A Valley of Aspirations: Examining the Factors Influencing the College Persistence of Rural Latinx Undergraduates from California’s San Joaquin Valley

Abstract

This study examines the college persistence of rural Latinx undergraduate students, focusing on the factors that contribute to their persistence in higher education. While extensive research has explored Latinx college persistence, studies addressing rural students’ experiences remain scarce. Using Community Cultural Wealth (CCW) framework, this qualitative study analyzed the experiences of 15 rural Latinx students from California’s San Joaquin Valley attending a public, four-year, research-intensive university. Data was collected through Chicana/Latina feminist pláticas, emphasizing participants’ lived experiences. Findings revealed that students drew on aspirational, resistant, and social capitals to navigate educational barriers. Parental encouragement and immigrant farm working backgrounds were significant sources of aspirational capital, motivating students to pursue careers beyond agricultural labor. Students also used resistant capital to challenge racialized stereotypes about rural Latinx communities and higher education aspirations. Social capital emerged as a future-oriented vision, with students committed to returning to their rural communities to create generational change. This study highlights the critical role of familial, cultural, and geographical contexts in shaping educational trajectories for rural Latinx students. The findings suggest that universities should adopt asset-based approaches to support rural Latinx students and foster community engagement and development opportunities to support the college persistence of college students.