Joseph Romero-Reyes is a Graduate Research Assistant for the Diversity Research and Policy Program (DRPP) at the University of Michigan (UofM). He recently earned a Masters of Arts degree in Higher Education from the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education (CSHPE) at (UofM). Born in Compton and raised in Lynwood California, cities in South Los Angeles County, Joseph is a non-traditional and first-generation student who stumbled across higher education via Compton College. He credits the resilient and warrior spirit of his community for instilling the values of persistence and hard work in overcoming societal challenges. Before (UofM) he earned his Associate of Arts degree from Compton College in Behavioral and Social Science and transferred and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Social Behavior from the University of California, Irvine (UCI). During his undergraduate career, Joseph participated in federal work-study and worked in various departments at Compton College. Through these experiences is where he found a passion for helping first-generation and low-income students access and succeed in higher and postsecondary education. Moreover, as an undergraduate student at UCI, he was exposed to academic research and collaborated with Dr. Jeanett Castellanos conducting an Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) qualitative study examining the Psychosociocultural factors contributing to transfer attitudes by Latino males in community college. Joseph will be joining the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a doctoral student and pursue a Ph.D. in the Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis (ELPA) program with a concentration in Higher Education. As a doctoral student, he hopes to continue studying how first-generation and low-income males of color utilize their cultural and personal strengths to overcome social and academic barriers. He is also interested in studying how community colleges can implement strong multilevel strengths-based policies that will lead to the successful retention and transfer of first-generation and low-income males of color who attend community colleges and are exposed to k-12 educational opportunity gaps.