The improvement of first generation college student persistence and graduation rates is an undertaking that benefits individuals, society, and the institutions whose mission it is to confer degrees. This goal is one that is best served by an acknowledgment of the causes of attrition as well as understanding the factors that strengthen and reinforce academic success. The purpose of this study was to examine college-generational status and its relationship to the motivational characteristics, academic success, and persistence of African American students at an historically black university. The study utilized archived responses of a sample of first-time freshmen students enrolled in a First Year Experience (FYE) course at a mid-size historically black university in the Southeast. Demographic questions provided parental education status for assigning first versus continuing generation status. Student/family income, end of course grade, and academic year one and academic year two cumulative grade point averages (GPA) were also a part of the archived data file. The original data set utilized the motivation scale section of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) which entails 31-survey items with three primary scale components measuring: Value and Interest, Expectancy for Success, and Affective Response. A total of 110 completed archived survey responses of 61 first generation (55.5%) and 49 continuing generation (44.5%) students were scored and analyzed. Eleven total research questions were posed; two employed independent samples T-tests to look for differences in first and continuing generation student motivation scale scores and end of course grade. Simultaneous multiple linear regression procedures were conducted on five questions to assess motivation scale scores' ability to predict first generation students' end of course grade; and family income versus motivation's strength as a predictor of cumulative GPA at academic years one and two. An additional four questions utilized logistic regression procedures to evaluate motivation scale scores as predictors of first generation student persistence; and family income versus motivation's strength as a predictor of persistence through academic years one and two. The results of the analysis were unanticipated, as they appeared to counter what has been previously established concerning the deficits first generation students consistently demonstrate as compared to their continuing generation peers. The study evidenced very few differences in the academic success and persistence of first generation students with the exception of those who scored higher on the value motivation scale component having better academic year one persistence outcomes. Further consideration led to recognition of the likely positive influence of both the historically black university as an institutional setting and the First Year Experience course as a structured college transition program for both first and continuing generation freshman students. Additional findings and conclusions were discussed along with recommendations for practice and future research. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]