This dissertation uses sociocultural linguistics to investigate how Black undergraduates at a Historically White Institution (HWI) understand Blackness, and how their racial socialization experiences in their pre-college years inform that perspective. This project reveals that many Black undergraduates in the HWI context may not have the benefit…

This dissertation focuses on the racialization of graduate international Black African collegians (IBAC) and the effects it has on their racial identity development. The intercentricity of race maintains that race is a defining factor for how one is situated in US society. However, many international students do not come from communities…

Students' racial identity is informed by their school environment. The process of school racial socialization involves the transmission of stated and unstated beliefs, values, and stereotypes regarding one's racial identity within the academic setting. Instructors, faculty, staff, administrators, and leadership all play a role in the racial…

African American college men have always had a complicated relationship with institutions of higher education. More specifically, according to Harper and Quaye (2007), only 32.4% of African American men that enroll in college earn degrees in a six-year period. The low graduation rate can be attributed to institutional problems with racial…

Via two studies, this dissertation examined the way in which ethnic-racial experiences and social class experiences work in tandem to shape academic adjustment among Latinx college students attending an HSI (Hispanic-Serving Institutions) and various PWIs (Predominantly White Institutions). In Study 1, I answered two research questions: 1) What is…

What does it take to create an educational environment committed to social change? What is the role of the teacher in this process? The researcher? Education offers a radical hope of learning for freedom over conformity. Still, this form of liberatory education can only occur through consistent reflexivity that critically examines systems of…

This 3-study dissertation explored White children's negotiation of Whiteness, racial identity development, intergroup attitudes, and experiences of socialization. Participants were from an ethnically and racially diverse, rural elementary school in the Midwest United States. In Study 1, I explored the labels that White children (N = 53;…

African Americans remain underrepresented in higher education (Thompson, Gorin, & Chen, 2006) and experience subtle forms of racism called microaggressions (Sue et. al, 2007). The impact of microaggressions in post-secondary institutions may manifest in the achievement gaps that exist between African American and White people; moreover, they…

The purpose of the current study was to understand and attempt to contextualize the nuanced experiences of Black college women and discover new information that might be insightful to help dismantle institutional barriers that prohibit academic success and stifle resilience. The sample consisted of 288 Black female college students. Secondary data…

Latinas are underrepresented within the professorate and within doctoral programs, particularly within Research Intensive Institutions. This dissertation explores how the doctoral socialization process impacts the pipeline from the Ph.D. to scholarly careers for Latinas in Research universities. Given the low numbers of representation and…

Learning Language, Transforming Knowledge investigates the relationships among language shift, urbanization, and social change in the lives of Amdo Tibetan children. Amdo, the easternmost region of greater Tibet, is today incorporated into the Chinese provinces of Qinghai, Sichuan, and Gansu. The homeland of a Tibetic language, also known as Amdo,…

The influence of hip hop culture and music on African-American youth is profound and can be used as a tool to shape positive outcomes in education. Hip hop has been used effectively in the classroom to engage students and enhance their critical thinking (Gangloff-Bailey & Freeman, 2014). In addition, hip hop has been described as a socializer…

There is limited research focused on male African American Division I football student-athletes' perceptions of the messages they receive from coaches, athletic department staffs, and NCAA policy about their roles as students and athletes. At predominantly white institutions, African Americans make up a small percentage of the student population,…

I explored the socialization and experiences of older adolescents and young adults who were involved in three extracurricular dance organizations at a large Midwestern university. I conducted a six-month, comparative ethnographic study using observations, interviews and a survey. I identified three key themes through which I explored the meanings…

Economic forecasts predict an unprecedented shortage of STEM workers in the United States. This study examined the vocational anticipatory socialization factors and classroom stratagems influencing middle school students' science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) career development. Student attitudes towards STEM content areas and…