Dónde Está Mi Gente? Latinx/a/os in Rural Hispanic-Serving Institutions

Given the significant growth in the Latinx/a/o population in the United States, particularly in rural areas, there is a need for research that examines the experiences of Latinx/a/os currently enrolled in rural higher education. Existing scholarship on Latinx/a/os in higher education has primarily focused on their experiences within urban institutions, including current research on servingness. While most recent research on rural students has centered on white students, this qualitative study seeks to add to empirical research by exploring the experiences of Latinx/a/os attending rural higher education. Using community cultural wealth as a guiding framework, I explore rural Latinx/a/o students' postsecondary experiences in the Pacific Northwest. My Chicana feminist and immigrant-scholar epistemological techniques guided the pl ticas, a culturally inclusive research methodology. Accordingly, the following research questions guide this study: How do Latinx/a/o students experience and navigate rural higher education? How do Latinx/a/os describe culturally validating experiences within rural HSIs and eHSIs? Study findings indicate two main themes. First, familial capital is cornerstone for rural Latina/os experiences and how they navigate rural higher education institutions. Second, federally funded college success programs, notably the College Assistance Migrant Program, TRIO Student Support Services, and National Science Foundation-funded STEM programs, are key programs that support rural Latina/os as they transition to and navigate rural higher education through culturally validating experiences. Study findings have the potential to expand our understanding of servingness within rural Hispanic-serving institutions from the lived experiences of currently enrolled students. Furthermore, it expands the collective understanding of the experiences of Latinx/a/os in rural higher education and rural HSIs by exploring students' lived experiences from an asset-based perspective and bringing forth culturally validating experiences through empirical research.