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VOICES

Throughout Dr. Carey's research, Black and Latino adolescent boys have shared key insights into their aspirations, fears, and motivations. Explore excerpts from his poignant interviews:

College Student

ON
COLLEGE

"By going to college, you change the history of your family, because my parents, like …the highest grade they went to was like fifth grade… I don’t think they went to middle school. So they didn’t have a very high education, they had low… From, like going to college, from now on, my children — I’ll make sure they get educated and you know, so you change the careers they have, they’re gonna be different from what my parents had."

LUCAS

Carey, R. L. (2021) Foregrounding family: How Salvadoran American boys interpret and formulate college-going mindsets at the nexus of family, school, and the self. Anthropology & Education  Quarterly. (Advanced Online Publication) doi: 10.1111/aeq.12372

It gets me thinking because [one of my brothers was] the one that studied the most, that worked hardest in school, that stayed the most out of trouble went to college… Whereas the other one was a little bit of a slacker, didn’t do all his work all the time, didn’t go to college – finished high school but didn’t go away to college, and just works at airport security. And it’s just like, he’s not really going anywhere. That’s where he’s stuck now, I guess. So with my [other] brother, it’s like, ‘‘College! He has a future. He’s going somewhere. Wow!’’

PERDIDO

Carey, R. L. (2016). “Keep that in mind …You’re gonna go to college”: Family influence on the college going processes of Black and Latino high school boys. The Urban Review, 48(5). 718–742. doi: 10.1007/s11256-016-0375-8

"I mean nowadays all people think about having is money and cars and everything. But I think [a good life is] like having a stable job. Like having a stable career and loving what you do. Let’s say you buy a big house and then a lot of things and you keep on moving forward. And let’s say you earn more money, and then you want a bigger house; like, you shouldn’t get too ambitious. Like, you know, be proud of what you have.

​

"It’s not good to be materialistic, and my father has always told me that. Like, “Never be materialistic!” He said if you keep on wanting more, that’s bad. So, a good life will be living your life, liking what you do. So never ask for more of what you can’t have, or what you shouldn’t. Having too much of a good thing is a bad thing. That’s how I see it."

LUCAS

“I would say stress-free…you can’t ever be stress-free, ‘cause you’ll always have that one thing that’s bugging you… But a good life – it’s a steady life. So like, you’re living good. You’re not backed up on any payments, you’re actually doing pretty good with your payments. You’re actually advanced! Your cable bill isn’t really much to you. You have a good car; it could be newer, or it doesn’t matter, as long as it’s in good shape, and not always breaking down and stuff like that. You’ve got a family, ‘cause you need somebody to support you when you doubt yourself, and good friends when you feel like your family isn’t enough... So a good life for me would be just, ya know, a steady life.”

PERDIDO

"Not being able to worry about a lot of things. Being able to help out other people. And yeah, being able to also help family when it comes up because I’m big with family. So it’s just – just, not having a lot of worries.  Being able to help people out.  Do the things that you want to be able to do in life."
"

SAMUEL

Carey, R. L. (2021)  “Whatever you become, just be proud of it:” Uncovering the ways families influence Black and Latino adolescent boys’ postsecondary future selves. Journal of Adolescent Research. 

Trainer with Black Top

ON
CONDITION

Similing Team

ON
CAREER

"[My uncle] works at a stand [selling things], and he loves his job because he’s his own boss. He can’t ever work with somebody over him. He hates that. So, he has his perfect job, and he just talked to me about this. He likes his job, so he wakes up every day in his life ready to go to work. He works on the weekends, too, and I’m just thinking I want a job that I want to really like, like I’m going to want to wake up to. So, I was looking at myself, and I like to work with people, so I have to work with people. That’s really fun to me."

SAMUEL

Carey, R. L. (2021)  “Whatever you become, just be proud of it:” Uncovering the ways families influence Black and Latino adolescent boys’ postsecondary future selves. Journal of Adolescent Research. 

"So, like [my Mom] wants me to go to  college  so that I’ll have a better  life  for myself than having to live paycheck to paycheck, or a  job  that I don’t like. Or I can just go to a job that I do like and live easy – live under my means, basically.

What do you mean by "better life?"

"Like have an easy life instead of having to work hard every single day just to make ends meet."

MALIK

"The way I look at it is, if you graduate from high school and you don’t go to  college , I mean there’s still maybe some jobs out there, but not jobs that are guaranteed or  jobs that you really like.  If you don’t go to college, if you just stop, you’re probably going to work in like McDonald’s or any fast food restaurant or jobs you don’t like, with low pay. That’s how I look at it."

LUCAS

"It depends. If I’m in the NFL, I want like a little house, like a little apartment or something. I don't want no big ol’ [house], ‘cause that’s how you waste all your money. And you never know if you’re gonna get replaced or even if you’re gonna get drafted, so I just want something small that I could pay for no matter what job I got."

KING

Carey, R. L. (2021)  “Whatever you become, just be proud of it:” Uncovering the ways families influence Black and Latino adolescent boys’ postsecondary future selves. Journal of Adolescent Research.

Boy Checking his Phone

ON
ALIGNMENT

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