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Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

Carlos Cruz

Faculty Sponsor

Gabriel Serna

Abstract

With increasing numbers of underrepresented students attending college in the United States and concomitant low college graduation rates from four-year institutions for these same students, it is important to explore possible interventions that may increase persistence and retention rates among these populations. The research literature suggests a positive association between students’ participation in Greek Life and persistence/retention from one year to the next. While the literature regarding the relationship between traditional Greek Life and student persistence and retention is robust, the same cannot be said for research on Multicultural Greek Life. If the same relationships are expected to hold between MCGL and student persistence and retention it becomes imperative to look at this link in the same manner. In an effort to expand the literature on this topic, we explore the relationship between institutional levels of persistence and retention at a western regional university for those who participate in Multicultural Greek Life by examining correlations among relevant institutional characteristics. Because of the costs and benefits associated with a college degree, various stakeholders have directed more attention to college student success. This has manifested itself most clearly in efforts to increase persistence and retention rates of both traditional and underrepresented students. Given the relative dearth of research on the impacts of MCGL and underrepresented students’ persistence and retention rates, our study is a step towards filling this gap in the literature.

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