The Puente Project: Socializing and Mentoring Latino Community College Students.

Introduction

Latinos are now the most rapidly growing ethnic group in the country and are expected to be the largest minority group by the year 2010 (Carnevale, 1999). Nearly 28 million Latinos live in the U.S. and currently represent 1 in every 10 persons (1 in 4 in the state of California) (U.S. Census Bureau, 1997). Yet, their educational and economic gaps are of concern due to lower than average salary levels and significantly lower high school and college completion rates than any other ethnic group. Based on the significant role of education in determining occupation and earnings, Carnevale (1999) comments, "Postsecondary education has become our real school-to-work system and our worker training and retraining system. We do not have and are unlikely to build an alternative postsecondary educational track for non-college students. Thus, the lion's share of the work force preparation and retraining will continue to done by educators, most effectively in collaboration with employers" (p. 70). For Latinos, who already represent a large segment of low-skilled, low-paying service workers, this bodes great economic difficulties for those involved as well as problems for the general society.

The need to increase the Latino high school graduation, college enrollment, and completion rates is clearly fundamental to the economic prosperity of Latinos. In 1996, just over half (5%) of all Latinos ages 18 to 24 graduated from high school, reflecting an increase only slightly higher than that twenty years earlier (Wilds & Wilson, 1998). Of these high school graduates, only slightly more than one-third (35%) chose to go to college, with almost 60% of them selecting community colleges as their point of entry. Latinos earned only 7% of all associate degrees, 5% of all bachelor's degrees, 4% of all professional degrees, and 3% of all master's degrees awarded in the U.S. in 1995 (Wilds & Wilson, 1998).

The low participation and completion rates for Latinos have led to a number of K-16 educational pipeline efforts. Mentoring has emerged as a strong programmatic solution to the retention of academically at risk populations in college, including Latinos.

For some time now, colleges and universities have recognized the need to address the problems of retention, particularly during the critical freshman year. Efforts (especially targeted are nontraditional college students who often enter college academically underprepared) have led to a variety of mentoring programs (Canton & James, 1995). This article highlights the Puente Project, a California community college academic program that successfully recruits and retains Latino students in college, assists them to excel academically, and effectively prepares them to transfer to four-year institutions to complete the baccalaureate degree. Among the many factors that make the Puente Project unique is its focus on welcoming all students, but primarily Latinos, into college. The program affirms who they are as valuable cultural assets thus providing a foundation and a framework for collegiate learning experiences. There are three components to the Puente Project: (1) English composition (2) counseling, and (3) mentoring. This study examines the mentoring component of the Puente Project and how it intersects with the other two components.

In this article, I present a brief review of the research literature on mentoring and the role of organizational socialization. Next, I present highlights of the Puente Project as an exemplary model that addresses the needs of Latino college students from a cultural context. Finally, I discuss a few of its successes and conclude with some implications for research, policy, and practice in higher education.

Methodology

Qualitative methods were used to collect and analyze data about mentoring and the Puente Project. Semi-structured interviews with administrators, faculty, mentors, and students associated with the Puente Project were audio taped and verbatim transcripts produced. State, program, and institutional documents, such as reports, newsletters, brochures, newspaper articles, and other archival data pertaining to experiences of Latinos and to the Puente Project provided another form of content data. Emerging themes from the data were analyzed for patterns congruent with or divergent from the conceptual framework (Miles & Huberman, 1994) on mentoring and socialization. This methodology allowed for making plausible linkages between the data and the emerging concepts (Hammersley & Atkinson, 1983).

The Origins of Mentoring

The concept of "mentor" comes to us from Greek mythology with it first appearing as a name of a character in Homer's epic poem, Odyssey. Going away from home for an extended period to fight in the Trojan Wars, Odysseus entrusted his only son, Telemachus, to his old friend and advisor, Mentor. In Odysseus's absence, Mentor served as guardian, teacher, and father figure to his young protege. In addition, from time to time, Athena, goddess of wisdom and the arts, disguised herself as Mentor and appeared in his stead (Phillips-Jones, 1982).

