"They Say They Value Diversity": College Experiences of Latinx Students at a Predominately White Institution

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session 34
  In Roundtable Session: Latinx Identity Politics in Contested Institutional Spaces

Abstract

In this study we investigated the academic and social experiences of first generation undergraduate Latinx students who participated in a Latinx student-focused organization at a research-intensive PWI in the Midwest. This study had two aims: First, to understand if being a part of an ethnic student organization aided in the integration of Latinx students to the university, and if their membership resulted in their retention and increased graduation rates. Second, to understand first generation undergraduate Latinx students’ perceptions of how the university administration dealt with issues of diversity, such as developing and promoting events that met the needs of the Latinx students across the campus.

Authors

• Diana Marcela Galvez Bohorquez, The University of Iowa

• Carla Gonzalez, University of Iowa

• Leslie Ann Locke, University of Iowa