College student persistence has been the central focus of higher education for decades. Specifically, historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have directed their attention to increasing the retention and graduation rates of African American college students. Postsecondary institutions face greater challenges with college student persistence after a major crisis. This study explored college student persistence at a historically Black university ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. Given the devastation caused by the storm, this study examined college students' decisions for continuing their educational pursuits at the historically Black university which is a temporary trailer campus created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The temporary campus has 45 trailers designated for classrooms, science labs, a library, a dining facility, and office space for faculty and staff. Students enrolled for the 2007 Spring Semester (N= 301) were asked to complete the Decisions to Resume Educational Pursuits (DREP) instrument that was designed specifically for this study. Predictor variables including, sex, residence status, Pell Grant status, campus housing status, college grade point average, attendance before Hurricane Katrina, and having parents or another close relative attend SUNO were used to predict educational aspirations, campus environment, and financial aid eligibility status as the reason college students continued their education after Hurricane Katrina. The ANOVA for the regression of educational aspirations revealed that the model predicted an overall significant F (7,241) = 4.824, p < .01 and 10% of the variance in educational aspirations was explained by the model. No significant relationship was found with campus environment. As was the case with educational aspirations, the ANOVA for the regression of financial aid eligibility status revealed that the model predicted an overall significant F (7,241) = 4.309, p < .01 and 9% of the variance in financial aid eligibility was explained by the model. A multiple regression model resulted in a statistically significant relationship for attending SUNO before Hurricane Katrina and educational aspirations. Also, results from multiple regression resulted in a statistically significant relationship for sex and financial aid eligibility, along with a relationship for Pell Grant status and financial aid eligibility status.

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a significant relationship between students who entered a Tennessee university for the first time in the fall of 2014 who had earned either Advanced Placement (AP) or dual enrollment credit regarding their college readiness and 1-year college retention. College readiness was defined by students’ American College Testing (ACT) sub scores in English, reading, and mathematics. The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) regulates the minimum sub score for each sub section that a student must obtain to be deemed college ready. College retention was defined by students who enrolled at the university in the fall of 2014 and reenrolled in the fall of 2015 at the same university. The independent variables for this study were AP credits received in AP English Language and Composition, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Statistics, AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, and dual enrollment credit received in any course. The dependent variables for this study were college readiness as defined by TBR and fall-to-fall retention. A series of chi-square tests of independence were performed to examine the differences in college readiness and fall-to-fall retention between students who had earned AP or dual enrollment credit and those students who had not. The quantitative findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between students who enroll in their first college year with AP English or math credit or dual enrollment credit and first year retention rates when compared to students who do not reenroll with AP English or math credit or dual enrollment credit. There was found to be no difference in students who enrolled with AP English or math credit and students who enrolled with dual enrollment credit regarding their fall-to-fall retention rates. It was also found that AP English credit increased the likelihood that a student would be deemed college ready in both English and reading based on TBR determinations of college readiness. Credit in an AP mathematics course also increased the likelihood that a student would be deemed college ready in math based on TBR determinations of college readiness.

This study explores the contributing factors to collegiate foster youth’s college attendance and retention while in college. A qualitative study was conducted consisting of eight face to face interviews were conducted. Participants were student recipients of California State University, San Bernardino’s Educational Opportunity - Renaissance Scholars Program. Areas studied: pre-college admission, transitional support systems, and retention support while in college. Results identified support from high school teachers and school counselors played significant roles in the participant’s future college attendance, family support was not a significant influence, and social work support was not reported by any participants. All participants received supportive services from the Renaissance Scholars program after college admission, however, a majority were not aware of the program’s existence prior. Once in college, many of those who received pre-college support from school counselors and teachers stated an ongoing positive social relationship while traversing college. Psycho-socially, the “life changing event” of attending college, created enduring relational-bonds for students. Conversely, participants without positive support equated to the lack of support (being told that they would not succeed) as their driving force to attend college. The results highlight the significance divide between the positive ongoing resources provided by social services, and the foster youth’s perception of social services interactions towards their benefit. These results illuminate the importance of providing ongoing pre-college, transitional support systems, and retention support resources, to current and former collegiate foster youth. This studies goal is to help increase the social worker's knowledge about foster youth population and its higher education needs.

The aim of the current study was to explore the effects of non-cognitive variables in predicting GPA, institutional commitment, and retention in a sample of African American college students. Specifically, the researcher examined the validity in measuring and utilizing culture specific factors in identifying and intervening with first-year college students. Participants were given measures of positive self-concept, cultural mistrust, cultural congruity, managing discrimination, seeking help, educational value, and financial preparation in addition to a standard measure of non-cognitive predictors. Additionally, participants received one of three interventions (waitlist-control, academic advising, and culturally infused academic advising) with the intent to improve non-cognitive functioning. Analyses of the results suggest that cultural components significantly impact student performance and institutional commitment. No evidence was found to support a change in retention. Implications of these finding and limitations to this study are discussed.