Defining Mentoring

The Homeric concept of mentoring still prevails today. It is basically defined as a socializing relationship between an older, trusted, more experienced person (mentor) who teaches the willing, younger, less experienced individual (mentee or protege) how to survive and succeed in a new organizational world. The literature on mentoring, however, offers a variety of terms to define mentor and the mentoring process. Otto (1994) defines a mentor as someone who provides practical day-to-day advice, which can be used immediately, as well as helps the mentee prepare for advancement. More specifically, Yoder, Adams, Grove, and Priest (1985) state that a mentor is a role model who is a visible member of the protege's own ethnic, minority, or gender group and who is successful in his or her profession. An even more comprehensive definition comes from Evanoski (1988) who notes the multiple roles a mentor assumes in the socialization of the protege. These multiple roles include the mentor as a teacher who enhances the skills and intellectual development of the protege; as a host and guide who welcomes the newcomer into a new occupational and social world; as the person who acquaints the individual with the organizational values, culture, customs, resources, and specific actors; and, as a sponsor who facilitates the protege's entry and advancement in this new social world. Just as importantly, the mentor also provides advice and moral support when necessary. Evanoski's definition is much more in line with Homer's Greek character, Mentor, as an individual who is a trusted counselor or guide and who acts as a tutor and a coach.

An additional element of mentoring is the role of the mentor as sponsor. Kram (1985) identifies a sponsor as someone who has the influence to put the protege `in the right place at the right time.' As such, a sponsor helps a newcomer build a reputation, become known, and obtain job opportunities that prepare the protege for higher level positions. Kram adds that later in a career, a sponsor can be a deciding factor in obtaining recognition, awards, or promotions for his or her protege that might otherwise go to someone else. Successful sponsorship also benefits the sponsor. Promoting the career of a protege who advances and does well reflects favorably on the mentor as having excellent judgment, thus enhancing the mentor's credibility and reputation.

Ultimately, a mentoring relationship is an agreement between two individuals to structure a mentor-protege relationship by mutual choice. The success of the relationship depends on having mutual respect and stated goals to achieve (Otto, 1994). Knox and McGovern (1988) cite several characteristics that a mentor ideally brings to the relationship including a willingness to share knowledge; to allow for growth; to give positive and critical feedback; and to be direct and honest with the protege.

Flaxman, Ascher, and Harrington (1988) assert that two types of mentoring--instrumental mentoring and psychological mentoring--occur in an integrated manner. Instrumental mentoring involves teaching, advising, coaching, sponsoring, guiding, advocating, and dispensing or sharing resources with the protege. Essentially, the mentor assists the protege to negotiate the environment in practical ways, drawing directly from his or her own life experiences. Psychosocial mentoring involves role modeling, confirming, validating, counseling, and providing emotional support to the protege. The mentor's role is to assist the protege to change his or her social circumstances, to influence the protege personally, and to serve as a role model. In sum, the mentor offers encouragement, counsel, and support, and affirms a mentoring relationship based on forming a mutually trusting, emotional attachment.

Socializing a Newcomer

As higher education institutions continue to seek an optimal solution, how colleges socialize nontraditional, academically at risk, first-generation college-going, and underrepresented racial/ethnic students to the collegiate culture varies. Among the most successful programs, as measured by increased retention and academic success, are those that consider the socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds that students bring to the academic environment.

The socialization of a newcomer to an organization is defined as the "theory about how new skills, belief systems, patterns of action, and, occasionally, personal identity, are acquired (or not acquired) by people as they move into new social settings" (Van Maanen, 1984). Van Maanen and Schein (1979) state that the socialization process used to orient new members varies by organization ranging from a short orientation session to more elaborate, lengthy, and formal education and training. All too often, many new college students will experience a short orientation session, followed by a series of individual trial and error experiences as they uncomfortably find their way through the academic maze.

Socialization is contextualized as individuals move in and out of different social roles with associated sets of cultural expectations and demands throughout their lives (Trice and Beyer, 1993). Socializing agents and events also vary in their efficacy, with some being more persuasive, coherent, and inspiring than others. Socialization efforts usually combine several tactics and may mix elements that occur at different points in the process.

