Abstract: Stephanie Harrison is an African American student at Saint Mary’s College of California. She is a first generation college student by definition, but the lifestyle her parents gave her represents a middle class suburban life.
Born in San Diego, she lived in a predominantly white area and the schools she attended were the same after her parents moved to Murrieta when she was only five. Her parents were supportive throughout her life, providing her with the necessary tools to succeed and go to college. Without the scholarship she earned for playing soccer, Stephanie would be facing larger obstacles in her path.
College was not a large adjustment for Stephanie since playing soccer at the club level for 9 years has provided her with the cultural knowledge she needed to succeed in a predominantly white society. Now approaching her junior year in college, Stephanie only has to face the difficulties of a normal student as she finishes her last half of her undergraduate work at Saint Mary’s College.
Keywords: family, soccer, cultural knowledge, middle class, African American
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