Familismo in Latine/x First Generation College Student Experiences and Balancing Discord Between Ethnic Culture and Student Culture
Abstract
Latine/x are the second largest ethnic minority group nationwide with the highest rate of undergraduate enrollment (NCES, 2020). While that is true, Latine/x students are also retained at much lower rates in comparison to their White and Asian counterparts (Banks & Dohy, 2019). Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI), a model adopted by many colleges and universities following the pandemic, is intended to address the lack of institution-wide feelings of belonging and implement necessary change to support diversification, including ethnic diversity (Meyer, 2021). While the model intends to support university diversity, a limitation in the literature of Latine/x students and First-Generation College Students (FGCS) is the lack of inclusion of familismo as a form of cultural and familial wealth recognized in academia (Márquez, 2017). Familismo suggests that you cannot understand Latine/x student needs without considering their culture (Tello & Lonn, 2017). Latine/x students who feel culturally incongruent on their campuses usually struggle with their sense of belonging because it differs from their own values and or belief systems embedded in their family system (Tello & Lonn, 2017). Meanwhile, DEI strives to create a sense of belonging, familismo identifies cultural values that are critical for retention and college/university completion specifically to those that identify as first-generation college students (Tello & Lonn, 2017). The study explored the larger issue of cultural incongruence between Latine/x student culture and that of university/college culture and collected how LFGCS balance the discord. Including, the role of familismo, environmental factors, and education policies found in the literature that inhibit and support LFGCS success. This data is extremely important because it aids the important work social workers are doing at the college and university level as counselors, administrative staff, policy advocates, professors, and campus programming all critical to student success. This data is also useful in partly serving to close the gap between Latine/x students being the second largest minority group seeking postsecondary options, but beyond accessing college, Latine/x students are not making sizable strides in postsecondary completion (Laureano, 2022).
Subject Area
Social work|Educational evaluation|Ethnic studies|Educational administration
Recommended Citation
Castellanos, Vanessa, "Familismo in Latine/x First Generation College Student Experiences and Balancing Discord Between Ethnic Culture and Student Culture" (2024). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI31295046.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI31295046
