Retention and Access Issues Affecting Black Women Attending Predominantly White Institutions

ABSTRACT

RETENTION AND ACCESS ISSUES AFFECTING BLACK WOMEN ATTENDING PREDOMINANTLY WHITE INSTITUTIONS

Joshua J. De War

This study examined the self-reported experiences of Black, female, undergraduate students at a small, predominantly White college in order to identify factors that affect their retention. Specific attention was paid to how the participants perceived the effects of personal and institutional factors in relation to their persistence in college as well as to the mechanisms utilized by the students to receive the support they deemed necessary to achieve academic success and social integration.

Retention models developed by Spady, Tinto, Bean, and Astin were reviewed to provide a foundation for the work. Additionally, Black feminist epistemology was examined to provide the researcher a better understanding of the lived experiences of the women being studied.

Research methodology focused on the analysis of qualitative data derived over six weeks time from the regularly posted blog entries of 14 participants to determine common themes (factors). Five major themes were discovered that categorized the women’s experiences: institutional factors influencing success, personal factors influencing success, sources of support, retention and attrition, and study participation.

From these themes, recommendations were made to professionals in higher education on how to increase the retention of Black women at predominantly White institutions. This included establishing a critical mass of students of color on White campuses, providing adequate financial aid for minority student’s nationally, supporting additional family programming at colleges, and regularly assessing institutional cultural climate. Lastly, recommendations were made to create and validate a retention model designed specifically to address the needs of women of color in academe.