Van Maanen (1984) notes the process of accepting new members. The more traditional socialization approach expects newcomers to enter the organization with the intent to conform to the existing images of desirable and proper. This traditional approach, according to Van Maanen, leads to a process that systematically reduces whatever cultural or behavioral diversity exists among the newcomers at entry and forces them to learn to accommodate themselves into an organizational model of one-mold-fits-all. Thus, new members are expected to progressively sublimate or shed their own cultural attitudes and behaviors, and learn to act in ways that are culturally congruent with the establishment.

A less traditional, less practiced form of organizational socialization welcomes newcomers by taking advantage of the attitudes and skills already possessed by the newcomers. Van Maanen (1984) refers to this as "celebratory socialization," a welcoming and confirming approach that eases the transition of newcomers to the new setting and builds on preserving their heterogeneity while teaching them the norms of the organization. In such a bi-directional process newcomers blend their own attributes and behaviors with that of the organizational culture, thereby creating a much more distinctive organizational culture that welcomes and celebrates the contributions of all its members.

In summary, the concept of celebratory socialization in an educational setting highlights a process that attempts to break down newcomers' confusion and alleviate their culture shock by welcoming all students, including students from culturally diverse backgrounds, and instilling in them a sense of belonging to the organization (i.e., college).

The Puente Project: An Exemplar 

Developed in 1981 by Patricia McGrath, an English faculty member, and Felix Galaviz, a counselor and assistant dean, the Puente Project began as an internal organizational response to the high Latino drop-out rate at a California community college. In examining Latino student transcripts, McGrath and Galaviz discovered that these students typically did not take a logical sequence of courses leading to specific majors and educational goals. The students often ignored course prerequisites, took very few general education courses (necessary to meet associate degree or transfer requirements), and seldom sought academic counseling. Moreover, a consistent pattern revealed that these students disproportionately enrolled in non-transfer remedial writing courses while only a few progressed to advanced English classes.

McGrath and Galaviz (1996b) designed a bridge program to help Latino students succeed in college. Program goals were to help Latinos persist, to transfer, to earn the bachelor's and advanced degrees, to advance into careers, and to return to the community as leaders, role models, and mentors to the next generation. In naming their program the "Puente Project," McGrath and Galaviz purposely selected the Spanish word puente (i.e., bridge) to convey the conceptual image of linking educational bridges for Latinos from high school to community college to senior institutions to the Latino community.

Using a cultural framework, the Puente Project emphasizes (1) a year of intensive traditional English instruction enhanced with Latino and other multicultural literature (2) sustained academic counseling; and (3) careful mentoring by Latino volunteers from the professional and academic community who serve as cultural role models (McGrath & Galaviz, 1996b).

Research (Trice and Beyer, 1993; Van Maanen, 1984) shows that the socialization process becomes collective when a group of individuals share experiences, such as collectively facing entry into an organization or into a new role. Such collective tactics often stem from formal, sequential, fixed steps that lead to specific roles and outcomes. In that light, the vitality and strengths of the Puente Project are its strong linkages interconnecting the academic and social components of writing, counseling, and mentoring.

This pedagogical template provides Puente students an academically accelerated environment that is respectful of culture and supportive of the local community. Partially released from other faculty responsibilities, English and counseling faculty work together with a selected cohort of approximately 25-30 students who are not eligible to enter the college level English 1A course without remediation. An integral element of the program is the expectation that one of the Puente Project faculty members is Latino and/or the counselor is proficient in Spanish. New Puente faculty undergo an intensive experiential training in the Puente Summer Institute at the University of California, Berkeley. Newly trained faculty will periodically meet during the year with experienced Puente faculty (McGrath & Galaviz, 1996a).

A brief overview of the three components of the Puente Project demonstrates the integrated nature of the program. The writing component is a two-course sequence of accelerated writing instruction, a pre-transfer developmental English course and a transfer-level English IA composition class. These rigorous courses are enhanced with exercises based on Latino and other multicultural literature. Faculty encourage Puente students to draw from their multicultural expertise and first-hand knowledge of their own cultural backgrounds (McGrath & Galaviz, 1996b). Thus, the students begin from a foundational position of strength from which they add their new knowledge and skills in English composition. Because of this pedagogical approach, students quickly develop a positive sense of their academic abilities leading to an emerging academic identity congruent with the expressed goals of the co-directors.

