The Capital Area North Doctorate in Educational Leadership (CANDEL) program is committed to educational equity and supports, amongst others, K-12 schoolteachers, administrators, and teacher educators who are committed to bridging the worlds of theory and practice. As teacher educators, we advocate for those in doctoral programs to consider…

This qualitative study examines the lived experiences of both first-generation (FG) students and employees of an Upward Bound (UB) program. The purpose of this study is to explore how an UB program at a private university in the Midwest can aid in bridging the educational gap for FG students while faced with obstacles such as reaching, engaging,…

A program of specialized and targeted support for justice-impacted students at Our University does not currently exist. This study sought to uncover the needs, challenges, and strengths of justice-impacted students and to determine what our student experience team members needed to know and have available to them to best support this emerging…

First-generation college students (FGCS) are at risk for suffering from mental health issues, which have direct implication for their retention and academic success. Past investigators consistently find that college students are more likely to discuss mental health issues with their peers than with college personnel. The first step in peer-to-peer…

This study sought to add to the limited existing literature regarding the experiences and challenges of first-generation doctoral students. Amidst fifteen interviews with first-generation doctoral students, who completed their doctoral degree at an R1 research institution in California, the research provided information about the journey students…

The goal of this action research was to bring awareness of the first-generation community college identity and acknowledge that this identity has many layers. It is important community colleges across the state use the information provided in this action research to be well-informed on how to better support first-generation students. This…

Even though individuals now have increased access to higher education, first-generation college students (FGCS) remain disadvantaged. Without prior college exposure, experience, or a college-going family tradition, FGCS face challenges navigating higher education institutions which can lead to decreased college retention and completion rates.…

This study aimed to recommend student success management strategies that respond to first-generation students' needs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). HBCUs play a key role in providing access to higher education for black students. While significantly contributing, HBCUs face challenges in ensuring academic achievement,…

As colleges and universities focus on admitting and supporting more first-generation college students (FGCS), there is a need to examine ongoing and structural support for students after matriculation. Research has focused on how higher education supports FGCS individually. However, colleges and universities play a role in facilitating support for…

This dissertation explored the experiences of 14 first-generation graduates who had recently completed a master's degree, analyzing the saliency of their first-generation identity with a strengths-based focus. Much literature exists regarding the experiences of first-generation undergraduate students and doctoral students, yet few studies center…

Retention of first-generation college students (FGCS) following their first year is key for continued financial success of the students and institutions of higher education. To determine how FGCS develop a sense of belonging at institutions of higher education in order to re-enroll in their second year of college was investigated. Ten individual…

High-impact practices (HIPs) are well-documented experiences that deepen engagement and go beyond traditional markers of success for college students. First-generation college students (FGCS) may even see greater gains in participation than their continuing-generation counterparts. Since universities historically retain FGCS at lower rates, this…

College student retention is an important concept in higher education. For individuals, college retention translates to earning a degree, and for institutions, it translates to maintaining revenue. Many factors put college students at risk for withdrawing from college, including being a student from Appalachia, being considered a first-generation…

In this ethnographic study, Becca Spindel Bassett investigates why low-income and first-generation students access fewer resources and gain fewer benefits from their university campuses than do their higher-income, continuing-generation peers. Building on sociological theories that emphasize the relational and political dynamics of resource…

Applying an intersectional approach and building on prior research highlighting the importance of interaction and connectedness, this study examined the following question: How does the relationship between social connectedness with peers and college success vary as a combined function of students' race and first-generation status? The analytic…