Broken Chains: Non Traditional Black Male Experiences in The College Admissions Process; A Study in Portraiture

Abstract

This qualitative study used portraiture as a research method to highlight and understand the lived experiences of three Black-male non-traditional aged learners during the college admissions application process. The study also sought to answer what are the issues and complexities facing Black male non-traditional learners during the college admissions process? Specifically, this study surfaced true experiences of non-traditional aged Black males engaged in the college admissions process for the first time. Portraiture operates in qualitative paradigms that links science to art merging the methodical and thorough depiction of excellent ethnography with the suggestive character of good writing. Much of the research around the college admission process for Black men is historical with attention on the overarching impact of historical court decisions, diminished school resources, and ethical college admission practices to increase access for traditionally aged minority students, but very little research exists on how Black non-traditional male learners make meaning of their college application experiences, or the spaces where their stories are being told. I captured some of those stories in this dissertation.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 202