Counseling, another distinctive component of the Puente Project, addresses the academic socialization of students. The academic counselor has close contact with the Puente students in several important ways (McGrath & Galaviz, 1996a). First, the counselor participates in the English classroom. Second, the counselor teaches a combined one-semester college orientation and study skills course. Third, the counselor serves as the Puente students' advisor from entry into the program until transfer. The counselor offers students on-going, in-depth academic and career guidance and information along with extensive personal encouragement, motivation, and emotional support to persist and succeed in college.

An important element in the academic socialization of Puente students is having the counselor work closely with parents helping them understand and become actively involved. The counselor informs parents about their children's college education by assembling sessions about the four-year college application process, the transfer process, the function of financial aid, and other related topics. The parents also attend other Puente cultural activities, visit four-year campuses, and participate in parent support groups. In essence, the Puente counselor also becomes an informal mentor to the parents.

Another essential part of the Puente counselor's responsibilities is to recruit and train Latino mentors. Latino professionals are crucial external members who assume a stake in the educational success or failure of the students. It is anticipated that a greater involvement of the Latino community will lead to higher institutional accountability, responsiveness, and a more effective educational environment.

Mentor training covers a range of cultural and academic areas. Critical skills include having active listening and the provision of guidance without imposing personal judgments. The process involves the careful matching of mentors with proteges, in one-to-one pairings whenever possible. The counselor arranges an array of formal academic and social activities for mentors and proteges to enhance these developing relationships. Throughout the year, the counselor meets with mentors regularly and monitors the mentor-protege relationships (The Puente Project, 1999).

Along with the training, occasional meetings with all the mentors occur with the statewide mentoring director and coordinator. A newsletter and a website keep Puente mentors informed about mentoring and other issues (The Puente Project, 1999).

Puente Mentoring

Through cultural role modeling, gentle guiding, and coaching, the mentors assist the students to develop their self-esteem, to foster their self-confidence as academically capable students, and to nurture the emergence of an academic identity. Mentoring activities include inviting the proteges to work sites and professional meetings, visiting with them at various on- and off-campus locations, serving as guest speakers in their class, participating in other Puente activities, and attending college fairs and other related transfer activities. Mentors may also take their proteges with them to professional conferences, help them to get summer jobs or internships, and promote them for corporate or organizational scholarships.

When the Puente proteges meet their mentors for the first time, it is an event preceded by careful preparation with the English and counseling faculty. First, the Puente students go though a series of narrative assignments designed to call attention to, and validate, their past experiences and cultural identity as Latinos (Cazden, 1996). These assignments go through several drafts and peer reviews. They include narratives about familiar topics such as their neighborhood, a relative from whom they learned something important, their cultural upbringing and ethnic identity, or their response to a historical novel about Mexican history. Then, another set of narrative papers focuses on the mentoring experiences, beginning with expectations of students' first meeting with their mentors.

One student, nervous about meeting his mentor for the first time, shared, "As I walked through the door of the little restaurant, I could hear my heart beat. My hands were sweaty and I was nervous. I thought to myself, what will my mentor look like, what will he say, what will we talk about, will he be intimidating, will I say something stupid. All of these things ran through my mind as I walked around the restaurant. I knew only three things: his name, what profession he was in, and his telephone number." The Puente student concluded, "After talking with my mentor for an hour and a half, I was much more confidant, and I felt proud because he took time for me and gave me hope, courage, and support." Mentors express their feelings about entering this new relationship with excitement and anticipation, as well. A district attorney who has served as mentor a number of times stated, "I wouldn't miss meeting my student for anything."

As mentors and proteges become acquainted, the socialization process proceeds. The mentors assume the roles of guide, coach, and role model. An equally important part of the socialization process includes discussions regarding how to retain cultural identities while continuing to develop emerging academic identities.

In the second semester, students make a transition from using narrative structure and concrete details to doing expository and analytical assignments in a transfer-level English course (Cazden, 1996). They also move to writing thematic papers about their mentors and topics of success. In their interactions with the mentors, the Puente students are encouraged to be reflective about their past experiences and cultural identity. Evidence of the Puente students' personal and academic self-confidence is evident through their sharing of written work and being open to feedback (Gandara, Larson, Mehan, & Rumberger, 1998).

