(2016). Changing Perspectives: Validation Framework Review of Examples of Mixed Methods Research into Culturally Relevant Teaching. Multicultural Education Review, v8 n3 p195-210. Mixed methods research becomes more utilized in education research every year. As this pluralist paradigm begins to take hold, it becomes more and more necessary to take a critical eye to studies making use of different mixed methods approaches. An area of education research that has yet struggled to find a foothold with mixed methodology is social justice. Due to the typically unpredictable nature and level of involvement in these environments, it seems that researchers have struggled to find a way to bring social justice education research into the "third paradigm." In this manuscript, I have reviewed three exemplar studies which both used mixed methodology and approached the research in education with a social justice framework, particularly culturally relevant teaching and critical race theory. In so doing, I have draw upon common traits which indicate work still needing to be done to fully integrate mixed methods approaches with this sort of research. I offer… [Direct]
(2018). Spanish Heritage Language Acquisition, Attrition, and Re-Acquisition: The Journey of Heritage Language Learners. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Trident University International. This Three Article Dissertation investigates the phenomenon of Spanish language attrition and explores Spanish language teachers' perspectives and pedagogical practices that influence the language instruction needed to meet the linguistic needs of many Hispanic students learning Spanish as their heritage language. Article I, Heritage Language Learners and Spanish Language Education: A Literature Review, provides an extensive overview highlighting the affective and contextual factors experienced by both teachers and students in teaching and learning Spanish as a heritage language. The conceptual framework of Latino/Latina Critical Race Theory (LatCrit) shaped the literature review and directed the research study by identifying influential factors that affect Hispanic students learning Spanish as a heritage language. Article II, Secondary Spanish Teachers' Perspectives and Pedagogical Practices with Heritage Language Learners, explores the perspectives and pedagogical practices of… [Direct]
(2018). Investigating Equity: An Evaluation of the Relationship of the NCAA's APR Metric on Similarly Resourced Historically Black and Predominantly White NCAA Division-I Colleges and Universities. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Seton Hall University. In 2003, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) launched the Academic Performance Program (APP) as a means of measuring institutional accountability of academic outcomes for Division I member institutions. One of the two metrics used to define academic effectiveness is the Academic Progress Rate (APR) metric, immediately drew considerable criticism for its penalty structure, which disproportionately impacted colleges and universities with lesser resources. As time progressed, these penalties almost exclusively were distributed among the poorest institutions in Division I, which is heavily represented by the nation's most prominent Historically Black Colleges and Universities. These penalty trends begged the question of whether resource level, or race, was significant in predicting APR penalties. Using Harris' Critical Race Theory (2012) and Pfeffer and Salancik's Resource Dependence Theory (1978) as a guiding theoretical framework, and publicly available data from the… [Direct]
(2024). Not Just VP Material: Barriers to Participation for Women and Nonbinary Students of Color in Student Government. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Northeastern University. This action research project centers the narratives of women and nonbinary students of color as they navigate leadership roles within student government at Ivy League institutions. The overarching aim of the project is to develop an understanding of the barriers to participation for women and nonbinary students of color and collaboratively identify supports to enhance their experiences. Grounded in intersectional, critical race feminist theory, this study provides context to understand the barriers to women and nonbinary students of color's involvement in student government and highlights their encounters with gendered racism within these historically White institutions. Participants' narratives reveal the ways in which women and nonbinary students of color are perceived and perceive the inhospitable climate of student government associations and their relationships with peers, staff, faculty, and the media. Participants and data collected in Cycle 1 consisted of 10 semi-structured… [Direct]
(2024). Theory and Evaluation of Undergraduate STEM Education Interventions. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The Florida State University. The United States higher education system has developed strategies to prepare students for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) careers as the STEM labor market expands. One set of educational interventions, known as STEM Intervention Programs (SIPs), employs extracurricular activities to engage and retain STEM major students. These SIPs often target underrepresented racial-ethnic minority (URM) students, low-income students, and women to reduce social disparities in STEM education. However, studies assessing the effectiveness of SIPs in improving STEM retention, graduation, and career outcomes have produced inconsistent results. Another area of racial-ethnic inequality in STEM education is the faculty roster, particularly in terms of representation, hiring, and promotion practices. Increasing the number of URM STEM faculty members addresses two main issues: equitable representation and providing URM STEM students with race-matched instruction, mentorship, and role… [Direct]