<p>The three studies included in this dissertation collectively aim to highlight the negative impact that culturally homogenous academic, social, and financial systems on college campuses have on the experiences of culturally diverse college students. Currently the academic, social, and financial experiences of college students are not structured to support culturally diverse student groups, thus inhibiting their development of a sense of belonging and contributing to the low retention rates of culturally diverse students. The first study, “Examining Individualism in College Student Retention Theory and Practice: A Transition from Student Integration to Institutional Adjustment,” is a meta synthesis that explains that contemporary retention theories and practices are based on antiquated retention theories and are inadequate in addressing the needs of culturally diverse college student populations. The second study, “Financial Literacy Programming in American Higher Education: What’s There and What’s Missing,” is a qualitative study that addressed the research gap regarding financial literacy and wellness by more clearly defining the financial experiences and interactions that college students have within the financial systems of college. As a follow-up to the second study, the third study, “Values and Value: A Qualitative Study on Culturally Responsive Financial Literacy Programming,” examines more closely the content of financial literacy programs in higher education to identify ways that financial literacy programming on college campuses is responsive to students’ cultural identities. The findings of the included studies collectively inform foundational principles of a culturally responsive retention theory through which the college environment can be examined and potentially transformed to be more inclusive in access and support for culturally diverse students.</p>

This dissertation examined the experiences of African American and Hispanic community college transfers studying in a predominantly White institution (PWI) teacher education program. Extant literature has demonstrated that there is an increasing shortage of public school teachers of color. To address this pervasive crisis, universities must recruit larger numbers of under-represented students from America's community colleges to fill the gap. Additionally, under-represented students in predominantly White institution (PWI) teacher education programs must be retained and graduated in higher numbers to impact teacher production. To understand the needs and experiences of these students, three African American and four Hispanic students successfully studying in the College of Education and Human Development at Texas A & M University were interviewed to examine their experiences as they transitioned into and through the pre-service teacher education program. This study utilized a case study analysis and data collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis were analyzed utilizing constant comparative techniques. Key themes that emerged through data analysis included (1) Student Perceptions of the Transfer Process, (2) The Role of Intimate Support Structures, (3) The Role of Institutional Support Structures, (4) Situational Factors Faced by Under-represented Transfers, and (5) Strategies Employed by Under-represented Transfers in a Predominantly White, Teacher Education Program. Findings from this study suggest that Texas A & M University should improve the marketing of academic support resources and provide narrowly tailored services to meet the needs of under-represented transfer students. Additionally, Schlossberg's Transition Theory is amended to better represent the assets and liabilities utilized by these populations in this particular PWI.

Researchers have suggested that the number of adults holding advanced academic degrees across the population in the United States is falling behind those within the developed nations. Student retention is critical to U.S. colleges and universities’ retention. Retention of in-residence military high school graduates after they enter college is the research problem upon which this study was focused. Understanding the distinct perspective of in-residence military high school graduates can contribute to the improvement of persistence and retention programs for traditional college students; however, a search of the literature revealed an incomplete and unbalanced body of empirical research about this unique population. The purpose of the present study was to describe and evaluate the transition and retention experiences of high school alumni who graduated from an in-residence military school and subsequently attended a 4-year university as an undergraduate student. A qualitative method was implemented with a case study design to explore the perceptions, attitudes, and lived experiences of alumni of in-residence military schools who are freshmen through senior undergraduates attending a sample of diverse 4-year universities across the United States. Participants were alumni from in-residence military high schools and were currently enrolled in traditional 4-year university settings. Elements that enhanced or hindered the retention of military school graduates as they progress or fail in the university setting was explored as well as the role their previous high school experience had regarding their successes or challenges. A semi-structured interview protocol with open-ended questions was implemented to collect data through face-to-face interviews in person where possible or through media such as Skype. Interviews were audio recorded and results were transcribed. Qualitative data requires interpretation and organization into categories to enable construction of a picture by using open coding where themes, patterns, concepts, or similar features can be identified. Therefore, data was separated into categories to search for themes and patterns. Inductive reasoning facilitated the development of conclusions and generalizations.

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Thesis advisor: Heather T. Rowan-Kenyon / Rural undergraduates lag behind urban and suburban undergraduates across many measures of college success, even though they graduate from high school at a higher rate. While a small but growing body of research literature addresses the challenges and barriers rural students face during the college process, few, if any, studies have focused specifically on the experience of rural undergraduates who withdraw from college before completing a degree.This qualitative phenomenological study examines the experiences of rural, low-income, first-in-family undergraduates who stop out of college. Study participants (n=13) attended high school in different rural communities and geographic regions across the United States. After participating in an Upward Bound program during high school, they each enrolled in a two- or four-year, undergraduate degree program at an accredited, non-profit college or university and then withdrew prior to completing a degree. Following in the tradition of Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) and using the framework provided by Clark Moustakas (1994), I engaged study participants in open ended, semi-structured interviews. After those conversations, participants submitted independently recorded voice memos about their experience stopping out of college. The rural backgrounds of study participants manifested in many aspects of how and what they experienced when they withdrew from college. The phenomenon was described as an intense and devastating period of time, characterized by feelings of failure, shame, confusion, and disappointment. The distinct influence of rural families, communities, and schools shaped participants’ decisions before, during, and after their time at college. While the reasons students withdrew varied widely and may be similar to those of non-rural students, all participants perceived their rural background as deeply implicated in the stop-out experience. This study offers a new orientation on the topic of college stop-out among rural undergraduates and presents a working persistence model for this underserved student group. The three theoretical perspectives presented in this study – transcendental phenomenology, ecological systems theory, and community cultural wealth – expose broader meaning about both the objective and subjective qualities of the stop-out experience, adding a depth to findings that has broad implications for scholars and practitioners. This study concludes with practical insights for educators, policymakers, and institutions that serve rural undergraduates. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2021. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.