Abstract
Created in 1981 by Felix Galaviz and Patricia McGarth, the Puente program’s mission is to increase the number of educationally underserved community college students who transfer to four-year colleges. While prior research on the Puente program focuses primarily on the program’s initial outcomes during its inception (Cazden 2002; Cooper 2002; Gándara and Moreno 2002), this study seeks to expand upon this research by examining the experiences of recent Puente students at a small, rural northern California community college. Based on interviews with six Puente students (three that completed all three phases of the program and three who did not), this research sought to explore potential factors that lead some students to succeed in a transfer assistance program, while others do not. However, no meaningful differences were found between those who finished and those who did not. Regardless of whether they completed the program or not, Puente students report feeling as though the program does make a difference in students’ college aspirations, persistence in college, and preparedness. These narratives of cultural capital that both groups describe are the most important finding as students attributed aspects of their success to the knowledge and information gained through the program with the Puente counselors, English instructors, and mentors. These findings suggest that the Puente program provides students with some of the tools necessary to successfully navigate the explicit and implicit norms of higher education and this cultural capital is highly valued by students in the program.