Stereotypical depictions of immigrant Mexicans focusing on school dropout and academic failure belie Mexican American youths’ varied pathways into adulthood. Why do some immigrant Mexican youth attend college; while others drop out of high school; and still others complete high school and move directly into work? How are their experiences in U.S. schools, workplaces, and neighborhoods influenced by being Mexican immigrants? How do the experiences differ across young women and men? The investigator will conduct in-depth ethnographic research with 110 immigrant Mexican adolescents in New York City. This work will help build better theory on the factors that impinge and facilitate immigrant youths’ successful transition to adulthood; and will inform school-based and workplace intervention and policy attempts to improve adult transitions for immigrant youths.
Stereotypical depictions of immigrant Mexicans focusing on school dropout and academic failure belie Mexican American youths’ varied pathways into adulthood. Why do some immigrant Mexican youth attend college; while others drop out of high school; and still others complete high school and move directly into work?
