¡Nada Puede Impedirme Seguir Estudiando! Barriers and Opportunities for Latino Youth in Indiana

ABSTRACT

There is a significant gap in the literature about Indiana Latino students’ struggles to access post-secondary options. This study uses focus groups and interviews to explore parents’, students’, and teachers’ perceptions about barriers and opportunities Latino high school students have to transition into education options after high school. Findings suggest that Latino families, especially newcomers, lack knowledge and resources to overcome perceived barriers and take advantage of available opportunities. While parents have college aspirations for their children and perceive financial issues as the main obstacle, students identified language, academic, financial, cultural, and legal barriers hindering them from reaching their education goals. Newcomer families find more challenges as they have not built college-knowing social networks. The study expands on existing knowledge about how factors such as college aspirations, immigrant status, English proficiency level, perceived academic preparation, acculturative stress, and school messages and resources interplay to influence students’ decisions and expectations. The study reaffirms the need for early exposure to college-going knowledge and strategies to reduce the negative impact of social stressors and to provide Latino students with equal educational opportunities to fulfill their goals.

KEYWORDS:

• Latino students
• newcomers
• college readiness

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).