Get It How I Live

Grounded in critical race theory, Yosso’s (2005) Community Cultural Wealth Model aims to capture unique ways that help students of color succeed in predominantly White institutions, and in society. This case study explores how Black first-generation low-income college students within a program at a predominantly White institution learn about financial knowledge through aspirational, social, familial, linguistic, navigational, and resistance forms of capital. This study explored how this financial knowledge influenced students’ financial behavior as college students. Findings suggest that students used familial and social forms of capital to access financial knowledge. These two forms of capital influenced students’ financial decisions related to money management, loans, and credit cards. Themes related to students’ definitions of financial knowledge, hardship experiences, and aspirations to achieve financial knowledge emerged as well.