(2017). Examining the World around Us: Critical Media Literacy in Teacher Education. Multicultural Perspectives, v19 n1 p40-46. This article presents findings from action research conducted in a graduate level course with practicing K-12 educators. In this article, I consider the usefulness of critical media literacy in the graduate classroom as I engaged students in discussions about multicultural issues including race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability. Through an examination of student presentations and field notes collected over the course of the semester, I found the graduate student participants were typically quite savvy at evaluating the messages they receive from media. Further, I found the incorporation of popular media into the classroom helped students grapple with typically foreign and often theoretically dense concepts like unconscious racism and heteronormativity, as well as theories like critical race theory, intersectionality, and queer theory. The graduate student participants were able to see deep connections between text/theory and media and often used various media to illustrate… [Direct]
(2017). The Role of VET in the (Dis)placing of Migrants' Skills in Australia. Journal of Vocational Education and Training, v69 n3 p351-370. Vocational Education and Training (VET) in a policy and institutional sense plays an important role in the migration experiences of people who settle in Australia. This article draws on qualitative empirical work using narrative accounts from VET practitioners along with a cross section of ethnically diverse migrants to reveal how race and ethnicity are central to and constitutive of the experiences of both humanitarian and skilled migrants in Australian VET. The article employs critical race theory (CRT) building on research developed by others in the Journal of VET to analyse these experiences and the role of VET and labour markets in this process of (dis)placing migrants' skills. The article argues firstly, that skilled migrants are not absent in VET, but are rather rendered invisible in a policy sense. Secondly, CRT provides a theoretical resource for coming to grips with how, in a marketised Australian VET context where institutional responses to skilled migration can either be… [Direct]
(2024). "We Have the Potential"–Math as a Racialized Barrier: Counter-Narratives of Black and Latinx Working-Class California Community College STEM Students. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Loyola Marymount University. Within the CCC system, mathematics has been identified as the most considerable barrier to persistence, transfer, and degree completion (Cooper et al., 2022). Recent research corroborated the notion that mathematics serves as a gatekeeper for Black and Latinx students; historically, this subject has impeded students of color from accessing educational opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM; Joseph et al., 2021). Consequently, mathematics has evolved into a racialized impediment for students and, by extension, STEM graduates. Recognizing mathematics' critical role in shaping students' future prospects, the state legislature introduced "California Assembly Bill 705" (AB 705; California Assembly Bill 705 [AB 705], 2017) to provide an intervention implemented in the fall of 2019. The purpose of this study was to examine how Black and Latinx working-class STEM students interpret and derive meaning from their mathematics trajectories, as well as the… [Direct]
(2018). Resistance Identities and Language Choice in Instagram among Hispanic Urban Artists in Da DMV: Big Data and a Mixed-Method. Education for Information, v34 n3 p215-238. The aim of this article is to shed light on the particularities of language choice (Spanish, English, and hybridity) and identity performance among urban music (UM) affiliated individuals from Hispanic immigrant backgrounds interacting through Instagram. The participants reside in Da DMV, an emic term used to refer to the Washington DC (DC) metropolitan area. The study focuses on the ways in which these Hispanic artists use linguistic and stylistic resources within a heteroglossic framework to perform resistance identities while highlighting the differences and similarities between first and second-generation immigrant participants. The speakers' linguistic and textual displays in Instagram are geared by and express translocal affective and sociocultural alignments and affinities while resisting hegemonic ideologies of racial categorization and stigmatization of Latinxs in the US. Theoretically and methodologically the study draws on sociolinguistics, language ideologies, critical… [Direct]
(2024). Experiences of Women of Color Leaders in Academic Libraries. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Southern California. This study applies critical race feminism theory (CRF) to understand the experiences of women of color (WoC) who are academic librarian leaders. This study explores the obstacles they overcame to achieve their leadership roles and the skills and assets they developed throughout their journeys. The research employs semi-structured, in-depth interviews to capture the experiences of 15 WoC academic librarianship leaders. The findings of this study indicate that the challenges described by the women interviewed are in the realm of gender inequalities, cultural taxation, emotional labor, and racial fatigue. The study also examines the consequences of these challenges on their physical and mental health, even at the spiritual level. Nevertheless, the women also narrate how to navigate these challenges and how they create counterspaces to support their journey in organizations informed by Whiteness. The study aims to contribute to a better understanding of the unique challenges women of… [Direct]
