Flores, Andrea. The succeeders: How immigrant youth are transforming what it means to belong in America. Oakland, CA: University of California Press, 2021.

The Succeeders: How Immigrant Youth Are Transforming What It Means to Belong in America is an intriguing and insightful ethnographic study of a program called “The Succeeders,” which supports Latino high school students in Nashville, Tennessee. The author, Andrea Flores who is a white-presenting, half-Latinx American does not directly relate to the students in the Succeeders program, as she came from an upper household where pursuing college was always an option. Instead, she found a deeper connection to the students’ experiences through her mother’s background.

In the ethnography Flores focuses on Latino students’ sense of belonging in high school and the support they receive to pursue higher education. The book is divided into three parts: Context of Belonging, Learning to Belong, and Unlearning to Belong. Flores provides an in-depth exploration of the students’ perspectives on Latinidad stereotypes and how their culture and individual experiences shape their sense of belonging in high school and their pursuit of higher education. She helps us understand that each student has their own definition of success, even if that does not mean the student pursues higher education. This work is important for the field of higher education, as it highlights ways to better support both undocumented and documented Latinidad youth, challenge stereotypes, and foster a greater sense of belonging within academic spaces.

Part One focuses on how students navigate their sense of belonging in both the community and in the Succeeders program. There is a discussion on how the students perceive and define themselves within the framework of the American Dream. Additionally, Flores introduces the students, and how they are welcomed in both the Succeeders program, their community, and their school.

Part Two focuses on Chapter Two and Chapter Three, which have the greatest impact in the book by shedding light on the stereotypes students face. Chapter Two describes a complex version of Duck, Duck, Goose which the students engaged during class. In this activity, a student would stand up, state a word, and see their classmates’ reactions. In one scenario, a student stood up and said the word undocumented. The student’s first reaction to this word was associated with criminality, highlighting how stereotypes contributed to feelings of exclusion at school. Flores explains that some students she interviewed were undocumented and struggled to navigate both school and their communities at home. She also explored how they “understand their membership in the United States” (Flores, 2021, p. 81). As the students reflected on their identities, they began to define culture in their own way, embracing their Latinidad heritage and identity through family and kinship. In the Latinidad community, kinship is strong and plays a significant role in students’ academic success and classroom performance.

This scenario is important for current administrators and faculty in education to understand the impact of stereotypes on Latino students in high school. In addition, these factors influence their hesitation in pursuing higher education. This discussion transitions into Chapter Three, which examines the students’ use of language and how their personal lives and cultural backgrounds influence their pursuit of higher education.

Chapter three strongly resonates with Flores’ argument, as it examines both the students’ culture and how their home lives impact their education. Flores explores the students’ use of language and how they navigate between standard English and what they refer to as ghetto to express themselves. Standard English is used for writing papers and communicating in academic settings, while ghetto is the language they use at home or in more informal conversations. The way and context in which students use these language styles allows them to express themselves authentically. Flores writes, “Your essay is your chance to tell your story. The essay is your ticket into money, into school. Knowing who you are.