| An increasing problem for HBCU institutions is the high rate of student attrition. In an attempt to address institutional priorities, such as attrition rates, many administrators, and faculty higher education institutions have begun to take interest in learning communities. The specific problem for this study consists of: while learning communities exist at some HBCUs, no data or information has been gathered on the lived experiences of learning community participants to assess whether or not there is value in the method. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological research study was to describe the meaning attributed to the experiences of first-year, full-time students enrolled in learning communities at one HBCU institution and perceive if student involvement in the learning community had improved their educational development or retention. The data was based on the experiences and perceptions of 20 participants enrolled in an HBCU institution. The common themes that emerged from the 20 interviews included the following: social integration, collaboration, enhanced educational development, long-term value of learning communities, engagement, and retention. The qualitative phenomenological research design consisted of a semi-structured interview format. This study may enhance the body of knowledge by providing a unique description of the lived experiences of students regularly attending learning communities at an HBCU institution. Additionally, the data and information from this research may be used to increase the limited body of literature on learning communities in HBCUs and may assist stakeholders, students, faculty and administrators of learning community programs at other higher education institutions. |
