About seven million undergraduates annually rely on federal loans to enroll in and complete college. While many successfully repay their loans, some struggle to stay on top of their payments and end up defaulting after 270 or more days of non-payment. Defaulting on a loan has several serious consequences, including adding significantly to the cost…

Despite widespread efforts to address barriers to college success, low-income and first-generation students continue to complete college at substantially lower rates that their more advantaged peers. A review of causal research to date has linked comprehensive interventions (e.g. programs that provide students with a combination of financial,…

In the context of ongoing discussions about student costs of non-credit developmental writing, this study reports on the affordances of Basic Writing as a traditional, stand-alone course at a career-focused, four-year university. Participants were students who took Basic Writing and Composition 1 between Fall 2011 and Spring 2013 (N = 2,693) in…

The sudden transition from in-person to virtual learning during the spring 2020 semester posed challenges for students and faculty alike. This paper explores the techniques used by faculty to transform the chemistry and biochemistry curriculum at a Hispanic-serving institution with a significant proportion of first-generation students and the…

Machine learning algorithms have recently been used to predict students' performance in an introductory physics class. The prediction model classified students as those likely to receive an A or B or students likely to receive a grade of C, D, F or withdraw from the class. Early prediction could better allow the direction of educational…

Aim/Purpose: This study aims to explore levels of Technological Access (ownership, access to, and usage of computer devices as well as access to Internet services) and levels of Technological Efficacy (technology related skills) as they pertain to underserved (UNS) and underrepresented (UNR) students. Background: There exists a positive…

Transitioning from high school to college is a challenging time for young adults and can be more difficult for first generation students. In some cases, adolescents are assisted by community assets (coaches, teachers, church/family members) and community-based leadership education programs. This combination may provide youth with critical skills…

Ensuring success in public higher education among underrepresented students is integral to social equity in the United States today. The current research contextualizes proximal and structural characteristics shaping the opportunities of underrepresented students by drawing on multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks to consider the influence of…

First-generation college students (FGCS) experience the same challenges as non-first-generation students (NFGCS), but they also face their own unique stressors such as a lack of academic preparation, absence of support from family and friends, and difficult cultural transitions. A combination of these factors may put them at higher risk for mental…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the literacy practices of the families and communities of first-generation college students in Latin America, and how community and family literacies can inform the understanding of first-generation college students' identity and cultural values. Design/methodology/approach: This transnational…

This research explores the potential of pedagogies embedded within an Australian example to allow pre-graduate diploma of education (PSDE) students to persist and succeed in their ambitions. This paper examines how the twin concepts of resilience, the capacity of an individual to withstand difficulties, and relational resilience, a capacity to…

This paper reports on a participatory action research study that investigated the life circumstance associated with first-year education students who displayed limited participation with their study activities within a regional university. The life circumstance presented in this paper include first in family, age, socio-economic status, living…

Drawing upon standpoint theory and phenomenology, this study chronicles the lived experiences of 16 successful female first-generation students of color as they pursued K-12 schooling and accessed higher education. Findings indicate that a complex set of school, family, peer, and personal factors affected students' lived experiences in their urban…

This research explores how college students' broader educational histories affect their decisions to plagiarize. While research typically categorizes plagiarism as intentional or unintentional, explanations revealed in interviews of first-generation, working-class, and/or racial minority students suggests that these typologies inadequately capture…

Native Hawaiian males are not attending college at rates comparable to other males in Hawai?i. Nearly 30 percent of the total male population in Hawai?i over the age of twenty-five hold a bachelor's degree or higher (OHA, 2017). When looking at Native Hawaiian men in this age group, only 15 percent hold a bachelor's degree or higher (OHA, 2017).…