ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0693-3886

Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Education (Ph.D)

Department

Curriculum and Instruction

First Advisor

Elizabeth Chase

Second Advisor

Donald R. McClure

Third Advisor

Daniel Ness

Abstract

Due to many sociopolitical factors such as an inequitable public-school education, many students do not graduate from high school in the United States. In 2018 “approximately 2.3 million 16- to 24-year-olds were not enrolled in high school and had not earned a high school diploma or alternative credential” (McFarland et al., 2018, p. 12). There is inequity in school funding and resource allocation. Barker and Weber (2016), Cascio and Reber (2013), and Kim and Taylor (2008) have found that the inequitable resource allocation in public schools is a causal factor of dropout. This is problematic because “college graduates find better jobs, earn more money, and suffer less unemployment than high school graduates do” (Hout, 2012, p. 379). Students who do not earn a high school diploma or GED fare economically worse (Alliance of Excellent Education, 2010; Rumberger, 2020). This qualitative study drew on the case study method and explored the experiences and perspectives of three participants who returned to school by enrolling in a Career Pathways program. This program enables students who have not earned a high school diploma or GED the opportunity to earn their High School Equivalency (HSE) and associate degree simultaneously. The Career Pathways program in this study is offered at a proprietary college located in a major metropolitan area in the Northeast. I examined Yosso’s (2005) Community Cultural Wealth theory (CCW), which acknowledges BIPOC and immigrant communities cultures as a source of empowerment. CCW asserts that BIPOC communities possess many forms of capital. CCW was used as a lens through which I engaged my study. The study highlighted the capital the research participants possessed and how the participants utilized their capital to navigate through college. This research adds to the literature regarding supports and motivations that can be used in similar educational settings to aid non-traditional students in the attainment of a college degree.

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