The Role and Influence of Friendships in the Educational Achievement of Adolescent Males in a Community-Based Educational Space

• In Event: 41.084 - Roundtable Session 16
  In Roundtable Session: 41.084-18 - Adolescent Relationships as the Basis for Problem Solving and Civic Engagement

Abstract

This paper explores the role of friendship in the educational achievement of adolescent male participants of a community-based educational space. Using qualitative data from the author’s dissertation study, this paper illustrates how African American and Latino males in high school and college formed and used friendships within a college-preparatory community-based program to support their educational journeys. Friendships formed by the young men in this study served to affirm their academic identity, provided access to resources and acted as buffers against failure. The experiences of the young men are then used to consider how friendships can be utilized to increase educational opportunity for this population of youth.

Author

• Tanya Wiggins, Pace University