Research
NCA integrates measures of Community Cultural Wealth with personal social network analysis to understand how students’ assets are nurtured through relationships both on and off campus. The project has been implemented across multiple institutional contexts and links students’ networks and cultural assets to outcomes relevant for academic and career development, such as work values, aspirations, and collective action.
Current Projects
Longitudinal Study on Latine STEM Students’ Social Networks and Cultural Wealth
This three-wave longitudinal mixed-methods panel study collected data across a large public university system in the Southwestern U.S. from 2023 to 2025. The study tracked participants from their junior year through their fifth year or first year postgraduation. We are currently analyzing the data.
2021-2022
Hispanic/Latino Student Community Cultural Wealth, Social Networks, and Career Development at the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater
Publications & Presentations
Bañuelos, N. I, Jang-Tucci, K., & Benbow, R. J. (2026). The development and validation of the Academic Cultural Wealth (ACW) scale: Recognizing student strengths through critical quantitative methods. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis. https://doi.org/10.3102/01623737261421889
Bañuelos, N. I., & Jang-Tucci, K. (2025). Investigating the relationship between community cultural wealth and cultural capital in higher education: A quantitative study. Innovative Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-025-09844-7
Bañuelos, N., Jang-Tucci, K., & Benbow, R. (2023). Forming Science Identity in Personal Networks: A Quantitative Study of Social Support for Latine STEM Students. Center for Research on College-Workforce Transitions. University of Wisconsin–Madison. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/z8j56_v1
Jang-Tucci, K., Benbow, R. J., & Bañuelos, N., (2023). Using Multiple Generator Random Interpreters (MGRIs) for Studying Undergraduate Student Support Networks. Networks & Cultural Assets Project. Center for Research on College-Workforce Transitions. University of Wisconsin–Madison, Division of Continuing Studies. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/vqh6t_v1
Jang-Tucci, K., Benbow, R. J., & Bañuelos, N. (2022). Hispanic/Latino student Community Cultural Wealth, social networks, and career development at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater: A methods and data compendium to the report by the Networks and Cultural Assets Project (NCA). University of Wisconsin–Madison, Center for Research on College-Workforce Transitions. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/vm9cx_v1
Bañuelos, N., Jang-Tucci, K., & Benbow, R. J. (2022). Hispanic/Latino Student Community Cultural Wealth, social networks, and career development at the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater: A report by the Networks and Cultural Assets Project (NCA). University of Wisconsin–Madison, Center for Research on College-Workforce Transitions. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/dkgq5_v1
Bañuelos, N. (2021). Community Cultural Wealth Goes to College: A Review of the Literature for Career Services Professionals and Researchers. (WCER Working Paper 2021-6). University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin Center for Education Research. https://wcer.wisc.edu/docs/working-papers/WCER_Working_Paper_No_2021-6.pdf
Bañuelos, N. & Jang-Tucci, K. (2025, November). Supporting Students’ Job Search Amid Uncertainties [Panel]. Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) 2025 Annual Conference. Denver, CO.
Flores, B. (2025, June). The Impact of Community Cultural Wealth on Latine Students’ STEM Identity: A Quantitative Study. Association. American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) 2025 Annual Conference. Montreal, QC.
Bañuelos, N., & Jang-Tucci, K. (2024, November). Investigating the Relationship Between Dominant & Non-Dominant Cultural Capital in Higher Ed: A Quantitative Study. Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) 2024 Annual Conference. Minneapolis, MN.
Bañuelos, N. & Jang-Tucci, K. (2024, August). Investigating the Relationship Between Dominant & Non-Dominant Cultural Capital in Higher Ed: A Quantitative Study. American Sociological Association (ASA) 2024 Annual Conference. Montreal, QC.
Jang-Tucci, K. & Benbow, R. (2024, April). Forming Science Identity in Personal Networks: A Quantitative Study of Social Support for Latine Students. American Education Research Association (AERA) 2024 Annual Meeting. Philadelphia, PA.
Flores, B. (2024, March). Community Cultural Wealth of Hispanic Engineering Students: A Study of Social Networks. American Society of Engineering Education, Gulf Southwest (ASEE-GSW) 2024 Annual Conference. Canyon, TX.
Bañuelos, N., Jang-Tucci, K., Benbow, R. (2023, November). Social Networks and Science Identity Formation: A Study of Social Support for Latine STEM Students. LSMRCE Conference, Inclusion by Design: Nurturing Diversity in STEM. Chicago, IL.
Bañuelos, N., Jang-Tucci, K., Benbow, R. (2023, November). Social Networks and Science Identity Formation: A Study of Social Support for Latine STEM Students. Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) 2023 Annual Conference. Minneapolis, MN.
Jang-Tucci, K., Bañuelos, N., & Benbow, R. J. (2023, April). Combining Community Cultural Wealth and Social Network Analysis: Developing New Methods for Measuring Students’ Assets. American Educational Research Association (AERA) 2023 Annual Meeting. Chicago, IL.
Bañuelos, N., Jang-Tucci, K., & Benbow, R. J. (2023, April). Combining community cultural wealth with social network analysis to understand students’ college-to-career transition. American Educational Research Association (AERA) 2023 Annual Meeting. Chicago, IL.
Bañuelos, N., Jang-Tucci, K., & Benbow, R. J. (2022, November). Investigating Latina/o community cultural wealth, social network capital, and academic/career development: A quantitative study. Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) 2022 Annual Conference. Las Vegas, NV.
Bañuelos, N., Benbow, R. Jang-Tucci, K. (2022, October). Harnessing Students’ Networks and Cultural Assets for STEM Success. LSMRCE Conference, STEM Ecosystem: Diversity, Partnership, and Empowerment. Chicago, IL.
Resources for Researchers
research methods guide
Implementing Multiple Generator Random Interpreters (MGRI) on Qualtrics
This handbook and toolkit will show you how to build a survey using the Multiple Generator Random Interpreter (MGRI) method in Qualtrics and how to clean the data collected from the survey.
Instrument
Academic Cultural Wealth (ACW) Scale
The ACW Scale draws inspiration from studies that have measured CCW quantitatively in recent years (Braun et al., 2017; Dika et al., 2018; Hiramori et al., 2021, 2024; Horton, 2022; Kirnbauer, 2021; Narvaiz, 2023; Ozuna, 2017; Sablan, 2019), and has been refined through multiple rounds of testing with different populations of undergraduate students.
research methods guide
Examining College Students’ Community Cultural Wealth Through Sociogram Assisted Interviews
This guide describes what we learned from using sociograms, or diagrams of ego networks, in longitudinal interviews with Latine college students about their social support and Community Cultural Wealth. Instruments we used for this study are also available through our Github repository.
Contact Us
Our newsletter shares research and practice related to college students’ social networks and cultural assets. We welcome the chance to connect with researchers and educators who are interested in social network analysis and asset-based approaches.