Campus Location
Dallas Campus (Online)
Date of Award
12-2023
Document Type
Dissertation
Department
Organizational Leadership
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Committee Chair or Primary Advisor
Jennifer Butcher
Second Committee Member or Secondary Advisor
Jeff Cranmore
Third Committee Member or Committee Reader
Jennifer Duffy
Abstract
Despite the increase in diversity, institutions continue to struggle to provide, retain, and graduate students of color to the same degree as their counterparts (Banks & Dohy, 2019). The purpose of this narrative qualitative research study was to examine the perceptions of second-year, first- generation minority college students regarding the influence of the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program on their persistence and academic achievement. The study was framed by Swail’s (2004) geometric model of student persistence and achievement, aimed to identify the cognitive, social, and institutional factors contributing to student retention. The following questions guided the study: (1) What are the perceptions of first-generation minority college students regarding the cognitive factors associated with AVID mentoring programs?; (2) What are the perceptions of first-generation minority college students regarding the social factors associated with AVID mentoring programs?; and (3) What are the perceptions of first-generation minority college students regarding the institutional factors associated with AVID mentoring programs? The researcher conducted interviews to reveal the perceptions of six students who participated in AVID programs in high school. The major themes that emerged were the importance of AVID and teacher support, academic rigor and learning, social support, expectations and goal commitment, and challenges transitioning to the postsecondary institution. The study demonstrated that these factors significantly contribute to student persistence and retention. The results provide educational leaders with evidence to support adjustments to their practices and initiatives essential to student retention.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Mathews, Nisha Mary, "The Perceptions of Second-Year, First-Generation Minority Students Regarding the Influence of AVID Mentoring on Students’ Retention" (2023). Digital Commons @ ACU, Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 716.
https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/etd/716