Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) are colleges and universities that enroll at least 25% Latinx students. Despite being recognized by the federal government since 1992, HSIs lack a historical mission to serve Latinxs. As such the idea of “servingness” has become an elusive concept. An abundance of literature centering HSIs has been published, yet there continues to be a debate about what it means to serve students. We conducted a systematic review of 148 journal articles and book chapters to better understand how researchers conceptualize the idea of servingness at HSIs. We identified four major themes used by researchers to conceptualize servingness: (1) outcomes, (2) experiences, (3) internal organizational dimensions, and (4) external influences. We also found that researchers are often unintentional in their efforts to conceptualize what it means to be an HSI. We offer a multidimensional conceptual framework of servingness to be used in research, policy, and practice.

The theoretical framework of intersectionality shows much promise in exploring how multiple social identities and their relationships with interlocking systems of power influence educational equity, particularly for historically underserved groups in education. Yet, social scientists have critiqued this framework for not adequately specifying how these dimensions shape life opportunities. This essay draws on the work of sociologist Floya Anthias to advance a conceptual model of intersectionality for educational research. This model addresses how different levels of analysis, types of practices, and relationships between social categories separately or together affect educational opportunities. To illustrate the model's utility in research, policy, and practice, I apply this model to understand contextual influences on Latino im/migrant students' college access.

This study models student- and institutional-level factors that influence vertical transfer among a national sample of White and underrepresented minority (URM) community college students. Results indicate that the predictors of transfer are different in many ways for White and URM students. Most notably, findings suggest that enrolling in vocational programs may hinder students’ odds of vertical transfer for URM (but not White) students. Implications for research, theory, and practice are discussed.

This chapter investigates factors that facilitate postsecondary enrollment for subpopulations of high school students. Students that find themselves at risk and those with parents who have no college experience receive primary consideration.

In this article, Anne-Marie Nuñez uses data from a national longitudinal study of students enrolled in four-year public research universities to assess the effects of social capital and intercultural capital—the capacity to negotiate diverse racial/ethnic environments—on Latino students' sense of belonging in college and on their perceptions of a hostile racial/ethnic climate. She finds that Latino students who are more familiar with diversity issues and who report more social and academic connection and engagement experience a greater sense of belonging even as they also experience a more hostile campus climate. Her findings provide a nuanced understanding of Latino students' college experiences, with implications for how access to intercultural capital through positive cross-racial interactions and diversity curricula may offer benefits that counterbalance the negative impact of marginalizing experiences and ultimately advance educational attainment.

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This study explored how first-generation Latino sophomores in a public research university describe the influence of Chicano Studies classes on their college transition experiences. Students reported that taking Chicano Studies offered them opportunities to handle feelings of isolation, build awareness of community heritage, develop more meaningful student-faculty relationships, and understand perspectives of people from different backgrounds. These processes enhanced their capacity to manage key developmental issues during their college transitions, including handling racism and forming a sense of community on campus. This study offers insights about how practitioners, researchers, and policymakers can address these students' experiences with campus diversity.