UCLA

California confronts a critical education challenge, as projections suggest only about one-third of ninth graders will attain a bachelor’s degree, deepening existing racial and economic disparities. Dual enrollment (DE) programs, which offer high school (HS) students access to college-level courses, are increasingly positioned as a strategy for addressing college readiness and attainment concerns. However, Black and Latinx students remain underrepresented in DE, raising questions about whether DE expansion is advancing racial equity or reproducing existing inequities. This study examines how DE and HS staff make sense of racial equity within DE, how they engage in racially equitable praxis through services, supports, and collaborations, and what organizational conditions support or constrain racial equity for Black and Latinx students. Using Critical Policy Analysis and Racialized Organizations Theory, this multiple case study examines high Black and Latinx enrolled DE programs and their partner high schools across California. Drawing on interviews with DE directors, coordinators, counselors, and HS counselors, the study explores race-conscious efforts that dismantle existing barriers, honor students’ and families’ funds of knowledge and are culturally responsive, and show how barriers are reproduced through race-neutral practices, deficit framings, and systemic challenges that hinder racial equity.