Black Male Students' Community College Experiences

Contrary to the rhetoric around a post-racial United States, Black male students are not experiencing equitable outcomes in higher education. Community colleges are a critical access point to higher education for Black males; however, they are not graduating, transferring, or entering the workforce at an acceptable pace. The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore Black male students’ perceptions of their community college experience. The Five Domains Conceptual Model is a holistic framework utilized to address inequitable outcomes for Black males in community colleges. A constructivist approach to this qualitative inquiry reveals unique strengths and challenges of 17 Black male students as they navigate the community college environment for success. Findings from this study illuminate the importance of human agency (e.g., background factors, self-efficacy, and aspirations) coupled with institutional responsibility (e.g., faculty engagement, campus climate, and campus resources) to improve academic outcomes for this disproportionately impacted student group. Recommendations for addressing inequitable outcomes for Black male students include policy to sustain funding for Black Male Initiatives, equity-minded practices for faculty hiring and professional development, and future research that extends this inquiry to other marginalized student populations.