Grappling with Our Grief: An Exploration of the Impact of COVID-19 on the Experiences of First-Year College Students
Disciplines
Accessibility | Community-Based Research | Community College Leadership | Community Psychology | Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | Educational Leadership | Pain Management | Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies | Social Psychology and Interaction
Abstract (300 words maximum)
The challenges that have emerged in recent years have raised concerns about student attrition in higher education. The COVID-19 pandemic, social justice movements, and political climate have had unprecedented impacts on college students (Borgstrom & Mallon, 2022). One of the main issues is the increasing mental health crisis in higher education, which requires immediate attention (Lee et al., 2021). Additionally, students face significant challenges such as financial constraints, food and housing insecurity, and other obstacles that affect their college experiences (Duke et al., 2021). Freshman students may have unique experiences as their high school education may have been remote, hybrid, or in-person with varying security measures, complicating their college transition. First-year students may have experienced grief, loss, and trauma during the pandemic, requiring special attention to the resources and support needed to complete their degrees as we navigate this post-pandemic contexts (Sirrine et al., 2021). The lingering effects of pandemic-related trauma are still affecting the college experiences of first-year students and their ability to achieve academic and professional goals. Therefore, our research explored the lived experiences of first-year college students through a qualitative research design using focus groups. The research question explored in our study is: How or to what extent has grief and trauma from COVID impacted the educational journeys of first year students? The purpose of this research was to provide an important opportunity to investigate how to better support college students as they navigate college and find ways to support their success.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
BCOE - Educational Leadership
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Chinasa A. Elue
Additional Faculty
N/A
Grappling with Our Grief: An Exploration of the Impact of COVID-19 on the Experiences of First-Year College Students
The challenges that have emerged in recent years have raised concerns about student attrition in higher education. The COVID-19 pandemic, social justice movements, and political climate have had unprecedented impacts on college students (Borgstrom & Mallon, 2022). One of the main issues is the increasing mental health crisis in higher education, which requires immediate attention (Lee et al., 2021). Additionally, students face significant challenges such as financial constraints, food and housing insecurity, and other obstacles that affect their college experiences (Duke et al., 2021). Freshman students may have unique experiences as their high school education may have been remote, hybrid, or in-person with varying security measures, complicating their college transition. First-year students may have experienced grief, loss, and trauma during the pandemic, requiring special attention to the resources and support needed to complete their degrees as we navigate this post-pandemic contexts (Sirrine et al., 2021). The lingering effects of pandemic-related trauma are still affecting the college experiences of first-year students and their ability to achieve academic and professional goals. Therefore, our research explored the lived experiences of first-year college students through a qualitative research design using focus groups. The research question explored in our study is: How or to what extent has grief and trauma from COVID impacted the educational journeys of first year students? The purpose of this research was to provide an important opportunity to investigate how to better support college students as they navigate college and find ways to support their success.