Latinx high school experiences in a suburban predominantly white county

• In Event: Identity, Belonging, and Marginalization in Educational Spaces

Proposal

I plan to present a snapshot of my findings from a qualitative research study that I conducted as an MA student at San Francisco State in 2021. I interviewed 54 Latinx graduates from 19 different high schools in Marin County, a white-dominated county north of San Francisco. The people I interviewed attended high school from 1996-2021. All participants’ identities and graduation years are anonymous. I conducted this research to get a better understanding of how Latinx students experienced high school in Marin County. This study included students who attended seven public schools, six private schools, two specialized study programs, two continuation schools, and two schools intertwined with a juvenile hall experience.

Shared experiences encapsulated various themes. If I were accepted to the conference, I would adjust the content to fit within the given time, potentially focusing on just some of the following themes listed below:

Colorism: Students who had darker physical features had more experiences of racism to share during their interviews. Darker Latinas were hypersexualized and dress coded at a higher rate. Darker Latinos were more commonly feared and monitored by staff.

Eurocentric white beauty standards: Some students felt the need to try to appear more white by changing their physical appearance. This included constantly straightening their hair or trying to dye it a lighter color. It also included looking down on Indigenous features. Some were aware that this was a mindset imposed through colonization, while others were not aware of this.

Double standards: Teachers treated Latinx students in harsher ways than white students for the same actions. Latinx students were accused of stealing/doing drugs, and reprimanded for interrupting/being loud at higher rates than their white peers. Additionally, they were less likely to be recommended into AP classes, and those who made it into these classes received less attention.

Stereotyping: Both students and teachers would stereotype Latinx students by making assumptions regarding their documentation status, level of Spanish proficiency, career pathway, and taste of their traditional foods.

Diverse schools v. white-dominated schools: Students at more diverse schools tended to feel more comfortable with their Latinidad, while students at more white-dominated schools felt higher levels of pressure to assimilate into white culture.

Tracking: Students of color were disproportionately placed into learning disabilities classes. Several private schools attempted to place fluent English Speakers who were Latinx into ESL classes based on their last names.

The white savior complex: Private schools did trips to non-Western countries. Some Latinx students who went realized that their schools would think of the locals from the other countries as victims, even though they did not see themselves that way. Other participants thought these trips could have been publicity stunts.

Borderland feelings of whether they were Latinx enough: Some students struggled with acceptance- seen as too Latinx to be accepted by white people and too “white-washed” to be accepted by Latinx people.

Segregation: Students of color and white students were often segregated in social spaces within their schools, as well as by class placement levels. Other groups that were segregated included dorm and commuter students at one private school, Latinx students who spoke Spanish and Latinx students who spoke English, and wealthy students and economically struggling students.

Mexicentric assumptions: Non-Mexican Latinx students were often assumed to be Mexican by their peers, who had limited knowledge of other Latin American cultures.

Burnout: Many were constantly exhausted from balancing school with work, long commutes, family issues, and depression.

Schools pushing out students: Various students who needed extra help found that schools preferred to push them out rather than give them the extra support.

Responding to racism: When students experienced racism, they responded in different ways, including not knowing how to reply, making jokes, attempting to talk about it, talking back, skipping class, trying to get kicked out, walking out when they felt disrespected, or leading student walkouts/protests.

Challenging/analyzing gender: Students made petitions and attended teacher conferences to call out racism/sexism that they identified within the dress code and graduation attire. They also had opposing views on working-class jobs relating to gender and different perspectives on college accessibility obstacles based on gender.

Feelings about college: While some participants shared how they saw the value in a college education, others critiqued it.

Guidance for life after high school: Public schools and private schools encouraged students to apply to different types of university pathways. Additionally, private schools promoted less financial aid and fewer first-generation resources. College-motivated students who did not receive college guidance at school found it elsewhere. Teachers and classes either empowered students or ruined their academic confidence.

What they did after high school: Participants did many things after high school. They either went the higher-education route, went to trade school/beauty school, started working right away, or moved abroad. Some left Marin County, and others decided to stay.

To explain my positionality, I am a Latinx graduate who attended two Marin County high schools. This helped me build rapport with the people that I interviewed, since we came from similar backgrounds. Even though I had no funding for this, many were willing to be interviewed because they wanted to help a fellow Latinx first-generation student out or because they believed in my research.

Since submitting this research to SFSU in Fall 2021, I took a self-directed study course at USF during Summer 2025 to revise my findings and transcribe this academic text to be accessible for current high school students. I presented this research at a local nonprofit in Marin County to Latinx teens and high school alumni. I hope to continue to share this research to help Latinx youth understand their experience and know how to navigate high school in white-dominated settings.

Author

• Brenda Figueroa Arellano, USF School of Education