This phenomenological qualitative study examined the Hispanic/Latino students’ college experiences at Predominantly White, 4-year institutions in an effort to better understand what these students perceived as contributing factors to their sense of belonging and persistence through their first year. Participants included individuals classified as first-year or second-year college students. Data was collected through individual interviews where personal stories were examined by using the student integration model and theory of mattering and marginality to identify reoccurring themes. Identifying these factors was the key motivating factor in determining success and persistence through their first year. From this study, four emergent themes shed light into students’ ability to persist: sense of belonging, student involvement, mentoring, and familial expectations. These themes aided the researcher’s understanding about which factors students attributed to their overall success and first-year persistence.
","abstract_html":"<p>This phenomenological qualitative study examined the Hispanic/Latino students’ college experiences at Predominantly White, 4-year institutions in an effort to better understand what these students perceived as contributing factors to their sense of belonging and persistence through their first year. Participants included individuals classified as first-year or second-year college students. Data was collected through individual interviews where personal stories were examined by using the student integration model and theory of mattering and marginality to identify reoccurring themes. Identifying these factors was the key motivating factor in determining success and persistence through their first year. From this study, four emergent themes shed light into students’ ability to persist: sense of belonging, student involvement, mentoring, and familial expectations. These themes aided the researcher’s understanding about which factors students attributed to their overall success and first-year persistence.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Gandía, Zwisel M."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Education (EdD)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Marylin Newell","Gizelle Luevano","Rosalind Alderman"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-11-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2019-11-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:21:27Z","subjects":["Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Educational Leadership"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dune.une.edu/theses/264","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Marylin Newell","Gizelle Luevano","Rosalind Alderman"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Gandía, Zwisel M."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2020-01-10T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Education (EdD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Educational Leadership"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dune.une.edu/theses/264"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This phenomenological qualitative study examined the Hispanic/Latino students’ college experiences at Predominantly White, 4-year institutions in an effort to better understand what these students perceived as contributing factors to their sense of belonging and persistence through their first year. Participants included individuals classified as first-year or second-year college students. Data was collected through individual interviews where personal stories were examined by using the student integration model and theory of mattering and marginality to identify reoccurring themes. Identifying these factors was the key motivating factor in determining success and persistence through their first year. From this study, four emergent themes shed light into students’ ability to persist: sense of belonging, student involvement, mentoring, and familial expectations. These themes aided the researcher’s understanding about which factors students attributed to their overall success and first-year persistence.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Their Story: College Persistence Of Hispanic/Latino Students At Predominantly White Institutions"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Marylin Newell","Gizelle Luevano","Rosalind Alderman"],"dc:creator":["Gandía, Zwisel M."],"dc:date.available":["2020-01-10T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This phenomenological qualitative study examined the Hispanic/Latino students’ college experiences at Predominantly White, 4-year institutions in an effort to better understand what these students perceived as contributing factors to their sense of belonging and persistence through their first year. Participants included individuals classified as first-year or second-year college students. Data was collected through individual interviews where personal stories were examined by using the student integration model and theory of mattering and marginality to identify reoccurring themes. Identifying these factors was the key motivating factor in determining success and persistence through their first year. From this study, four emergent themes shed light into students’ ability to persist: sense of belonging, student involvement, mentoring, and familial expectations. These themes aided the researcher’s understanding about which factors students attributed to their overall success and first-year persistence.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://dune.une.edu/theses/264"],"dc:subject":["Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research","Educational Leadership"],"dc:title":["Their Story: College Persistence Of Hispanic/Latino Students At Predominantly White Institutions"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Education (EdD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:21:27Z"}