scholarly journals Remaining at the Margin and in the Center

10.28945/3886 ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 121-126
Author(s):  
Caroline S. Turner
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Faculty Of Color ◽  
Risks And Benefits ◽  
Middle Nucleus

Background: Looking up the terms center and margin, synonyms found for center are “the middle, nucleus, heart, core, hub” and synonyms for margin are “the border, edge, boundary, fringe, periphery.” These terms and their synonyms prompt me to ask questions about the concepts of “margin” and “center” as related to higher education. Questions such as: What are the challenges and benefits of being at the margins in the academy? What are the risks and benefits of moving to center? Can faculty of color move to center and continue to remain forces for change in the academy? Are there ways in which one can remain at the margin and in the center simultaneously?

Counting heads vs making heads count

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (8) ◽  
pp. 780-798 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Vargas ◽  
Amy Seon Westmoreland ◽  
Kathrina Robotham ◽  
Fiona Lee
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Faculty Of Color ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Racial Climate ◽  
Organizational Diversity ◽  
Data Set ◽  
White Faculty ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Primary Driver

Purpose Research on organizational diversity initiatives generally focus on either numerical diversity or racial climate. Both facets of diversity are critical, however, research has rarely examined their impact simultaneously. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In the current study, the authors use the context of higher education, to examine how variations in the composite of numerical diversity and racial climate predict psychological disparities between faculty of color (FOC) and White faculty. The authors test how institutions that engage in authentic diversity (i.e. institutions that are both numerically diverse and have a positive racial climate) compare to other diversity composites. Findings Using a data set of n=37,406 faculty members in US colleges/universities, this study found that racial disparities between FOC and White faculty for various psychological outcomes are smaller in authentic diversity institutions compared to institutions with low numeric diversity/ poor racial climate. Further, the data demonstrate that authentic diversity institutions have reduced psychological disparities compared to institutions with high numeric diversity/poor racial climate, but have similar disparities to institutions with low numeric/positive racial climate. Originality/value These results suggest that diversity climate may be the primary driver of mitigating psychological disparities between FOC and White faculty. However, it is necessary for institutions to authentically engage in diversity – by promoting both entities – to become more effective in reducing disparities.

The Faces of Institutionalized Discrimination and Systemic Oppression in Higher Education: Uncovering the Lived Experience of Bias and Procedural Inequity

2021 ◽  
pp. 107780042110268
Author(s):  
Yvonna S. Lincoln ◽  
Christine A. Stanley
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Faculty Of Color ◽  
Minority Faculty ◽  
Institutional Policies ◽  
Systemic Oppression

With seven cases drawn from both personal experience and informal interviews with colleagues from other research-intensive universities, we attempt to demonstrate the forms institutionalized discrimination and systemic oppression can take and if it is supported by policies or procedures encoded into an institution’s rules and regulations. We suggest heuristics for reexamining such procedures to more fully address such inherent biases. We proffer a qualitative methodological approach not only to explore the lived experiences of faculty of color but also to explore the latent as well as manifest meanings of these experiences for the faculty involved, which are frequently neither obvious nor transparent to both non-minority faculty and those responsible for carrying out institutional policies and regulations. Finally, we offer some criticisms of qualitative research in this arena to which organizational researchers must attend.

scholarly journals An Examination of the Barriers to Leadership for Faculty of Color at U.S. Universities

10.28945/4373 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 361-376
Author(s):  
Sydney Freeman Jr. ◽  
Karen Krier ◽  
Ahmed A Al-Asfour ◽  
Russell Thacker
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Department Chair ◽  
The United States ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Faculty Of Color ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Leadership Positions ◽  
Higher Educational Institutions ◽  
Leadership In Higher Education ◽  
Higher Educational

