know where I
was…In fact, there were people in there taking notes. And I’m like,
“What are we supposed to take notes about?”You’re not even writing
anything on the chalkboard and letting you know. “
“I felt real outta place. I remember when I was in my history class… I
thought, “Man, when is he going to stop talking?” He just kept rumbling.
And, and see the thing was… the teacher I had didn’t even teach outta
the book. He would just talk…like, just talk. And he would go into
random subjects. I would [say], “Oh, the syllabus said we’re supposed to
be discussing this.” “You know, that’s too boring. I don’t feel like
discussing that.” I’m like, “Okay, I guess that’s the way college is now,”
you know? You kind of do whatever you want; freelance it.”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

31. Complex Influence of Pride
“…my dad, he would tell me about how he raised
us and that he didn’t need help from anybody. So
when I’m in school I’m thinking I have to do
everything by myself because I have something to
prove, and asking for help I guess kind of weakens
the cause of what I’m doing.”
“I’m the first to come to college in my family, in like
my ENTIRE family. So, there’s this big, uh, weight on
my back, so that everybody’s like, oh, he’s going to
college … everybody says, you better not mess it
up.”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

32. Latinos also articulated a desire to 32
be involved in mentoring.
“I wish I had had someone there to tell me all
about what I needed to know about college. I
mean, it’s cool, being the first one to come to
college, but it would’ve made it a lot easier if I
had had someone help me.”
“It felt good to help him and encourage him to
come to college. It made me feel like, “whoa,
I’m being helpful and doing something good for
the world, you know?”
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

33. 33
Recommendations
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

34. 34
Recommendation #1: Awareness
Knowledge is Key
 See the Latino male educational crisis as
an issue for EVERYONE
Action Items
 Disseminate research
 Frame positively
 Know your school’s demographic data
 Internal and external messaging
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

35. 35
Recommendation #2: Buy-In
Connect to Campus and Community
 Engage key internal and external stakeholders
Action Items
 Form internal partnerships to obtain investment
from key administrators on campus
 Recruit faculty/staff
 Form external partnerships with local ISDs and
community organizations to increase the
transitions, participation, and academic success of
Latino Males
 Examine existing resources and reallocate when
necessary
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

36. 36
Recommendation #3: Support
Structures
Provide Pathways for Success
 Identify student needs and target supports
accordingly
Action Items
 Continued research and monitoring of Latino male
achievement for targeting needs
 Recruit and retain quality Latino male faculty/staff
 Recruit Latino male students as classroom and
community leaders
 Programs with “Men in Mind”
Strategic Advising
First-year programs
Faculty & peer mentoring programs
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

37. From Awareness to Action…
37
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

38. WHAT IS Project MALES?
An initiative
of DDCE
Kicked off by
grant from
TG 1st partner:
South Texas
College
Research Mentoring
Agenda (Pilot Model)
Latino Male
Educational Project MALES Student
Success Fellows
(K-16)
Community Four-year
Colleges Institutions 38
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

39. Project MALES:
Goals/Objectives
To increase year-to-year retention as well as graduation rates of
Latino male students at institutions of higher education
To develop and sustain a research-informed, culturally-relevant
mentoring program that advances the success of Latino males
across the educational pipeline
To host an annual community forum to raise awareness about
the challenges facing Latino males along the educational
pipeline
To raise level of awareness and engagement on the growing gender
gap in educational attainment
39
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

40. Project MALES on the move…
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

41. Awareness to Action!
Dr. Victor Saenz speaking at a Capitol Hill Briefing
with the College Board, June 2011
House Education & Workforce Committee Room
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

42. Awareness to Action!
Dr. Luis Ponjuan speaking at a Briefing for the
National Education Association
(June 2011)
Washington, DC
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

43. Univ. of Florida Latino Male Symposium (June 2011)
Univ. of Florida Latino Male Symposium (June 2011)
Latino Male Student Panel
Gainesville, FL
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

44. May 4th, 2012, UT-Austin
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

45. Project MALES: Goals of the
Mentoring Model
GOALS Pilot Project
• Focus on first year • Spring 2012
students • Faculty, Staff, and Alumni
• Utilize focus groups Mentors
• Provide student services • Partners
• Supportive environment • Longhorn Center for
• Reaffirmation of values Academic Excellence
• Mentoring & role models • X-Y Zone (Communities
• Community engagement in Schools)
• Student organization • Travis High School,
Austin ISD
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

46. Project MALES:
Mentoring Structure (pilot)
XY-Zone
High School Student
Project MALES
Student Fellows
XY-Zone
Staff/Faculty High School Student
Grad Students
Upperclassmen
Community Volunteers
XY-Zone
High School Student
Project MALES
Student Fellows
XY-Zone
High School Student
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

47. Project MALES:
Student Fellows Activities
Mentoring w/ • Duration of mentoring relationship – up to 1 year
X-Y Zone • Mentors bi-weekly one-on-one meetings with mentees
• Build rapport, explore academic/social transitions and
progress, identifying mentee goals
• College tours
PM Student • Monthly meetings for all Project MALES Student Fellows
Fellows Cohort • Provides opportunity for guided experience in a specific
Experience area
• Opportunity to develop community; safe spaces
Platicas • Role-Modeling/Informal Mentoring through featuring Latino
Speakers
• Semi-structured Events (Fall/Spring – 3 times per
semester)
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

48. Awareness into Action
Understand Believe Act
•Silent crisis in •We can •Commit to
Latino male improve Latino male
educational Latino male educational
pathways educational excellence
success
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz

49. Project MALES Staff
Victor B. Sáenz, PhD, Director
Assistant Professor, UT-Austin Thank You!
Luis Ponjuan, PhD, Co-Director For more info:
www.projectmales.org
Assistant Professor, University of Florida
Michael E. Nava, PhD, Co-Director
Texas State University
Staff/Volunteers
Sarah L. Rodriguez
Kelty Garbee
Milly Lopez
Manny Gonzalez
Beth Bukoski
Charles Lu
Jenny Smith
Veronica Pecero
Jennifer Estrada Victor Saenz
Katie Pritchett vsaenz@austin.utexas.edu
Carmen Finch
Juan Garcia
© 2012 Victor B. Sáenz