Annotated Bibliography: Underrepresented College Students

The African American males access to higher learning is detrimental to the United States economy. The social conditions that plague African American males in their quest for college degrees are very obvious. For more than 40 years, the African American male has been missing in action from higher learning institutions by a margin of 50:1. In this paper, I will explore the problems and the critical actions needed for correction.

Under-preparedness Students attend school starting at pre-school then kindergarten, kindergarten to first grade and leading up to middle school then high school, the classes and teachers are supposed to prepare them for the next level. With the correct preparation and tools, after graduating high school, many students have their mind set on attending college as the next level. However many African-American male students who do have the ability to graduate high school, are not prepared for their next level which is college. Due to the quality of these schools “the school districts in urban neighborhoods have fewer academic offerings, less qualified teachers, out of date materials and lower quality curriculum” (WOOD, J. (2011), results in the poor education of the minority students attending them. Also due to the different academic and environment backgrounds that white and black students come from, many teachers are unaware of how to teach black students and how to gain their attention in the classroom. Other than

Students from low-income and first generation backgrounds often struggle in different academic subjects. Subsequently, students have lower expectations for themselves when it comes to academic achievement. The majority of first generation students come from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Seeing that, families work countless hours in factories and other places where they

Returning to College as an Adult Coming to college as an adult, we have many expectations and preconceptions of what college will or will not be. The expectations we have can influence our college life for the better or the worse. My experience since starting college has been an interesting one. People have misconceptions about college because they do not know what to expect. After doing some research, I have concluded that there are three major factors that are often misunderstood about college life. The first is the financial aspect of college. Second, is the relationship between the professors and students. Third is time management. These three factors play an important role in why people are afraid to go down the path to college.

Although greater access to higher education for students of color is an absolute imperative, it is only part of the equation. Ensuring their academic success and readiness to thrive in an interconnected world remains the ultimate goal. In a global economy, providing greater access to post secondary education to individuals from all racial and ethnic backgrounds remains one of the most important challenges facing our nation. Demographic changes have increased the proportions of people of color in the United States, and our academic population (Ryu, 2009, p. i). The relationship between ethnicity and retention in post secondary education has been widely discussed in the literature. The

The Hispanic/Latino community has been known to be underrepresented on college campuses, both at the community college and four-year university level. Factors such as low-income households, poor or harsh living conditions, under-educated parents, cultural and family commitments, and unfamiliarity with the college process, all serve as unfortunate barriers that

Decisions made prior to the age of eighteen always seem like a crisis until you have met the mother of all crisis, your final college decision. I found myself staring my future directly in the face almost a year ago wondering where I would further my education just as much

Adam Gorlick in “ Got an hour? Boost your grades. Stanford psychologists design 60-minute exercise that raises GPAs of minority student” talks about the transition from high school to college and the difficulties many students face. In his article Adam Gorlick brings up various questions many freshman ask for

Statement of Problem African-American women have not received much consideration in the literature although they are a rising presence on college campuses (Strayhorn & Johnson, 2014). In fact, nationally 4 million women are enrolled in community colleges, 36% are African-American raising children alone, in which adds additional challenges in improving persistence and graduation (Goldrick-Rab & Sorensen, 2011, Institute for Women’s Policy Research, 2013, American Association of Community Colleges, 2016, Shapiro, Dundar, & Huie, 2017). More specifically, female, single heads of households, lack consistent and affordable daycare, have problems balancing their family and work responsibilities, and are more likely to drop out due to financial issues (Kuh, Kinzie, Buckley, Bridges, & Hayek, 2006, Goldrick-Rab & Sorensen, 2011, Rose & Hill, 2013). Furthermore, in an examination of six-year completion results from the fall 2010 cohort states, over 58% of black women have attended college, however, only 29% graduated with a degree or certificate

As many African-American students are making their college decisions, they are torn between the mixes. The two routes they have, are the many predominantly white institutions that the vast majority deem as the most elite institutions in America and the few historically black institutions that many and even African American students look down upon. In this instance, this was the same experience our reporter, Marcus Lee encountered. Instead of attending Emory University, his dream school, because of financial issues he later “settled” for his backup school, Morehouse College, a well-known HBCU. Before entering Morehouse, Marcus had many insecurities about Morehouse. On his first day of freshman orientation, he quickly figured out that his decision

The economy plays a major role in young black males attaining a genuine education. Many U.S. citizens struggle to pay for college each year. Government resources, such as student loans, help students fund their cost for an education. However, we pay back the student loans and interest rates after we are finished with school. Numerous African-American males attend college for a semester or two, but the percentage of them who graduates is significantly low. For the ones who don’t graduate, it was a complete waste of their time and money. The worst of this impoverishment is that there is no sense of impoverishment (Percy).

In today’s society, Predominately white institutions and campus climate can contribute and play a key role to the success and achievement of minority students. In the twenty-first century, African American (black) students will continue to enroll in predominantly white institutions (PWIs) at greater rates than black students enrolling at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs); yet, if this current trend continues, over half of black students at PWIs will fail to persist and graduate (Allen, 1992). Individual’s

College is not an Option for Many Low-Income Students As students are a step away from going to college, they are frightful of their path after high school. Once students know their college choices, they are faced with making one final choice of where to attend. Usually, a student’s college decision is made by considering the distance from his/her home as well as if their parents will be able to afford the expenses that their college asks for. Colleges, though, look into the distance from home, SAT score, high school GPA, parents income, parents education, ethnicity, and gender in order for a student to be accepted into their college. All of these factors are important, but the one that tends to have a heavier weight in a student's college

The Subtle but Not So Subtle Discrimination In Alvin Chang’s’ article, “The subtle ways colleges discriminate against poor students, explained with a cartoon” Chang uses multiple research projects to explain why students that have lower income or are first generation students are less likely to succeed in college. In the article Chang references a survey that was taken in order to see what different college administrators expect their students to acquire during their education. Overwhelmingly the college administrator's wanted their students to acquire individual skills over interdependence skills. Chang correlates a students success with their ability to think individually knowing that lower income and first generation students show an interdependent

Success comes easier to a student’s if they are in their comfort zone. students who feel at ease with their environment, have a higher tendency to achieve success in college, for example studies have shown that African American students that attend predominantly white universities are more likely to either have lower grade point averages or drop out at higher rates than their white counterparts and African Americans at historically black colleges. (Allen, Epps & Hanuf, 1991; Braddock & Dawkins 1981) This is a common example of how change could affect a student’s ambition unconsciously. Studies have shown that students who attend Historically Black Colleges and Universities are more likely to have higher self worth, positive self images, strong racial pride, and higher aspirations, opposite of black students on white campuses. This is true for almost all commonalities: race, gender, age, and even backgrounds. Students that feel more “at home” will more than likely receive higher grade point averages.