Latino Students' Journeys Toward College

Abstract

This multisited ethnography followed nine successful Latino high-school students enrolled in a college-preparation program to examine their development of college aspirations and identify factors that contributed to their successful preparation for a 4-year university. It also explored these students' “multiple worlds” of home, school, community, and a university-sponsored college-preparation program. Major findings include the development of three typologies to explain how Latino immigrant families employ different strategies to motivate and support their children's progress and rely on various resource networks across their multiple worlds to meet students' academic, economic, sociocultural, and psychological needs. Results suggest that Latino immigrant students can successfully prepare for college when their needs are met through a network of resources in the home, school, and community. Implications are offered for how families, communities, schools, and programs can create a holistic approach to supporting Latino students' journeys toward college and a better future.