Black Students from At-Risk to Thriving At-Possibility

America’s problem with high school students discontinuing enrollment or dropping out of school still persists despite reported increases in the nation’s graduation rates over the past few years. Black males have statistically had the lowest rankings in most educational indicators, including high school completion. The goal of this study was to gain insight from Black male students that experienced academic struggles, including school dropout, and were successful in re-engaging in education and completing high school. These students exhibited a manifestation of academic resilience as they initially succumbed to academic challenges and then bounced back by re-engaging or re-enrolling in education. This phenomenological qualitative research study gives voice to academically resilient Black males (N=8), and from an ecological perspective it provides a better understanding on how they experienced academic resilience. Their collective experiences are illustrated in a heuristic that maps out an eight-step process of academic resilience. Qualitative analysis of the interview data also revealed what specific personal and external factors, including motivations, strategies and supports, were associated with the students’ academic resilience. All study participants indicated that their journey through the academic resilience process was aided by key sources of support in their microsystems – community, family, friends, and school personnel. However, the impetus for their turnaround was their own acknowledgement that they needed to change to ensure a better future for themselves. The findings from this study have the potential to inform educational policy makers, program administrators in schools and the community, as well as social networks, including families and friends, on ways to foster and support academic resilience and to mitigate the permanency of negative outcomes associated with academic failure.