Beyond Hovering: A Conceptual Argument for an Inclusive Model of Family Engagement in Higher Education

Abstract

Persistently negative stereotypes of college students' parents are biased toward parents from privileged backgrounds and reflect privileged practices that operate from a color-blind and class-blind ideology. This scholarly paper argues for a conceptual shift from parent involvement to family engagement, establishes the need for a more inclusive lens to engage diverse families, and situates the family as a larger collective. We propose a "Model of Parent and Family Characteristics, Engagement, & Support" that contains a more inclusive understanding of the pre-college and college contributions that students' families offer and the broader community and institutional contexts in which they are situated.