(2020). Illuminating the Voices of Black Women Principals: A Phenomenological Qualitative Study. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Old Dominion University. School reform efforts, particularly those that are concerned with equity and social justice have led to an evolution of educational leadership theories and practices. Among these, Culturally Responsive School Leadership and Critical Race Theory have emerged as potential frameworks for dismantling the ghost of neo-managerialism and its impact on Black and Brown students' academic success (Barton, 1998; MacRuairc, 2012; Terry, 1998). Relatedly, there is a dearth in the literature regarding the experiences of Black Women Principals; their lives, leadership styles, and accomplishments are not consistently recognized as valued contributions to educational research (Ladson-Billings, 2002). The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Black Woman Principals. The study yielded five major themes related to their 1) journey to leadership, 2) professional development, 3) focus on relationships, 4) responsiveness to students, and 5) how they navigated… [Direct]
(2023). Do Black Lives Really Matter in For-Profit Institutions? A Qualitative Study of the Black Student Experience at For-Profit Colleges and Universities. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, The George Washington University. Much of the research on for-profit institutions provides quantitative analyses at the institutional level on enrollment, graduation, career placement rates and gainful employment, and student loan default rates. However, limited research examines the lived experiences of Black students who attend for-profit colleges and universities. This study examined the ways in which Black students experienced support at for-profit institutions. This basic interpretive qualitative study incorporated semi-structured interviews to learn about the experiences of five former for-profit students. The study explored the Black student experience in order to inform FPCU administrators on how to improve the educational climate for their students. The focus on Black students is due to their disproportionate enrollment in for-profit colleges and universities, which some have labeled "Lower Ed" (Cottom, 2017) and "subprime education" (Braucher, 2012; Lynch et al., 2010; McGuire, 2012). To… [Direct]
(2020). In Their Own Words: Stories of Servant Leader Presidents and Chancellors at HBCUs. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Fayetteville State University. There are relatively few studies of Historically Black College and University (HBCU) presidents and chancellors, particularly in relation to servant leadership. This is due in part to mistrust resulting from the misrepresentation of Black leaders in past research. Servant leadership, a framework that fits well with HBCU culture, is based on the premise that leaders should prioritize others (i.e. followers) before one's own needs. By doing so, servant leaders act as advocates who empower people in organizations and communities to grow and to develop. At HBCUs, servant leaders are proponents for their institutions, including students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community partners. Unfortunately, American higher education has been engrained with racial biases that create obstacles for HBCU servant leaders. This predicament can be attributed to the social justice framework known as the Critical Race Theory (CRT). In this study, the stories of lived experiences of three purposefully… [Direct]
(2020). A Critical Race Analysis: Examining the Black College Experience at a Selective Public Minority-Serving Research Institution (MSRI). ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Santa Barbara. This research involved a qualitative case study (N=15) that identified several layers of concern centered around the Black college student experience using Critical Race Theory and Bridging Multiple Worlds Theory. Through two rounds of qualitative semi-structured interviews, the current study addressed the concerns of access for Black students at the UC level. This work explored the relationships between Black students and the UC system in thinking about levels of support and advocacy for Black students on recruitment, retention, and post-graduation career plans. This work also assessed the impact of diversity campaigning on student experiences. Dissertation data suggested that students felt an invested interest in the college they chose and strong belief that their school would prepare them for the future. Students relayed how they viewed their university, what they felt their university could offer them professionally, and provided suggestions for improvements on campus as it… [Direct]
(2020). (Re)Imagining STEM Instruction: An Examination of Culturally Relevant Andragogical Practices to Eradicate STEM Inequities among Racially Minoritized Students in Community Colleges. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Southern California. The purpose of this study was to address the underrepresentation of racially minoritized students in the STEM field. Community colleges have emerged as institutions that are uniquely positioned to increase the number of racially minoritized students in STEM. To support the success of racially minoritized students in STEM, a recommended practice is to incorporate the use culturally relevant andragogy (CRA) into faculty instructional practices. The organization of study was a community college in Southern California. The primary stakeholder group for this study was science faculty at ACC, as they are the most front-facing with racially minoritized STEM students. The research questions that guided this study sought to explore science faculty's knowledge and motivation related to employing proven CRA practices and the impact of the community college culture and context on their ability to do so. Informed by critical race theory, the study utilized the Clark and Estes' (2008) knowledge,… [Direct]