(2024). We Are Not Monolithic: Exploring the Intersectionality of Multiple Identities and Professional Experiences of Black African Women Evaluators in the United States. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Historically, the field of program evaluation has been dominated by middle class White practitioners often lacking diversity in race, gender, and cultural perspectives (Fitzpatrick, Sanders, & Worthen, 2014). Recent years, however, have seen a concerted effort to promote diversity among evaluators. According to Hopson and Rodriguez (2014), this shift is crucial for bringing in varied perspectives, more so cultural elements into practice (Hopson & Shanker, 2023) that enhance the relevance and effectiveness of evaluations. In the field of program evaluation, investigations about the experiences of evaluators from a variety of backgrounds is emerging (Arias Orozco, 2022; Boyce et al., 2023b). Evaluators of color often face unique challenges and opportunities in the field of program evaluation. Their experiences are characterized by navigating professional environments that may not fully understand or value their cultural and racial perspectives (Arias Orozco, 2022; Avent et al.,… [Direct]
(2012). A Mirror Image African American Student Reflections. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Illinois at Chicago. This dissertation is a narrative inquiry research project that focuses on the collegiate experiences of African American students at both historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and predominantly white institutions (PWIs). I look at how African American college students who engage in race or culturally specific activities, the degree to which such engagement are forms of self-affirmation, and the relationship between self-affirmation, self-determination and their definitions of success. Approaching this study qualitatively, this study focuses on student voice with narrative inquiry highlighting life experiences and grounded theory allowing for commonalities to arrive from the data. Critical race theory is then combined with narrative inquiry and grounded theory to demonstrate the role of race in the participants' collegiate experiences. Analyzing the data with grounded theory and critical race theory, the participants' interviews are reconstructed to… [Direct]
(2016). Lies, Myths, Stock Stories, and Other Tropes: Understanding Race and Whites' Policy Preferences in Education. Urban Education, v51 n3 p343-360 Mar. Despite being academically unqualified for admission to the University of Texas at Austin, Abigail Fisher, a White female, argued that she was not admitted due to the university's diversity policy. In addition to framing post-secondary admissions as a zero-sum phenomenon, Ms. Fisher intentionally framed students of color who are admitted to the University of Texas at Austin as academically unqualified. The purpose of this article is to examine Ms. Fisher's arguments against the University of Texas's diversity policy as presented in "Fisher v. University of Texas" from a critical race theoretical perspective. In addition to obfuscating the fact that admission to the top colleges and universities in the United States has become more competitive, Ms. Fisher's anti-diversity arguments also are consistent with a racial ideology and socially conservative agenda that frames people of color as undeserving of the opportunities traditionally associated with White people. The goal of… [Direct]
(2022). Healing and Helping While Hurt: Exploring the Ways Campus Racial Climates of Predominantly White Institutions Impact Black Administrators Who Have a History of Chronic and Complex Personal Trauma. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Saint Joseph's University. American society is on the precipice of an imminent shift in racial and ethnic representation of non-white citizens as the dominant culture. As microcosms of America's population, the burgeoning of this change is evident in diverse student demographics within Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs). In spite of this approaching change, PWIs' systemic hegemony remains entrenched in White supremacy and perpetuates barriers and exclusionary practices toward Black administrators. PWIs' historical and current decisions, behaviors, and engagement with Black administrators lend to the construction of the Campus Racial Climate (CRC). Normalization of discriminatory attitudes and perceptions of the Black race are advanced through the Campus Racial Climate. The proliferation of racial inferiority, governance limitations, professional and sociocultural isolation within PWIs produce workplace trauma for Black administrators. The compounding reconciliation of past or recent personal chronic and… [Direct]
(2022). The Culturally Responsive Beginning Teacher: Re-Imagining Onboarding through a Lens of Equity and Social Justice. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Western Carolina University. What if a district utilized its teacher onboarding program to prioritize the development of a culturally responsive lens to meet the needs of its diverse student population? Public school districts in the United States have long served as a platform that reproduces oppression and marginalization of people of color. These issues are observable by significant gaps in academic achievement and discipline data that remain racially identifiable. The lack of progress in addressing these disparities falls onto the laps of school districts that are experiencing teacher shortages and elevated turnover rates with an increased reliance on novice teachers to fill teaching vacancies. The district asks these unequipped novice teachers to address the disparities due to the lack of training to see intersections of student experiences that may differ from their own while they espouse colorblind ideologies both implicitly and explicitly. South-Eastern University City Schools, a district of 12,000… [Direct]
