Creating a New Agenda - How Board of Trustee Members Advance an Equity-Minded Agenda for Racial/ Ethnic Minoritized Student Groups in Texas Community Colleges

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah

Creating a New Agenda addresses how Texas community college board of trustee members can advance an equity-minded agenda for racial/ethnic minoritized student groups during the pandemic era. It frames the need for brave, timely conversations that respond to enrollment declines, reduced persistence, and falling credential completion outcomes. The policy brief explains how leaders use demographic shifts and acknowledgements of blind spots, supported by collaborative professional development, to shape institutional narratives, policies, and practices.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages6

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Creating the Space for Brave Conversations

Leveraging student data for reflections on organizational change

Incremental steps to organizational planning

Creating collaborative engagement to advance the equityminded agenda

Looking forward with an equity-minded leadership approach

References

Creating a New Agenda: How Board of Trustee Members Advance an Equity-Minded Agenda for Racial/ Ethnic Minoritized Student Groups in Texas Community Colleges1 Dr. Luis Ponjuán, Equity Champion Consultant Texas2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 Creating the Space for Brave Conversations 4 Leveraging student data for reflections on organizational change 6 Incremental steps to organizational planning 6 Creating collaborative engagement to advance the equityminded agenda 7 Looking forward with an equity-minded leadership approach 8 References 1 1 For additional information, please correspond directly with Dr. Luis Ponjuán, Texas A&M University, School of Education and Human Development, College Station, Texas, 77843. Email: [luis.ponjuan@tamu.edu](luis.ponjuan@tamu.edu) 2 The author wishes to acknowledge Dr. Richard Reddick at University of Texas at Austin, for the initial development of this research work. I do not have any conflicts of interest to disclose. Acknowledgements: This material and work is supported by Lumina Foundation, Grant No. 2102-1113647. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, and/or recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of Lumina Foundation. Comments or inquiries about this publication or the REACH Collaborative are welcomed and should [be directed to](be directed to info@reachcollab.org)[ info@reachcollab.org](be directed to info@reachcollab.org). This material and work is supported by Lumina Foundation, Grant No. 2102-1113647. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, and/or recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of Lumina Foundation. Comments or inquiries about this publication or the REACH Collaborative are welcomed and should [be directed to info@reachcollab.org](be directed to info@reachcollab.org). Should you want to learn more about the REACH Collaborative and its partners ( Education Strategy Group (ESG), the Office of Community College Research and Leadership (OCCRL) at the University of Illinois, University of Pittsburgh School of Education, and evaluation consulting firm DVPPRAXIS LTD), please visit [reachcollab.org](reachcollab.org). 2 The community college landscape has changed over the last couple of years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Recent national research centers reveal that community colleges have faced student enrollment declines due to the pandemic and economic uncertainty (Huie, et al., 2021) . With a closer look at these declines, students of color (e.g., African American, and Hispanic) had the largest enrollment declines (Huie, et al., 2021) . Scholars have noted that community colleges provide the most accessible pathways for these students due to open admissions policies (Ocean, et al., 2022), flexible class offerings (Grosz, et al., 2022), and affordable tuition rates (Hallberg et al., 2022) . Nonetheless, previous admissions policies (e.g., re-enrollment guidelines), teaching practices (e.g., in-person classroom attendance), or outreach programs (e.g., orientation sessions) are no longer sufficient to reverse the enrollment declines, lower persistence progress, or declining degree (or credentials) completion rates. These challenges compel community college leaders (e.g., Board of Trustee members, central administration, and academic deans) to create an institutional narrative to address the declining enrollment trends and educational outcomes, specifically for racial/ethnic minoritized student groups3 . The purpose of this policy brief is to highlight the brave and essential conversations of Texas community college leaders to advance an equity-minded agenda for racial/ethnic minoritized student groups during the pandemic era. The guiding principle of this brief is to illustrate the importance of community college leadership engaged in critical conversations to shape institutional policies, programs, and practices to improve the educational experiences for these students. Creating the space for brave conversations The RE

FAQs

What problem does the policy brief focus on for Texas community colleges?

It focuses on how pandemic-era enrollment declines, lower persistence, and reduced credential completion outcomes affect racial/ethnic minoritized student groups.

What is the purpose of the brief?

It highlights brave and essential conversations led by Texas community college leaders to advance an equity-minded agenda during the pandemic era.

How are trustee leaders expected to approach these conversations?

They are expected to develop a perspective on changing demographics, acknowledge blind spots, and use core ideals—such as inclusion, educational equity, justice, and belonging—to guide institutional change.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah