(2017). Assessing Empowerment at HSIs: An Adapted Inputs-Environments-Outcomes Model. Association of Mexican American Educators Journal, v11 n3 p84-108. Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) play a critical role in advancing postsecondary access and success for Latinx students. Scholarship has begun to examine how HSIs influence Latinx student experiences and outcomes, yet much remains to be explored. In an effort to inform future research of Latinx students at HSIs, we argue that student experiences and outcomes should be based on notions of empowerment given the historically marginalized status of this group. We propose a model to guide assessment on Latinx empowerment at HSIs, which builds on the Inputs-Environments-Outcomes (IEO) model (Astin & antonio, 2012) and integrates critical theoretical frameworks, namely critical race theory and community cultural wealth. In proposing an adapted IEO model assessing Latinx empowerment, we encourage scholars and practitioners to expand notions of what constitutes success and excellence at HSIs in terms of how they educate and empower Latinx students…. [Direct]
(2017). The School to Prison Pipeline: The Role of Culture and Discipline in School. Advances in Race and Ethnicity in Education. Volume 4. Advances in Race and Ethnicity in Education This edited volume focuses on the role that school climate and disciplinary practices have on the educational and social experiences of students of color. Drawing from quantitative, qualitative, and theoretical studies, it brings to bear a number of topics such as racialized school experiences; criminology, discursive deviance and punishment and carceral studies; urban studies; school administration and leadership; and, a number of critical theorist frameworks. Practical insights are offered to assist administrators, teachers, school counsellors, and other school and non-school based professionals on how to address not only disparities in school discipline, but also create and promote an inclusive, affirming positive school culture and climate. With applications in disciplinary studies and criminology, leadership studies, critical race theory and other critical frameworks, this volume is a valuable resource advancing new theoretical concepts. [Individual chapters are indexed in ERIC.]… [Direct]
(2018). The Ouroboros of Rubrics: A Conundrum, a Case, and a Call. Power and Education, v10 n3 p333-338 Nov. In this think piece, the author explores a conundrum and tension related to using rubrics to evaluate doctoral work. She ponders whether the use of rubrics provides beneficial ways for students to "crack the code" of academia, and/or whether the use of rubrics is perhaps a tool to engender conformity. With these competing ideas in mind, the author considers in what ways one might press for means to provide this on-ramp of access for students to the existing power structures, while at the same time seeking to change academia, to more equitably provide spaces for a range in ways of knowing, growing, expressing, framing, and presenting research. How might scholars support their students in engaging in what Rochelle Guti√©rrez describes as simultaneously "playing the game" while also "changing the game?" Invoking challenges to existing power structures, such as those voiced in critical race theory and decolonizing epistemologies, this essay speaks to the… [Direct]
(2018). Border Stories: Using Critical Race and Latino Critical Theories to Understand the Experiences of Latino/a Children. Race, Ethnicity and Education, v21 n1 p92-104. The number of school-age children of color in US schools is increasing, while the teaching force continues to be dominated by white teachers. According to the 2013 Digest of Education Statistics in the 2011-2012 school year, 81.9% of public school teachers were white, while the projected number of Hispanic students enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools is expected to increase 33% between 2011 and 2022. In my experience, the issue of immigration is often ignored by the majority white teacher population, but, as I will share in this article, it is part of the lived experience of Latino children. I present my students' border stories as discussed in relation to Latino children's literature. I am using the words "border stories" to represent the narratives my students shared about their families' experiences crossing the US-Mexico border as well as what they felt about the societal discourse around "illegal immigrants." Critical race theory (CRT) and… [Direct]
(2018). Safe Routes to School? Black Caribbean Youth Negotiating Police Surveillance in London and New York City. Harvard Educational Review, v88 n3 p261-286 Fall. In this article, Derron Wallace examines how Black Caribbean youth perceive and experience stop-and-frisk and stop-and-search practices in New York City and London, respectively, while on their way to and from public schools. Despite a growing body of scholarship on the relationship between policing and schooling in the United States and United Kingdom, comparative research on how students experience stop-and-frisk/search remains sparse. Drawing on the BlackCrit tradition of critical race theory and in-depth interviews with sixty Black Caribbean secondary school students in London and New York City, Wallace explores how adolescents experience adult-like policing to and from schools. His findings indicate that participants develop a strained sense of belonging in British and American societies due to a security paradox: a policing formula that, in principle, promises safety for all but in practice does so at the expense of some Black youth. Participants in the ethnographic study… [Direct]
(2022). "Tired of Crumbs": Underrepresented Minority Doctoral Biomedical Students' Perceptions of How Culture and Climate Influence Their Professional Aspirations. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. While more underrepresented minorities (URMs) are graduating with their PhDs, especially in the biomedical sciences, many leave the academy for non-academic related jobs (e.g., government, nonprofits, industry, etc.) instead of pursuing faculty positions. This is a problem because faculty racial/ethnic diversity impacts URM student recruitment and affects URM students' STEM persistence and success within their academic programs. The purpose of this qualitative research was to explore how URM doctoral students experienced and perceived the culture and climate of their doctoral biomedical science (DBMS) program. In addition, the researcher sought to better understand the perceived influence of culture and climate on URM doctoral students' desire to pursue academic faculty positions. Through the lens of Critical Race Theory and sense of belonging theory, the researcher employed Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to analyze the experiences and perceptions shared by the 11 DBMS… [Direct]
(2022). Familia Y Comunidad: Centering the Lived Experiences of Thriving Latinx First-Generation College Students. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D./HE Dissertation, Azusa Pacific University. This study explored the phenomenon of thriving among Latinx first-generation college students. Using Latino Critical Race Theory (LatCrit) and Yosso's (2006) community cultural wealth perspective, I used a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to center the counternarratives of 8 thriving Latinx students from 5 different colleges. Each participant identified as a first-generation college student. I addressed the following research question: What are the lived experiences of thriving Latinx first-generation college students on dominantly white campuses? What emerged from the narratives differed from previous quantitative studies of thriving in Latinx students. There was an emphasis on the family of first-generation Latinx participants. Five major themes emerged from participants' testimonies: (a) family is where there is love and support; (b) recreating familia on campus; (c) rising above structural racism; (d) faith and connection; and (e) identity and belonging. Seeking to capture… [Direct]
(2022). African American Parents of Elementary Males Placed in Special Education: A Qualitative Examination of Their Involvement and Advocacy during Placement. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Northcentral University. The disproportionality of African American male students diagnosed with disabilities and placed in special education services compared to their White counterparts raises questions about how students are identified for testing, assessed, and placed into special education in public schools. This study explores the special education placement experiences of parents of African American male elementary-aged students who have a special education placement of specific learning disabled (SLD) or emotional disturbance (ED). The objective was to closely examine parents' lived experiences with their child's identification and placement for special education services and their perceptions regarding their role and ability to advocate for their child during the process. The research was guided by Bell's (1980) Critical Race Theory (CRT), Deutsch's (1967) cultural deficit model, and parental participation concepts, given the focus is on investigating a decisive aspect regarding race within the… [Direct]
(2022). The Voices of African American Adolescent Males: Schooling Experiences in Urban Schools. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Middle Tennessee State University. The ongoing phenomenon of African American males' poor academic performance has been evidenced in research data, indicating this subgroup of students tends to have one of the largest academic deficits, behavioral issues, and high school dropout rates which often leads to the school-to-prison pipeline process (Craven et al., 2020). The researcher set forth to better understand why African American male students remain academically at-risk students and if there are confounding reasons when students feel connected or marginalized from school and learning environments. Therefore, the purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological qualitative study aimed to engage fourth-grade African American adolescents to share personal experiences and stories about learning in public school. This study was guided by Critical Race Theory, which supports the power of "voice" for minority students to share their perspectives of teachers and peers (Delgado, 1989). CRT believes that educational… [Direct]
(2022). Black Students and High Attrition Numbers in Nursing Programs: A Phenomenological Study. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Northcentral University. This phenomenological qualitative study addressed the problem of high attrition of Black students from nursing programs, which has remained consistent for many years. Black students have consistently had a higher rate of attrition from nursing programs than their White counterparts over the years. Utilizing the theory of integration, critical race theory and the ecological systems theory, the purpose of this study was to investigate the lived experiences of Black students who have failed or left a nursing program prior to completion. Semi-structured interviews were held to obtain detailed, rich data from the perspective of the participants regarding the phenomenon. Data analysis from the transcriptions of the interviews yielded themes such as (a) role models, and service to others; (b) negative school-related issues and concerns; (c) human tendency-related issues; (d) lack of knowledge, skills and personal life concerns; (e) decisional regrets, and educational failures; and (f)… [Direct]
(2022). Teacher Perceptions of the Overrepresentation of Black and/or Latino Males in Special Education: A Qualitative Case Study. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Northcentral University. Minority students continue to be disproportionately recommended for special education services in the United States. The problem addressed by this study is Black and Latino male middle school students are disproportionately placed in special education programs, which can have negative academic and social impacts. This problem impacts Black and Latino male students, their families, and their teachers. The purpose of this study was to explore the academic and social impacts of disproportionality as it pertains to the overrepresentation of Black and Latino male students from the perspective of parents and teachers. Due to a lack of parent participation, only the perspectives of teachers will be reported in the findings. A qualitative exploratory single case study design was used for this study and Critical Race Theory served as the guiding theoretical framework. Eleven teachers from various backgrounds participated. A semi-structured interview protocol which included questions related… [Direct]
(2022). The Low Enrollment of African American High School Students in Advanced Mathematics: A Case Study. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Northcentral University. There is a low enrollment of African American high school students in advanced mathematics. High school advanced mathematics are prerequisites to college calculus, one of the basic courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. African Americans earned only 7.6% of all bachelor's degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. African Americans only represent 6% of the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics workforce. It was predicted that by 2020, 65% of all jobs will require degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and the United States will be a majority-minority country by 2043. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the factors that influenced African American high school students' decisions to take advanced mathematics. The theoretical framework of this study was critical race theory. Three African American 12th graders, a precalculus teacher, and a principal participated in the study by… [Direct]
(2022). "There's Not Many More Options for Me": The Retention and Success of Black Men in Community College. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Indiana State University. Despite years' worth of focus on improving the success and retention of Black men in community colleges across the nation, an opportunity gap still exists between success and retention rates for Black men and their White counterparts. Much of the research conducted on Black men and their success and retention has been framed from a deficit model, focused on elements that are lacking in the men themselves or in the educational environment. This study aimed to focus on the aspects of the campus climate and the external environment and the psychological factors that positively impact the success and retention of Black men in the community college environment. The theoretical frameworks used for this study were self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977), stereotype threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995), microaggressions (Sue et al., 2007), and critical race theory (Delgado & Stefancic, 2012). Through these lenses, eight Black men attending a Midwest community college answered interview questions… [Direct]
(2022). Perceptions of Campus Climate as a Selection Criteria for African American Freshman Enrollment at a Predominately White Institution. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Walden University. Declining enrollment of African American 1st-year students at a predominately White institution (PWI) may indicate an unwelcoming campus culture. For the last 5 years, African American 1st-year enrollment has decreased at a local PWI. The purpose of this study was to better understand how the campus climate may influence the enrollment decision making process for African American 1st-year students. Using critical race theory and rational choice theory as the conceptual framework, this study examined how African American 1st-year student perceptions of campus climate at the local institution influenced their decision to enroll and how their experiences are shared to others. Using a basic qualitative research design, 11 African American 1st-year students were interviewed. While these students were not aware of racist incidents on campus prior to enrolling, African American 1st-year students were able to describe positive elements of the university's academic climate once on campus…. [Direct]
(2022). #iBelong: The Stories of Sense of Belonging and Social Media from Black College Students. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Georgia. This study was designed to explore how Black students' sense of belonging has been impacted, if at all, by social media at the University of Georgia showcasing how social media influences their psychosocial development in a collegiate environment. More specifically, this study framed the stories of the participants as counter-narratives, a key tenet of Critical Race Theory designed to properly elevate the stories of historically marginalized groups. I crafted this study to utilize these stories in order to explore both the impact of social media on sense of belonging as well as what their stories tell about sense of belonging through their digital presence. The research questions that guided this study stemmed from the notion that Black students experience lower levels of sense of belonging than their White student counterparts at Predominantly White Institutions. The literature presented throughout the study showcased the importance of Black social media spaces, the key elements… [Direct]