African American Student Persistence at a Predominantly White Institution

• Main Authors: Brian Bourke, Nathaniel Bray
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing 2012-12-01
• Series: Journal of College Orientation, Transition, and Retention
• Subjects: african american; persistence; pwi; prejudice; social; cultural; campus climate; retention
• Online Access: https://pubs.lib.umn.edu/index.php/jcotr/article/view/2821
• ISSN: 1534-2263; 2690-4535

Persistence in college among African American students continues to remain low compared to persistence among White students. Often, the focus in examining this issue has been on institution-wide retention efforts, which can ignore socio-cultural elements that can influence the decisions of individual students to persist at an institution; however, persistence may rely on a combination of institutional factors and socio-cultural elements. The purpose of this article is to present findings from a research project that highlight institutional factors and socio-cultural elements that influence the persistence of African American students at a predominantly White institution. The findings from focus groups with African American students suggest that they persist despite a “cold” campus climate and ongoing experiences with racism and prejudice at Southern State University [pseudonym].