Granillo-Crawfford, Viola S., authorDavies, Timothy Gray, advisor2024-03-132024-03-132008https://hdl.handle.net/10217/237760There is a demographic shift taking place in the United States and projections indicate that by the year 2050, the Hispanic population in America will be approximately 88 million people, up from the 1995 number of 27 million. With the changes in the United States' demographic composition, education presents the most important challenge to the Hispanics seeking to be become educated and for America in helping them to make it accessible. The increasing population has already impacted school-aged children who in 1998 were the largest group of minority children in the United States. The educational achievement for Hispanics is consistently lower than that of other students, and even though there have been strides made in Hispanic educational attainment, there is still a notable gap between the Hispanic and non-Hispanic groups with more Hispanic than non-Hispanic children being held back one grade or more. The dropout rate for Hispanics is high especially when it is considered within the context of the nation's overall dropout rate which has fallen steadily since the 1950s. The dropout rate impacts the Hispanic population as a whole because they complete college at a much lower rate than all other groups and the most underrepresented group in higher education. The most dramatic effect however, is on Hispanic girls because they face greater barriers than Hispanic boys, when seeking high-paying jobs and opportunities in post-secondary education. The purpose of this research was to investigate the personal characteristics and environmental conditions of Hispanics/Latinas/Chicanas who have earned doctoral degrees. There is a great deal of literature about the barriers associated with Latinas' failure to achieve post-secondary degrees but little is written about the experiences of these women who have been successful in earning a doctorate. This qualitative research approach examined the factors contributing to the academic success of Latinas who effectively overcame barriers impeding others from reaching their goals and objectives. Interviews were conducted on six participants in an effort to discover perceptions, personal characteristics, and environmental factors that kept these Latinas on their academic path that directly impacts the number of minority females with doctoral degrees. The Latinas in this study recounted their successful education journey and clearly credited their own drive and motivation for their success. Despite the challenging difficulties they pursued their goals for higher education by exploiting their own characteristics. In doing so, these Latinas found the negative social support in their lives as a challenge to be met and conquered. Exploring the contributing factors and characteristics that compel some to continue their education is essential because it can provide inspiration to other Hispanics by recognizing the success of Latinas with degrees.born digitaldoctoral dissertationsengCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.bilingual educationwomen's studiesHispanic American studieshigher educationacademic degreesTextPer the terms of a contractual agreement, all use of this item is limited to the non-commercial use of Colorado State University and its authorized users.