Drawing on Internal Strengths and Creating Spaces for Growth: How Black Science Majors Navigate the Racial Climate at a Predominantly White Institution to Succeed

Abstract

To support Black students in earning undergraduate science degrees, faculty need to understand the mechanisms that Black students use to succeed. Following an anti-deficit achievement approach, we used the community cultural wealth framework to investigate the strengths that Black undergraduates bring to their science majors. Community cultural wealth consists of capital or “knowledge, skills, abilities, and contacts” that students of color can use in their education. Through participatory action research, we studied aca-demically successful Black science majors in the final year of their undergraduate degrees at a research-intensive predominantly white institution (PWI; n = 34). We collected data using a demographic survey and two semistructured interviews. Three themes emerged from content and thematic analysis. First, Black science majors use their capital to navigate the racial climate at a PWI. Second, Black students use internal strengths as capital to succeed in their science majors at a PWI. Third, Black science majors create virtual and physical spaces where they can share their capital and thrive at a PWI. We use our results to offer suggestions for researchers and instructors who want to take action to support the success of Black science majors.