Play Hard

Chapter 3 focuses on first-generation students who fit a Play Hard geography. Although academic achievement is important for many Play Hard students, it is less of a driver in students’ lives than for those in other geographies. Students arrange their lives more around leisure, participating in high-status social venues of athletics and/or Greek Letter Organizations where they meet more peers from more affluent and continuing-generation families than those in other geographies. Most who entered a Play Hard geography participate in athletics and/or attended a private high school. The small percentage of first-generation students who make their way into a Play Hard geography includes the greatest variation of experience along gender and racialized lines. Students located in a Play Hard geography experience varying levels of comfort, often participating at a steep cost to their sense of self-esteem or enjoyment.