Abstract
My personal experiences and professional aspirations led me to conduct my research with the interest and benefit of students who identify as part of the Latinx community and minorities altogether. To do this, I designed a case study to answer the question: how do Latinx undergraduates' descriptions of their experiences illustrate the exclusion that occurs in university writing programs. This study was informed by Mestiza consciousness (Anzaldúa, 1987) and Critical Race Theory (CRT). I used Mestiza consciousness as a lens to better understand the experiences of Latinx, Spanish-speaking students while using Anzaldúa's concept of choques as a more focused application that fits within the larger framework of CRT within my research. CRT is a cross-disciplinary movement, and Mestiza consciousness helps us view CRT specifically for Spanish-speaking students as it helps us identify the opposing messages often experienced by students who live in more than one culture (Anzaldúa, 1987). My findings suggest that multilingual and multicultural students perceived their bilingualism as a learning barrier in their writing classes and felt excluded from university culture due to their limited comprehension of the material discussed in their writing classes. My goal is not to solve the problem but to understand it better and bring attention to it, so we can begin working towards a solution. My overarching goal for this study is to lay a foundation and a starting point to begin working towards a solution. Although this study was focused on Spanish-speaking students who identify as part of the Latinx community, the findings can help us move towards a solution that will benefit all multilingual and multicultural students.