Prominent Latino writers and artists also are invited to speak and share their creative works (Rouleau, 1996). They serve as additional inspiring role models and informal mentors. These writers and artists share their artistry and talents with the students, and speak about their personal life experiences, educational hurdles, and the many difficulties they experienced to become professionally recognized and established in their fields. Moreover, as with the formal professional mentors, the writers and artists confirm the cultural concept that Puente students do not have to lose their ethnic identity in order to achieve academic and career success.

Sharing Puente with Others

Puente students have established a cultural tradition of giving back to their communities. A favorite saying handed down from cohort to cohort annually is "Once a Puente, always a Puente." It means returning" ... to give back a little of what we received as students" (Rouleau, 1996).

The concept of sharing begins in the Puente students' own institutions. For example, students at one community college shared the career advice and insights from their mentors with succeeding Puente cohorts by compiling a mentor book with short profiles about their mentors and samples of writing (Rouleau, 1994).

Peer mentoring is another form of "giving back" that has spread among Puente programs. Several former Puente cohorts at a community college launched their own peer mentoring program with the express goal of sustaining motivation among current Puente students. The former Puente students became peer mentors to share their academic experiences and expertise. In effect, these former and current Puente students developed "big brother/big sister" relationships that have thrived and been replicated each year by succeeding cohorts (The Puente Project, 1999). In another instance, former Puente students at a University of California campus formed a peer "mentor-mentee" program to assist incoming Puente transfer students. Drawing from their own academic and social experiences, the older students helped the new students become socialized to life on a four-year campus (Rouleau, 1995).

Peer influence remains important. Many students form Puente clubs on their campuses to encourage members to offer additional motivation and support to each other through their meetings, activities, and fund raising events (Rouleau, 1997). Current and former Puente students also maintain contact with each other through the web site the Puente Project office staff has developed (The Puente Project, 1999). Among the former Puente students who participate in the web site are many who have completed their undergraduate work and are now in professional positions or enrolled in graduate programs at selective universities across the country.

Puente Project Outcomes

A remarkable measure of the Puente Project success is its longevity--nearly two decades old--and constancy--Patricia McGrath and Felix Galaviz remain program co-directors. A 97% retention rate for Puente students offers one of the reasons the program has survived. As of 1998, there were over 9,000 Puente students in 38 colleges and 21 high schools. More than 200,000 students have benefited from Puente Project staff development programs as former Puente teachers and counselors have applied their acquired knowledge and methodologies to non-Puente students in their regular courses. Approximately 2,500 professionals have served as Puente mentors, contributing over 20,000 hours annually to Puente students (The Puente Project, 1998).

Another mark of success is the rise of transfer rates for Puente students. At least 48% of all students who complete the Puente program transfer to a four-year institution within three years compared to less than 7% for non-Puente students. Approximately 30% of Puente students transfer to one of the eight highly selective UC campuses as compared to 22% for all other students (UC President's Office, 1996) and another 56% transfer to one of the 23 California State University campuses (Stough, 1996). Moreover, Puente students make up 19% of all Latino transfer students entering a UC campus from community colleges that transfer Puente students (The Puente Project, 1998). Increasingly, more former Puente students are also choosing to continue their post-baccalaureate education by going on to professional or graduate schools leading to the development of a new cadre of leaders with strongly affirmed cultural backgrounds (The Puente Project, 1998).

The success of the Puente Project has led to a series of partnerships and collaborations. In 1985, the University of California President's Office became a co-sponsor of the Puente Project with the California Community Colleges to support their mutual goals of increasing Latino transfer rates to the University of California system. The University of California President's Office offers building facilities to the Puente Project and acts as the fiduciary agent while the local participating community colleges contribute faculty and staff, and the community provides the Latino mentors. Also, the University of California's campuses take turns hosting state-wide motivational and transfer Puente Project conferences (The Puente Project, 1998, 1999). In these various endeavors, the UC system offers appropriate cultural presentations to ensure that the events are specific to their target audience.

One of the best indicators of success is how well a program model can be replicated with different populations in different settings. In 1993, the Puente Project linkages expanded to include high schools with large enrollments of Latino students. Initial funding from the Carnegie Foundation led to seven high school Puente programs. With added funding from other foundations and corporations, the Puente Project became a part of high school curriculum offerings in 33 high schools. The rapid success of High School Puente has led to demands by Latino parents to implement the program at their schools.

