Community colleges serve a diverse student population. Research studies have indicated that African American males have the lowest persistence rate in colleges. Although there are studies examining the overall persistence rate among African American male students, there is a limited amount of research looking at how the first semester experiences of African American male students may affect their persistence to the following semester. This research study examined the lived experiences of First Time Ever in College African American male students attending a mid-size community college located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States to better understand how their first semester experiences impacted their decision to return to the second semester. A mixed methods research case study model was used to integrate quantitative and qualitative data in the research study. The participants of this study were ten First Time Ever in College African American male students enrolled full-time during the fall 2019 semester. The instruments for data collection for this study were a survey and one-on-one semi-structured interviews. The findings of the study indicated that social support, self-motivation, future job opportunities, and a positive onboarding experience were important factors related to participants' success and persistence. The study concludes with recommendations to support student success and increase the persistence for First Time Ever in College African American male students. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]