Due to low English language arts (ELA) state test scores among Hispanic students, district administrators in a Title I identified school district implemented a new literacy policy that included both supplemental education services for Hispanic students (SES-HS) and professional development in cultural and linguistic instructional practices (CLIP)…

This study explored how personal, family, and cultural values influence career decision-making in first-generation Latinas. As the number of first-generation Latinas in higher education grows, there is a need to address their distinct needs as they navigate higher education and the career decision-making process. Their experience is unique and…

Latine bachelor's degree completion has grown in the last several decades but has not kept pace with other racial and ethnic groups. Millions of Latines have successfully navigated higher education, yet not enough is known about the conduits and barriers to timely degree completion. This dissertation utilizes LatCrit, Anti-Deficit Achievement, and…

The current paper examines associations between preschool cognitive and behavioral skills and indicators of college enrollment in a sample (n = 379) of primarily Black and Hispanic youth growing up in low-income areas of Chicago. Although we found that most early cognitive and behavioral skills were only weakly or moderately related to later…

Research indicates that women and Students of Color are less likely than men or White students to succeed in STEM degree pathways due to pre-college factors, college engagement, and campus environments. Similarly, racially and ethnically minoritized students, particularly Black and Latinx students, are underrepresented in STEM degree fields and…

This dissertation uses an ethnographic approach, observations, field notes, and interviews to analyze how Chicanx/Latinx students create counter-spaces to cultivate their epistemological needs and validate their identities within a predominantly white institution (PWI). The project uses the "Nopalera" Framework created by an artist…

One of the important mechanisms in cancer cell metastasis is the cellular function of a specific cell type called myofibroblast cells. Myofibroblast cells are unique cell types that play an important role in the cancer cell microenvironment. As a step toward integrating the latest peer-reviewed cancer research findings into a general biology…

Purpose: Much scholarly hand-wringing has concerned the academic engagement of Black and Latino boys. At the center of these conversations are questions of culture. Cultural disconnects between home and school are profound for students from marginalized communities, particularly so for young men. Prudence Carter asserts that young men in urban…

Absenteeism and attrition pose serious challenges in government-funded adult ESL programmes, inhibiting success rates, jeopardising funding, and potentially threatening programmes' ability to continue to offer services. Because adult learners who enrol in programmes typically juggle numerous priorities and responsibilities beyond schooling, their…

When students feel connected to their school, they experience positive health and academic outcomes. In contrast, school disengagement is a predictor of dropout, delinquency, and substance use. School garden programming has the potential to help children achieve academic outcomes and feel connected to their school. Unfortunately, most school…

Students of color continuously face systemic barriers, racism, and additional unique challenges as they try to navigate the U.S. educational system. Due to this, it is important to retain students of color within the higher education system to lower health discrepancies and quality of life barriers. This literature review will focus on the…

Latina high school students aspiring to careers in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) participated in the year-long Latina STEM Fellowship (LSF) program. A team of education professionals interviewed the students to better understand how these Latina students visualize a future STEM career, their perceived…

This qualitative study examined the perspectives of Black and Latino high school and undergraduate students involved in an aspirational peer mentoring program for college access. Our findings identified five central themes that contributed to the development of social capital for participants: program expectations and experiences, sustaining…

Efforts to transform urban schools often overlook the role of students in shaping educational spaces. And so, I ask: How do students, as the primary users of school space, make and shape their school? I draw from spatial inquiry that emphasizes the social production of space to provide a glimpse into the spatial perspectives and practices of Azul,…

Amid a pandemic, protests (on masking and mattering), and presidential campaigns in 2020, adults and young folx alike were wading through an exhaustive socio-political milieu, that called for speculation. In this study, students had the opportunity to practice their writing and analytical skills while developing their racial literacy -- the…