(2020). A Quantitative Causal-Comparative Study: College Readiness Differences within and between Groups of Underserved Middle School Students Based on AVID Enrollment. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Grand Canyon University. This causal comparative quantitative study examined if college readiness differences exist between Black and Latino AVID enrolled middle school students in a school district in southern Arizona as compared with Black and Latino middle school students not enrolled in AVID and/or White AVID middle school students. The PSAT 8/9 was the proxy measure of college readiness. A combination of Conley's College Readiness Framework and Critical Race Theory in education formed this study's foundation. Archival data for a cohort of 1,724 students, including 117 enrolled in AVID as 8th graders, allowed for the creation of matched comparison groups of academically similar students based on AzMERIT test scores. Independent samples t-tests comparing means of the matched comparison groups' PSAT 8/9 scores did not provide statistically significant differences between the AVID (M = 766.02, SD = 112.28) and non-AVID (M = 772.53, SD = 120.10) groups of Black and Latino students; t(164)= -0.36, p = .72…. [Direct]
(2016). "Un trago dulce pero adentro con sabor amargo" (A Bittersweet Swallow): Constructing Counterspaces to Explore Undocumented Status across Academic, Family, and Community Spaces. Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, v10 n4 p228-241. In this article a group of seven Latina/o immigrants, parents, advocates, and ethnographers draw on critical race theory to explore what it means to co-present on, and engage in, difficult conversations about immigration and documentation status. We theorize how, through critical collaboration motivated by our joint presentation, we co-constructed counterspaces in which, while interrogating what we tend to count as knowledge and expertise in education research, we could address not only the difficulty of communicating with teachers about issues surrounding documentation status, but also of knowing how to approach this topic with children and with each other. We argue that these carefully crafted counterspaces created opportunities to push beyond our traditional norms, breach silences, and open up ways in which to reposition the safety of engaging in conversations regarding undocumented status with our children, communities, educators, and with each other…. [Direct]
(2016). Crossing "The Problem of the Color Line": White Mathematics Teachers and Black Students. North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (38th, Tucson, AZ, Nov 3-6, 2016). In this paper, the authors explore–within an eclectic theoretical framework of critical theory, critical race theory, and Whiteness studies–the life experiences of four White high school mathematics teachers who were "successful" with Black students. The data were collected through three, semi-structured interviews, conducted over a 5-month time period. Through a cross-case analysis of the data, three commonalities among the teachers were identified as being significant contributors to their success in teaching Black students. Two commonalities the participants themselves felt strongly about, and a third became apparent during the cross-case analysis: (a) forming meaningful relationships with students, (b) engaging students in racial conversations, and (c) reflecting both individually and collectively with colleagues on issues of race and racism. Implications for classroom practice and teacher education are discussed. [For the complete proceedings, see ED583608.]… [PDF]
(2013). Critical Race Theory Counterstory as Allegory: A Rhetorical Trope to Raise Awareness about Arizona's Ban on Ethnic Studies. Across the Disciplines, v10 n3 Aug. he critical race counterstory in this essay takes on the form of allegory to raise awareness about Arizona's anti-immigrant/Mexican climate, and pays particular attention to legislation targeted at Tucson Unified School District's Mexican American studies (also RAZA studies) program…. [Direct]
(2023). Stressors, Strengths, and Social Justice: A Post-Intentional Phenomenological Inquiry into the Race-Related Experiences of Black Master of Social Work Students at Predominantly White Institutions. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. This qualitative research study explores the race-related experiences of Black Master of Social Work (MSW) students in four predominately White institutions (PWIs) in the Southeastern United States. The study is grounded in post-intentional phenomenology using a Critical Race Theory (CRT) lens. These two action-oriented social justice approaches are utilized together in this study to offer recommendations for change focused on dismantling racism and fostering greater equity within MSW education. Using semi-structured individual interviews, 11 Black MSW students were asked about race-related experiences in the context of their MSW programs, such as encounters with microaggressions and difficult classroom dialogues as well as experiences with microaffirmations and ways in which individual and cultural strengths helped them navigate their educational experience. A subset of five of the 11 study participants self-selected to participate in a follow-up community listening session, which… [Direct]