Latinas in STEM at a Texas HSI-R1: Brilliant, Underrepresented, and Building Cultural Community

• In Event: Beyond Enrollment: Latinx Belonging, Resilience, and Justice in Higher Education

Abstract

This qualitative case study investigates how undergraduate Latinas in STEM — attending one of the seven large R1-designated Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI-R1) in Texas — cultivate a sense of belonging by creating peer networks rooted in cultural identity. While these students attend a predominantly white, research-intensive HSI that receives significant federal funding to uplift Latine learners, this study found that many of them feel that their cultural identities are often overlooked or sidelined within dominant academic and cultural norms that shape STEM disciplines. Guided by Yosso’s (2005) Community Cultural Wealth framework, this study investigates how Latinas draw upon different forms of capital to build community and support one another to persist in fields where they have been historically underrepresented.

Authors

• Liliana Bravo, Texas A&M University

• Emma Claudia Perez, Texas A&M University

• Elsa M. Gonzalez, Texas A&M University