Although the Puente Project has received many local and states awards over the years, a singular achievement occurred in October 1998 when it was selected as one of ten national winners of the Innovations in American Government Program Awards funded by the Ford Foundation. The Puente Project received an award of $100,000 for being among the nation's best examples of government innovation from over 1,500 applications reviewed by the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. David Gergen, the national committee selection chair, noted, "At a time when Americans across the country are concerned about the educational advancement of minority students, the Puente Project provides solid evidence that with innovative leadership, answers can be found within our grasp. Hispanic students in particular have gained from this excellent program" (Budd, 1998).

Implications for Research, Policy, and Practice An implication for future research concerns the nature and longitudinal effect of the mentoring of Puente students. While there are clear indicators that mentoring has positive psychological and instrumental effects on students, the fact that mentoring is inextricably mingled with the writing and counseling components makes it difficult to assess its direct impact. A need for more research to assess the specific impact of mentoring remains. It is anticipated that the elements that contribute to mentoring success and its actual impact on Puente community college students can be assessed through a longitudinal, quantitative, and qualitative study.

A serious implication for policy is maintaining adequate funding levels. In fall 1999, the governor of California vetoed additional funds for the Puente Project expansion in community colleges (Leovy, 1999). While some state funds were finally procured late in the year adding 7 more programs (increasing the number of Puente Project offerings to a total of 45 community colleges), the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office and the UC President's Office continue to grapple with this on-going financial problem.

Another implication for policy focuses on the diverse racial and ethnic population the Puente Project serves. Although highly acclaimed for its success with Latino students across the K-16 spectrum and the replicability of its format, it is important to note the chilling effect the advent of a spate of recent anti-affirmation action state legislation has had on the Puente Project and other state, programs (Gandara, 1998). California Proposition 187, passed in 1994, makes it illegal to provide public services, including education, to undocumented immigrants. The 1995 UC regents' policy, SP-1, eliminated race and ethnicity in public university admissions decisions. California Proposition 209, passed in 1996, prohibited the consideration of race in any state program, state hiring, or public college admissions. Proposition 227, passed in 1998, banned bilingual education in the state. These propositions have severely impacted the Puente Project and all other such academic programs that largely serve minority students.

Since the UC Regents' passage of SP-1, the Puente Project has been explicitly open to all students regardless of ethnicity. Puente Project personnel, however, state that the program has never been closed to any non-Latino students who wish to enroll in it (Chavez, 1998). Currently, at least 10 percent of all students who participate in the Puente Project are from different racial and ethnic groups (The Puente Project, 1999). In addition, the language used by the Puente Project in its literature and oral presentations does not use terms such as "target population," "minority," or refer to any specific racial and ethnic group. Puente Project personnel, however, are clear to state that the program augments and enhances the English curriculum offered in the Puente Project sites by using appropriate enriching literature by Latino and other multicultural authors.

An implication for practice is that the Puente Project is highly replicable as a model demonstrated by the presence of 38 programs in community colleges across California in 19 years and in 33 high schools in a mere six years (The Puente Project, 1999). Moreover, states such as Texas and Arizona are considering replicating the model, as well (Leovy, 1999).

Lastly, the continuing involvement of co-directors Patricia McGrath and Felix Galaviz since 1981 merit both high commendation for their highly dedicated commitment and a pause for reflection as well. Although the Puente Project is now an institutionalized entity that stands on its own merits, one must consider: What might the future bode for this program if California and national anti-affirmative, race sensitive supporters prevail? Moreover, what might the future of the Puente Project be in a post-McGrath and Galaviz era? How can the singular dedication and momentum generated by these co-directors be sustained in either case? Whatever the outcomes, the Puente Project will likely prevail and maintain its successful place in education.

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Berta Vigil Laden has taught in high school, adult school, community college, and university settings. She also has held various administrative positions, including serving as department and division chair. Her research focuses on higher education and policy issues of culture, ethnic identity, access and equity, persistence, retention, transfer, and completion for ethnically diverse students in two- and four-year colleges. Dr. Laden is presently serving as a visiting scholar at Stanford University.