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Dissertation
"Blooming through the concrete": a critical counter-narrative of Black men emancipated from foster care navigating ecological systems toward bachelor's degree completion
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Drexel University
Oct 2025
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00011251
Abstract
This critical counter-narrative study explores how African American men emancipated from the foster care system navigated trauma, systemic inequities, and intersecting identities to achieve bachelor's degree completion. Despite being overrepresented in foster care and underrepresented in higher education, these men redefined success through resilience, agency, and self-authorship. Grounded in African American Male Theory (AAMT) and the Anti-Deficit Achievement Framework (ADAF) and guided by a Critical Counter-Narrative (CCN) methodology, this qualitative study centers the lived experiences of three participants who earned their bachelor's degrees after foster care emancipation. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and Events Historical Timeline (EHT) mapping to trace educational pathways across ecological systems. Four central themes emerged: surviving systems of trauma, neglect, and emotional armor; reclaiming power through education and voice; reimagining kinship and community; and becoming Black across systems. Collectively, these narratives reveal how participants transformed pain into purpose by leveraging cultural wealth, mentorship, and community care to persist through racialized and institutional barriers. The findings reframe dominant deficit narratives surrounding foster youth and Black men in higher education, instead highlighting their adaptive strategies, resistance, and transformative potential. This study contributes to scholarship on foster care, educational equity, and Black male identity development while offering actionable recommendations for educators, policymakers, and practitioners committed to creating conditions that sustain the brilliance and resilience of African American males from foster care. Keywords: African American Male Theory (AAMT), Anti-Deficit Achievement Framework (ADAF), Critical Counter-Narrative, emancipated foster youth, African American men, resilience, identity development, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), higher education
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Details
- Title
- "Blooming through the concrete"
- Creators
- Matthew Ernest West
- Contributors
- Kristine S. Lewis Grant (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University
- Number of pages
- xiii, 327, vii-liii pages
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- School of Education (1997-2026); Drexel University
- Other Identifier
- 991022150338504721