Journal of Hispanic Higher Education 1–15 © The Author(s) 2016 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1538192716653503 jhh.sagepub.com Article The Function to Serve: A Social-Justice-Oriented Investigation of Community College Mission Statements Luis M. Andrade 1 and Carol A. Lundberg 2 Abstract This study investigated the ways that mission statements from 70 Hispanic-serving community colleges communicated their commitment to their Hispanic-serving function. Reference specifically to the Hispanic-serving function was absent, but references to culture and access were relatively common. Findings describe the ways culture and access were used in the mission statements. The article suggests more explicit reference to the Hispanic-serving nature of the institution in materials readily available to the public. Resumen Este estudio investigó la forma en la que la declaración de la misión de setenta colegios comunitarios de-servicio-a hispanos comunica su compromiso a su función de servicio a hispanos. Referencia específica a la función de servicio a hispanos estaba ausente, pero referencias a cultura y acceso eran relativamente comunes. Los hallazgos describen la forma en la que cultura y acceso se usan en la declaración de la misión. El manuscrito sugiere referencia más explícita a la naturaleza de servicio hispano de la institución en los materiales de difusión pública. Keywords social justice, mission statements, Hispanic-serving institutions, community colleges, content analysis 1 Santa Monica College, CA, USA 2 California State University, Fullerton, USA Corresponding Author: Luis M. Andrade, 1900 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90405, USA. Email: andrade_luis@smc.edu 653503JHH XX X 10.1177/1538192716653503Journal of Hispanic Higher EducationAndrade and Lundberg research-article 2016