Factors of Persistence for African American Men in a Student Support Organization

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study is to examine factors of persistence for two African American men involved in the Project Empowerment (PE, pseudonym) student organization at a predominantly White institution. The participants are undergraduate student members ofPE, a campus-based organization designed to enhance African American male retention. The researcher conducted interviews with both participants, and analyzed the data verbatim uncovering these four themes: (a) college preparedness, (b) high aspirations and goals, (c) social connections and relationships, and (d) growth through student organizational commitment. The study found that components of PE support African American male persistence. The findings implicate the need for ethnic-based programs for African American men, and for institutions to encourage program participation among this student group.

A Call for Black Superintendents to Document Their Experiences Through Autoethnography

“…This gap allows for the misconception to persist that the superintendent role, when held by a Black person, is executed with the same level of functionality and challenge as when held by a non-Black person (Horsford, 2009). The experiences are not the same; Black superintendents face prejudices, job-related pressures, higher expectations, harder work, and atypical challenges (Simmons, 2013; Wilson & Kowalski, 2017).…”

Unraveling Student Engagement: Exploring its Relational and Longitudinal Character

“…It is also possible that positive engagements with a smaller group of students with whom one shares common values or perspectives can also lead to persistence. Engagement strategies may differ for different student populations (Quaye et al, 2019;Simmons, 2013). At the same time, the social phenomena of homophily and propinquity tend to produce specific patterns of relationships (Marmaros & Sacerdote, 2006;Smith & Vonhoff, 2019) as does the structural racial and socio-economic class diversity of the student body (Bowman & Park, 2014;Park & Denson, 2013).…”