ABSTRACT
Of the over 1.3 million Latina/o students enrolled in higher education at the turn of the century, only 40% were enrolled in four-year institutions (NCES, 2001). This figure represents the lowest level of four-year participation of any of the other racial/ethnic groups in the country. The fact that Latina/os are least likely to take a direct path to the baccalaureate degree has been the case for over three decades without change. This suggests that significant attention must be devoted to educating Latina/o students in four-year colleges and universities in terms of providing access, assisting in their transition to colleges, and retention through graduation if we hope for them to achieve more advanced degrees that will ensure the economic viability and leadership needs of Latina/o communities. The purpose of this chapter is to identify some of the important principles of practice derived from educational research that will enhance Latina/o student retention at four-year institutions. Student voices are added to illustrate the principles from a recent set of focus groups collected at ten public universities in student discussions about their experiences on these campuses.
