RT Journal Article ID 47c79083517a17a8 A1 Carrigan, Coleen A1 Hauser, Jarman A1 Riskin, Eve A. A1 Mody-Pan, Priti A1 Borgford-Parnell, Jim A1 Wiggin, Dawn A1 Winter, Scott A1 Pinkham, Scott A1 Cunningham, Sonya T1 ACTIVE AGENTS AND FICTIVE KIN: LEARNING FROM PELL-ELIGIBLE ENGINEERING STUDENTS' CLASS STANDPOINT JF Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering JO JWM YR 2019 FD 2019-05-23 VO 25 IS 2 SP 147 OP 166 K1 engineering education K1 socioeconomic status (SES) K1 diversity in science K1 technology K1 engineering K1 and mathematics (STEM) K1 higher education AB Students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are underrepresented in engineering majors. To generate visionary solutions for our complex world, engineering needs diverse perspectives at the table. Individuals from lower socioeconomic backgrounds broaden the potential for engineering applications' purpose. Our qualitative study of Pell-eligible students identifies challenges to their success and unique sources of inspiration and support. In our action-oriented study, semi-structured interviews illuminated how participants navigate their education within structures that privilege wealthier students. In our analysis, we used a constructivist framework that can amplify the experiences of these students and elucidate the institutional factors that either support or jeopardize their persistence. We found that Pell-eligible students are cognizant of their class standpoint and this shapes their relationship with engineering institutions of higher education. Participants' narratives illuminated either an oppositional or reconcilable relationship with engineering, a pattern we analyze in both structural and individual terms, using cultural reproduction and standpoint theories. We also found fictive kin relations play an important role in participants' persistence. Students from low socioeconomic status experience face unique constraints in engineering. Their narratives provide clues as to what transformations engineering education institutions can enact to enable students from all class standpoints to contribute to the engineering profession. PB Begell House LK https://www.dl.begellhouse.com/journals/00551c876cc2f027,2c5599000e55578b,47c79083517a17a8.html