Creator

Rene Couture

Advisor

Rodriguez, Katrina

Advisor

Guido, Florence M.

Committee Member

Schober Morrell, Jean

Committee Member

Fahey, Kathleen

Department

Higher Education & Student Leadership

Institution

University of Northern Colorado

Type of Resources

Text

Place of Publication

Greeley (Colo.)

Publisher

University of Northern Colorado

Date Created

5-1-2010

Genre

Thesis

Extent

199 pages

Digital Origin

Born digital

Description

A critical ethnographic case study was conducted with a White family from a lower income and rural background. The three siblings in the family were first-generation college students with two siblings concurrently enrolled at the same institution of higher education. Four themes emerged from this inquiry. These first-generation students were identified as the first-again generation because although their college student status was first-generation because their parents did not attend college, their grandfather had earned a college degree. The parents in this study, therefore, were identified as the skipped generation. The youngest sibling was identified as an astute college student because his first-generation student experience was atypical in that he had received immeasurable benefits from his older sibling`s college experience and from his high school guidance counselor. Another major theme revolved around this family`s loyalty to each other, perhaps, in part, due to bereavement from four family deaths, including the siblings` father, this family had experienced in recent years. First-again students knew from an early age that they would attend college. Younger siblings had increasingly smoother transitions to college than their older siblings. Implications for practice in the areas of the first-again generation, skipped generation, first-generation students, and social class are discussed. Finally, areas for future research are considered.

Notes

[Released from 1-year embargo]

Degree type

PhD

Degree Name

Doctoral

Language

English

Local Identifiers

Couture_unco_0161N_10034

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by author.

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