The number of minority, particularly Latino, students attending community colleges is on the rise in the United States. Such students frequently lack academic preparation and financial resources. These difficulties, when added to family obligations, often require that minority students attend institutions that offer the most flexible arrangements--typically, community colleges. Due to these issues, however, their successful transition to community college may be difficult. The authors found that up to 35% of first-time freshmen--with a disproportionate number of Latinos--are on probation after their first semester at a large, urban, public community college. The authors developed and instituted a probationary student re-orientation program to both assist these students and understand how their background characteristics and perceptions of the college environment impacted their academic standing. Using Schlossberg's transition theory as our theoretical framework, this study assessed how students of different ethnicities differed along reported levels of academic motivation, general coping, and receptivity to support services. Results suggest that Latinos are more likely to experience academic difficulties, are more prone to drop out, and, yet, are more willing to receive institutional assistance as compared to other students. Framing students' probationary status as a "dangerous opportunity" to instill behavioral/attitudinal changes, the authors discuss how counseling faculty and advisors may assist probationary students in achieving success. (Contains 1 table.)