Browsing by Author "Ibarra, Roberto L., 1971-"

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Breaking the cycle of “surviving day by day on the island” : a multiple case study on Native Hawai’ian and Pacific Islanders’ college degree success in O’ahu, Hawai'i.
(2023-12) Ibarra, Roberto L., 1971-; Howell, Leanne.
The success stories of Native Hawai’ians and Pacific Islanders (NHPIs) who overcome barriers to earn either their two or four-year college degree are few. To address this problem, I conducted a multiple case study to understand the experiences of NHPIs in O’ahu, Hawai’i in their journeys to earn either a two-year or four-year college degree within the last 15 years. I also sought to uncover perceived barriers that continue to exist for NHPIs in earning a two or four-year degree. I selected five NHPI participants who grew up in O’ahu, Hawai’i, attended K–12 schools in that area, and earned a two or four-year degree from a college or university in Hawai’i or Mainland, United States within the aforementioned period. I selected Yosso’s model of a community of cultural wealth (2005) as the theoretical framework that supported my multiple case study to infer the participants’ experiences while earning a two-year or four-year degree. The three forms of data collection for this study were individual interviews with each participant, one focus group with all five participants, and one reflection questionnaire. The four themes I found were as follows. First, participants regarded their families as essential to their academic success. Second, participants capitalized on the financial resources that were available from family or other means to pay for college. Third, close and endearing relationships with other NHPIs were essential in navigating through their college experiences. Fourth, no participants experienced any injustice because they were of NHPI descent. Regardless of their family background or circumstances, each participant persevered and earned a two or four-year degree from their respective college or university in Hawai’i or Mainland, U.S. The Hawai’i Department of Education (HDOE), public and private high school teachers, counselors, senior leaders of the NHPI community, and future researchers need to establish and maintain relationships with each other to ensure that NHPI college success rates increase in the future. Increasing the state of Hawai’i's investments that advocate NHPI academic success can inspire future generations from their communities to earn a two or four-year degree after high school.