With the increase in International students coming to the U.S. to study, it is important to look at their experiences and find out more effective ways of improving their perceptions and learning experiences in the U.S. The purpose of this study was to investigate and discover the factors that affect GPA (i.e., academic performance) and persistence in International students attending liberal arts universities in the U.S. The researcher used two main theories: Sandler's Chilly Climate (Hall & Sandler, 1982, 1984), which describes the inequities through which some students are treated differently compared to others, and Tinto's Retention Theory (1975), which describes a relationship between academic and social integration with a student's persistence. A cumulative effect of these actions creates an environment that leads to a reduction of one's self-esteem, a diminished sense of belonging, and feeling that one does not matter in a given environment. Therefore, the researcher developed a survey that was completed by 178 International students, capturing the components of these theories in terms of International students' feelings of belongingness and engagement with respect to persistence and academic performance in the U.S. The results of this study showed that instructor support and discrimination were predictors of persistence, whereas English communication, peer support, discrimination, and sense of belonging were related to academic performance. The implications of this study encourage school administrators to concentrate on remediation in English and provide an environment that fosters a sense of belonging within the school environment. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]