Culturally and linguistically diverse families face substantial barriers in the special education system and seek support from cultural brokers to help them navigate it. We used a qualitative design to study cultural brokering experiences among Latinx families of children with extensive support needs and cultural brokers. Through individual…

We present the first quantitative analysis of the impact of ending de jure segregation of Mexican-American school children in the United States by examining the effects of the 1947 Mendez v. Westminster court decision on long-run educational attainment for Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites in California. Our identification strategy relies on…

This educational case study examines the efforts of one Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) to counter deficit narratives and provide institutional as well as interpersonal supports for Latinx student success through a Student Leadership Retreat. We consider these activities and students' experiences therein through the lenses of Latinx leadership…

Opportunities for collaborative learning reflect positive peer processes that have strong implications for adolescents' developmental experiences in afterschool programs (ASPs). However, collaborative learning, which involves considering multiple viewpoints and coordinating actions with peers to accomplish a shared goal, is often difficult for…

Neoliberal advocates frame school choice as the solution to the many issues plaguing public schools, including not meeting state standards, the opportunity gap, and disengagement. This market-driven approach makes school reputation--ideas continuously made and remade about schools dependent on perceptions or experiences--a critical dimension that…

Purpose: There is a documented disparity in the number of Latino physicians in the U.S., especially in states with a large Latino population like California. In this study, the researcher explores the lived experiences of qualified, motivated Latino students enrolled at medical schools in California to better understand their perceptions of…

The California State University's Graduation Initiative 2025 has strengthened and renewed campuses' commitment toward supporting students on their educational journey to ensure they meet their ultimate goal of graduation. Of equal importance is the elimination of racial/ethnic and socioeconomic equity gaps in graduation completion, especially for…

Stratification in selective college admissions persists even as colleges' criteria for evaluating merit have multiplied in efforts to increase socioeconomic and racial diversity. Middle-class and affluent families increasingly turn to privatized services, such as private college consulting, to navigate what they perceive to be a complicated and…

Young people need digital competency and confidence to effectively harness computing power to solve problems and design solutions; a core component is improving young people's computational thinking. Unfortunately, access to computer science education is lacking for all youth, and in particular for youth who live in lower-income households, who…

Cultural mismatch theory of inequality and associated research indicates that a mismatch between independent cultural norms of institutions of higher education and students' interdependent backgrounds account for disparities in academic achievement for students from historically underrepresented groups. Despite growing interest in interventions to…

"¡Juntos Podemos!"/Together We Can! is a multigenerational, districtwide collective of educators, community organizers, and activists. Located in eastern Los Angeles County, the group developed intentionally and horizontally to address the disenfranchisement of the working-class communities of La Puente and Valinda using the California…

College student parents are a unique population not always heard on college campuses. The current study reports the voice of student parents and their challenges in pursuing higher education, while raising children at a 4-year Hispanic Serving Institution. Seven hundred and eighty-six student parents participated, among whom 54% were Hispanic (n =…

U.S. Census Bureau Report (2020c) showed Hispanic students constituted 18.5% of the U.S. population, 36% attended higher education and only 14% completed postsecondary education. Research has shown Hispanic, specifically Latinx, students faced barriers in accessing higher education's hidden curriculum, compounded by deficit beliefs about their…

Using institutional data from University of California, Merced (UC Merced), this dissertation explores the relationship between enrolling in academic units in the summer term immediately after the first year of college (first-summer) and four-year degree completion at a Hispanic- and Minority-Serving Institution, through the lenses of Academic…

Funding for community colleges varies significantly, even within the same state. Several factors account for these differences, including more generous funding for smaller institutions to compensate for their higher costs per student, unequal local funding from property tax revenues, and political forces. In theory, this variation could lead to…