Aim/Purpose: The aim and purpose of this study is to understand why there is a dearth of faculty of color ascending to senior levels of leadership in higher education institutions, and to identify strategies to increase the representation of faculty of color in university senior administrative positions. Background: There is a lack of faculty of color in senior level academic administrative position in the United States. Although there is clear evidence that faculty of color have not been promoted to senior level positions at the same rate as their White colleagues, besides racism there has been little evidence regarding the cause of such disparities. This is becoming an issue of increased importance as the student bodies of most U.S. higher educational institutions are becoming increasingly more inclusive of people of various racial and ethnic backgrounds. Methodology: Qualitative interviews were used Contribution: This study adds to the research and information made previously available regarding the status of non-White higher educational members in the U.S. by contributing insights from faculty of color who have encountered and are currently encountering forms of discrimination within various institutions. These additions include personal experiences and suggestions regarding the barriers to diversification and implications of the lack of diversity at higher educational institutions. Given the few diverse administrative or executive leaders in service today in higher education, these personal insights provide seldom-heard perspectives for both scholars and practitioners in the field of higher education. Findings: Limited diversity among faculty at higher educational institutions correlates with persistent underrepresentation and difficulty in finding candidates for leadership positions who are diverse, highly experienced, and highly ranked. This lack of diversity among leaders has negative implications like reduced access to mentorship, scholarship, and other promotional and networking opportunities for other faculty of color. While it is true that representation of faculty of color at certain U.S. colleges and programs has shown slight improvements in the last decade, nationwide statistics still demonstrate the persistence of this issue. Participants perceived that the White boys club found to some extent in nearly all higher educational institutions, consistently offers greater recognition, attention, and support for those who most resemble the norm and creates an adverse environment for minorities. However, in these findings and interviews, certain solutions for breaking through such barriers are revealed, suggesting progress is possible and gaining momentum at institutions nationwide. Recommendations for Practitioners: To recruit and sustain diverse members of the academic community, institutions should prioritize policies and procedures which allocate a fair share of responsibilities between faculty members and ensure equity in all forms of compensation. In addition, institutional leaders should foster a climate of mutual respect and understanding between members of the educational community to increase confidence of people of color and allow for fresh perspectives and creativity to flourish. Where policies for diversification exist but are not being applied, leaders have the responsibility to enforce and set the example for other members of the organization. Assimilation of diverse members occurs when leaders create an inclusive environment for various cultures and advocate for social and promotional opportunities for all members of the organization. Recommendations for Researchers: Significant research remains on understanding barriers to the preparation of faculty of color for leadership in higher education. While this research has provided first-hand qualitative perspectives from faculties of color, additional quantitative study is necessary to understand what significant differences in underrepresentation exist by race and ethnicity. Further research is also needed on the compound effects of race and gender due to the historic underrepresentation of women in leadership positions. At the institutional and departmental level, the study validates the need to look at both the implicit and explicit enforcement of policies regarding diversity in the workplace. Future Research: Higher education researchers may extend the findings of this study to explore how faculty of color have ascended to specific leadership roles within the academy such as department chair, academic dean, provost, and president.

Transgressions on Students and Faculty of Color in Higher Education

2018 ◽  
pp. 132-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milton A. Fuentes ◽  
Casey R. Shannon ◽  
Muninder K. Ahluwalia ◽  
Crystal S. Collier
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Implicit Bias ◽  
Faculty Of Color

This chapter considers transgressions that students and faculty of color face in higher education. Specifically, the chapter examines how implicit bias and microaggressions affect the experiences of students and faculty of color. Special attention is paid to strategies that prevent or address these transgressions from both personal and contextual approaches. The chapter ends with a thought-provoking case study that portrays the multifaceted dimensions of these troubling transgressions in the classroom and provides the reader with some reflection questions to consider.

Resisting, Rejecting, and Redefining Normative Pathways to the Professoriate: Faculty of Color in Higher Education

2018 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 630-647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer M. Johnson ◽  
Ginny Boss ◽  
Chrystal George Mwangi ◽  
Gina Ann Garcia
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Faculty Of Color

Homophily in higher education: Historicizing the AERA member-to-fellow pipeline using theories of social reproduction and social networks

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 670-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas D Hartlep ◽  
Brandon O Hensley ◽  
Kevin E Wells ◽  
T Jameson Brewer ◽  
Daisy Ball ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Reproduction ◽  
Mission Statement ◽  
American Educational Research Association ◽  
Faculty Of Color ◽  
Real Problem ◽  
Research Association ◽  
Interdisciplinary Field ◽  
And Gender

This study examines select demographics of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Fellows ( n = 644), and whether or not the cohorts of AERA Fellows are becoming more diverse in racial and gender terms in relation to the inaugural year of Fellows in 2008. This study tests the mission statement of this exclusive program to ‘… recognize excellence in research and be inclusive of the scholarship that constitutes and enriches education research as an interdisciplinary field’. Our findings suggest that homophily – a sociological phenomenon that describes the ways in which individuals and institutions prefer sameness – is a real problem in higher education, and programs such as the AERA Fellowship are not accomplishing their mission to recognize the research of faculty of color, women faculty, and faculty in interdisciplinary fields. In contrast to the AERA Fellows mission statement, we find that the Fellowship program relies on homophilous social networks in selecting AERA Fellows and, in turn, reinforces social reproduction in higher education.

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