(2022). Toward a Critical Career Development for African American Men Undergraduate Students at Predominantly White Institutions: Perceptions of the Influence of Race in the College-to-Career Transition. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Seton Hall University. This paper studied the college-to-career transitions of African American undergraduate students who are studying in predominantly White institutions (PWIs). African American men have had to fight for their inherent rights because historically, they had been denied the chance to pursue their own personal choices because of their skin color. Their social marginalization has resulted in economic disadvantages. Access to education has also been less than the dominant race. Gaps continue to exist between African Americans and Whites in terms of graduation rates and other post-graduate outcomes and labor market outcomes. The college-to-career transition of African American men has also been fraught with challenges. This was not very well studied because transitions from college to the workplace were usually conducted from the point of view of the dominant race. Notably, theorists have primarily based their assumptions on the experiences of middle-class White men. There were studies of… [Direct]
(2022). Success Stories of Latinx Women in Two-Year STEM Degree Pathways at an Open Access, Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Miami. Research indicates that women and Students of Color are less likely than men or White students to succeed in STEM degree pathways due to pre-college factors, college engagement, and campus environments. Similarly, racially and ethnically minoritized students, particularly Black and Latinx students, are underrepresented in STEM degree fields and are less likely to complete STEM degrees. The literature suggests being a woman and a racially minoritized student may have a compounding effect on students' experiences in STEM degree pathways (Alfred et. al, 2019). This study explored the experiences that support the success of Latinx women pursuing STEM degree pathways at an open-access HSI, and why. The study drew on a sample of traditional-aged (18-24) Latinx women participants pursuing STEM degree Associate of Arts pathways at an open-access HSI, who have completed at least three semesters in their major. Open access institutions are expected to have a democratizing effect by increasing… [Direct]
(2010). CRiT Walking in Higher Education: Activating Critical Race Theory in the Academy. Race, Ethnicity and Education, v13 n1 p41-57 Mar. In this article, the authors introduce the epistemological concept of CRiT walking based on critical race theory (CRT). Using performance methodology, an operational extension of critical race theory is introduced as a CRiT walk through academic neighborhoods. The authors recommend openly questioning the structural inequities deeply embedded within the academy. In so doing, they take a metaphoric walk through several \gated communities\ of higher education. The authors employ inter-story dialogue, humor, healthy skepticism, and critical reflexivity to highlight typical struggles that many faculty of color confront in the academy. Lastly, the article interrogates assumptions of the higher education enterprise and argues for faculty agency in pursuing their authentic voices despite the pressures of hegemonic policies and practices. (Contains 1 note.)… [Direct]
(2019). Fund Development and Donor Race: How Colorblindness and a 'Sales Mentality' Delimits Expanding the Donor Base. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, The University of Arizona. This qualitative case study examined the practices used by higher education development professionals and institutions to better understand how a donor's race is considered as part of the fundraising process. It employed a Critical Race Theory (CRT) framework (Delgado, 2001) designed to combine the scholarship on fund development and race. The central frames of color-blind racism (Bonilla-Silva, 2006) were key organizing concepts for the analysis of findings in this study. Additionally, this research used concepts of White savior ideology (Cammarota, 2011) and poverty porn (Collin, 2009) to interpret the messages and language used in the higher education development field. To provide context for this study, the concept of academic capitalism (Slaughter & Rhoades, 2004) is engaged relative to the pressure higher education development professionals may experience connected to their fundraising efforts. This study employed several qualitative methods for gathering data which… [Direct]
(2019). "Get That Son of a Bitch off the Field!": Sport in University Classrooms. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Washington State University. Discussions about sports continue to permeate the news and political realms and may prove to be a useful but underutilized tool to teach difficult subjects like race, gender, and sexuality. However, most scholarly work on sport focuses on a specific systemic inequality within a sport and/or how an issue affects sport and thus are sociological in nature, rather than providing educators strategies so that they can utilize sport as a pedagogical vehicle to teach systemic inequalities. Through semi-structured interviews with university educators, this dissertation examines how and why these participants employ sport to educate students on systemic social issues (racism, classism, sexism, homo/transphobia) in their classrooms Theoretical constructs from Critical Race Theory and Critical Masculinity Studies aided in understanding how discussions of race/White supremacy, gender/sex/patriarchy, and heteronormativity/homo/transphobia operated in a curriculum that draws from sports. Findings… [Direct]