I Grew Up Straight ‘hood: Unpacking the Intelligences of Working-Class Latino Male College Students in North Carolina

Primarily drawing from the Mestiz@ Theory of Intelligences (Carrillo, 2013), this article examines how working class Latino male college students in North Carolina navigate multiple cultural worlds and excel academically. This work addresses current gaps in the literature that largely fail to unpack the experiences of academically successful Latin@ college students in the southeastern U.S. and also informs current work on males of color in schools, a topic that, in this region, is largely devoid of any research focus. Moreover, this study provides implications for teacher preparation and for extending current research that focuses on low-income youth of color.