Familial Resilience: Persistence in Higher Education Through Culture and Family Values

• In Event: Pursuing Our Mothers' Dreams: Experiencing Disillusionment and Empowerment on the Journey to Academia

Abstract

In the late sixties, pursuing higher education in Chile was an attainable dream for students regardless of socioeconomic background (Brunner & Briones, 1992). My parents, both Chilean natives, often laugh about childhood poverty sharing everything from shoes to a twin bed with multiple siblings. In 1973, a dramatic turn of events abruptly ended my mother’s chemical engineering dreams at the State University of Santiago, Chile, forcing my family to depart shortly after military government intervention in university affairs (Brunner & Briones, 1992). In a period of 40 years, Chile experienced an exponential increase in private universities, institutes and technical schools limiting access to higher education for students of low-wage earning families (Robertson & Leumer, 2014; Brunner & Briones, 1992), while rising costs of higher education challenge the retention of students of color in the United States (Denhart, 2013).
As women of color (WOC), we are taught traditional research methodologies that center whiteness, and fail to engage our community cultural wealth (Yosso, 2005), valuable funds of knowledge (Moll et al., 1992; Vélez-Ibañez & Greenberg, 1992), and engage the lived experiences of WOC in research (Moraga & Anzaldúa, 1983). In this paper, I use an autoethnographic approach (Ellis, 2007; Quicke, 2010) to analyze both my mother’s and my testimonios (Anzaldúa, 1990; Behar, 1993; Delgado-Bernal et al., 2012), the impact of neoliberal policies in Latin America on intergenerational trauma and healing (Brunner, 1993; Duran et al., 2008; Lomas & Joysmith, 2005), and my timeline of lived experiences in PK-20+ educational institutions to demonstrate that research based solely on gender without consideration to race negates the unique lived experiences of WOC who emigrate to this country for political reasons.
Using the case of my own experience, I argue that critical race theory (Ladson-Billings, 1995) methodology, such as counter-stories (Solórzano & Yosso, 2002), testimonios (Anzaldúa, 1990) and life history methodology (Freedmen, et al., 1988) afford opportunities to center the voices of WOC in qualitative research. I center my inquiry on How intergenerational trauma, culture and family values impacted my higher education persistence and resilience. Not considered an international student due to U.S. citizenship, the path of mi camino has unfolded within ‘grey areas’, as a the child of exiles. This research is significant for institutions of higher education, policy makers, and stakeholders seeking to recruit and retain more students of color in doctoral programs, and ensure their persistence in higher education (Tinto, 1975).
My mother sacrificed her dreams by leaving her country, family, and culture; even sacrificing health. Her hope for me: to follow my dreams before committing to anyone outside of self, avoiding the hardships she endured. So I left Chile at 18 with $300 and a one-way ticket to an undergraduate degree dream. Challenges for funding and navigating college were abundant, yet my mother’s cultural value system, persistence, and personal journey contributed to my resiliency and ganas for academic success (Gamez, Lopez, & Overton, 2017; Louque & Garcia, 2000). Though born stateside, I am the daughter of exile, resilience and brilliance. I am my mother’s dream deferred.

Author

• Malayka Neith Cornejo, University of Nevada - Las Vegas