The Role of Personal Resilience and Environmental Buffers in LGBTQ College Student Success

• In Event: Roundtable Session 17
  In Roundtable Session: LGBTQ Issues and Higher Education

Abstract

A national press for college completion has brought attention to academic and personal success for diverse students. We conducted a mixed-methods national study of diverse LGBTQ college student success; the study includes 60 interviews and over 900 surveys. This paper is based on the interview data. We use Bronfenbrenner’s (1993, 2005) ecology model to analyze the roles of individual characteristics, college environments, and the interactions between and among them in promoting student success. Key factors for success include supportive buffers in academic, social, family, and peer microsystems that counterbalance anti-LGBTQ microaggressions and hostility on campus.

Authors

• Kristen A. Renn, Michigan State University

• Michael R Woodford, University of Michigan

• Z Nicolazzo, Miami University - Oxford

• Blue Brazelton, Michigan State University