Influence of Community Cultural Wealth on Undergraduate Hispanic and Black Women's Persistence in the STEM+C Workforce Pipeline

Abstract

To promote racial and gender equity in the field of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computing (STEM+C), we investigated prominent influences on historically underrepresented minority (HURM) women's persistence in undergraduate education. With the underrepresentation of Black and Hispanic women in the computing workforce, this study focused on the experiences of this population as they persisted in their undergraduate education at a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in Texas. This pilot study employed the ACCEYSS STEM+C Majors (ASCM) survey instrument and the counter-life herstory interview protocol to illuminate the community cultural wealth (CCW) factors and relevant lived experiences that influenced Black and Hispanic women's persistence in undergraduate computing education. To center justice and equity, we utilized a modified CCW framework (MCCW) as the theoretical framework to provide an antideficit understanding of how women of color access their strengths to persist in postsecondary education. The MCCW framework was modified to include spiritual capital as a critical source of fortitude and resilience in Black and Hispanic communities. Our findings highlight ways in which CCW factors influenced Black and Hispanic women's persistence in undergraduate computing education in response to better understand this population in their attainment and representation in STEM+C disciplines.