Higher Education and the Latina Student: Examining the College Choice Process among Latina Students attending Four-Year Baccalaureate Granting Higher Education Institutions. by Heather Hernandez Martinez, B.B.A., M.B.A. A Dissertation In Higher Education Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Dr. Colette Taylor, Chair Dr. Hansel Burley, Committee Member Dr. Fernando Valle, Committee Member Dr. Fred Hartmeister Dean of the Graduate School December, 2010 i Copyright 2010, Heather Hernandez Martinez ii Acknowledgements First, I must give all praise and glory to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. There is no doubt that the one sustaining factor throughout all of these years has been my faith in his will for me. He has blessed me over and over again, even when I was unworthy, and I am only here today because of his precious grace, his forgiveness and his everlasting love. To Dr. Colette Taylor – my chair, my mentor, and my friend. Thank you for taking me on when it seemed that my hopes for completion were all but gone. You believed in me, encouraged me and pushed me to demand the very best from myself. You gave me the freedom to explore my own identity within my research while still teaching me how to tell the stories of others to benefit the body of knowledge as a whole. There is no way that this work would have turned out the way that it did without your intervention and your determination, and for that I will be forever in your debt. To Dr. Hansel Burley – you believed in me even before you knew me. Your guidance has been invaluable to me and through your example I have learned what it truly means to be an advocate for others. Thank you. To Dr. Fernando Valle –Le doy las gracias desde el fondo de mi corazón, por su apoyo, liderazgo y visión. Sin embargo Latinos con este nivel de educación seriamos muy pocos, sino contaramos con personas como usted, que cree que somos capaces. Yo se que llegara el dia en que muchos mas alcanzaran esta meta. To my brother, Joey (a.k.a. P.B.), thank you for so many years of laughter and jokes and stories and made up songs and secrets and bonding. Even though we are different in so many ways, in so many ways we are the same. Your steadfast belief in me and your encouragement has warmed my heart over and over again. Thank you for ii keeping me company on the back porch and always being willing to listen to me, even if all I was doing was complaining. To my dad, Joe – I have been blessed to have you as my father, and more recently as my friend. I know that I have inherited your sense of determination, your fighting spirit and your ability to weave the spoken word into a beautiful message. You have taught me to fight for what I believe in, to stand up for myself, and to never let anyone tell me that there is something I cannot do. You have always come to my defense, protected me, and helped me achieve every milestone I have ever set my sights on. I hope I have made you proud. To my mom, Elizabeth – I have known many women in my lifetime, but none as great as you. You have been my mother, my mentor and my friend. You have always believed in me, even when I didn‟t believe in myself. Throughout this process when I was exhausted and frustrated and tired and had lost all desire, you refused to let me give up; instead you would feed me, watch over my son while I rested, and when I got up you would encourage me to go back to work and finish what I started. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for being an amazing mother and role model…..hey mom, my time FINALLY came! To Shane, my love, my best friend, my heart – Although there have been many people who have helped me get to this place, you have been there day in and day out. You have seen me at my best and my worst and continued to love me and believe in me and supported me all these many years. Thank you for forgiving me over and over again for the stress-related arguments we would have and for taking out all of my pent up frustrations on you, even though you did not deserve any of it. Thank you for taking all of iii my crazy and still loving me, for carrying the burden of our needs as I pursued this degree and for understanding me when no one else could. Over the past 15 years you and I have suffered unbelievable highs and unimaginable lows; we have won, we have lost, we have hurt each other and we have also brought each other joy, and I would not trade a single day of it; Now and forevermore, ILYG. Finally, to my beautiful and amazing son Zachariah – You are the single most wonderful thing I have ever done my life. I was pregnant with you when I got accepted into the doctoral program and I was not sure if I would be able to do this and be the kind of mother you deserved. Having a new born baby and pursuing this degree was at times excruciatingly difficult, but each time I thought about giving up and walking away, I would look into your tiny, beautiful face and I would be reminded of why it was so important for me to do this. There are many reasons I chose to follow this dream, but by far the most important was because I wanted to show you that regardless of what happens in this life time, regardless of what obstacles are put in your path, regardless of what others believe you are or are not capable of, and regardless of what others say about you, there is nothing in this world you cannot accomplish if you believe in yourself and in God. There are no words in this language or any other that can adequately describe the love I have for you, and I pray that God will allow me to see you grow into a fine and beautiful young man. Although I will not always be on this earth, you can be assured my love will stay with you for eternity. A wise man once said “there is always a price to be paid for reminding someone what they could have been if they had only worked harder”….it is my hope that by completing this journey, I have somehow paid a portion of that price for you. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements ii Abstract vii List of Tables ix List of Figures x Chapters I. INTRODUCTION 1 Problem Statement 2 Minority Enrollment Trends 3 Minority Female Enrollment Trends 4 Latinos In America 4 Latino Enrollment Trends 9 The Latina Student Experience 10 The Researcher Experience 13 Research Questions 15 Purpose of the Study 15 Philosophical Foundation 16 Significance of the Study 18 Delimitations 18 Limitations 19 Assumptions 19 Definition of Terms 19 Chapter Summary 20 II. LITERATURE REVIEW History of College Choice 22 1880-1920 22 1920-1940 24 1940-1960 26 1960-1975 28 1975-1990 30 1990-Present 32 Latinos in Higher Education 36 Theoretical and Contextual Framework Social Identity Theory and Culture 39 College Choice Theory 44 Hossler and Gallegher‟s College Choice Model 44 McDonough‟s College Choice Theory 46 McDonough‟s College Choice Theory and the Latino Culture 50 Cultural Capital 50 Habitus 54 Bounded Rationality 58 v Chapter Summary 59 III. METHODOLOGY Design 61 Participants 63 Site Selection 64 Site Entry 67 Pilot Study 68 Data Collection 69 Data Analysis 74 Ethical Considerations and Safety Protocol 75 Facilities and Equipment 77 Chapter Summary 77 IV. PRESENTING THE DATA Introduction 78 Overview of the Research Questions 78 Participants 79 Participant Summary 80 Data Analysis 83 Verification Procedures 91 Results 92 Chapter Summary 118 V. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Introduction 120 Discussion 121 McDonough‟s College Choice Theory and Major Themes 121 McDonough‟s College Choice Theory and the Latino Culture 124 College Choice, Social Identity and the Latino Culture 140 Implication for Practice 143 Future Research 148 Conclusion 149 REFERENCES 151 APPENDICIES Appendix A 160 Appendix B 161 Appendix C 163 Appendix D 165 Appendix E 167 Appendix F 169 Appendix G 171 Appendix H 173 vi ABSTRACT University and college administrators are faced with numerous challenges related to providing a quality educational experience for students. Although programs, policies and procedures vary, many educational issues are often related to each other, influencing outcomes and decisions made on a day-to-day basis by academic professionals. One such issue with long-reaching effects is the diversity of campus student populations. Some research has suggested that finding methods to increase diversity on campus can be related to a more positive and stronger academic experience overall for students; and changes in access to education over the past century have increased the potential number of students on American campus‟ from distinct and diverse backgrounds. College choice can be an extremely involved, lengthy and at times difficult process. Achieving an understanding of how prospective high school graduates arrive at their ultimate decision, in an effort to alleviate some if not all of difficulty in the process, is something that researchers and educational professionals continue to work toward. While many ethnic groups may be identified by the term minority, this research seeks to focus on Latinas.