New Study Published on First-Generation-Z Students in JCAPS

A new study was published with my colleague Dr. Ashleigh Goerdereis (Washington University in St. Louis) which explored the student involvement levels of First-Generation-Z traditional undergraduate students in the The Journal of Campus Activities Practice and Scholarship (JCAPS). JCAPS is the research jounral affiliated with the National Association of Campus Activities (NACA). This was a singular institution, descriptive study which highlights the surprising levels of student involvement among first-generation students born after 1996 (Seemiller & Grace, 2016) using the University Learning Outcomes Assessment. Despite this student generation being on college campuses for 5 years, little research gives voice or describes their undergraduate co-curricular experience. Findings suggest differences between gender and residential status across a number of different cocurricular contexts of leadership, volunteer, and student organization participation. Women and fraternity/sorority status was correlated with increases in critical thinking and self-awareness. However, diversity was among the lowest scoring items in which participants did not report engaging in conversations or having close peers from different social or cultural identities. This finding is counter to previous research which suggests increased interaction across the spectrum of multiple identities for Generation-Z. We (the authors) posit that additional, more intentional student engagement opportunities need to be facilitated to increase exposure and deeper relationships across different social identities for First-Generation-Z traditional undergraduate students. Additional implications for practice and findings are included in the manuscript. A copy is available here.