Being able to call on students during class increases the likelihood of instructor immediacy. As a result, due to a decrease of distance between students and the instructor which may increase the likelihood of creating an inclusive environment. An inclusive pedagogical strategy that has been shown to be effective in knowing student names is the…

In studies that assess perceptions of autistic people by non-autistic people, researchers often ask participants to review vignettes depicting fictional autistic characters. However, few studies have investigated whether non-autistic peers accurately identify these hypothetical individuals as being on the autism spectrum. Accurately ascribing…

This study used a natural experiment design to examine the impact of ethnic studies courses on students' ethnic-racial identity (ERI) development, multicultural attitudes, and civic engagement during the 2021-2022 school year in Minneapolis, MN (N = 535; 33.5% White, 29.5% Black, 21.1% Latine, 10.7% multi-racial; 44.7% female, 7.1% non-binary).…

The aim of inclusive education is to provide a supportive space for students from every background. The theory of intersectionality suggests that multiple identities intersect within social spaces to construct specific positionalities. To support the heterogeneity of all students, there is a need to understand who is in our Science, Technology,…

College-educated white women across social classes support and uphold racism. Using narrative methods in a secondary analysis, we, as two white women, explored how white non-trans women make meaning of social class using the revised model of multiple dimensions of identity (RMMDI; Abes et al., 2007) as positioned within the context of white…

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 mixed-methods study sought to better understand how confidence in writing and race interact as factors within writing centers. Students utilizing our writing center were asked to provide data about racial identity and writing confidence both when registering with the writing center and when completing postsession surveys. From this data, we…

This small-scale, pilot study focused on exploring how students' sense of belonging can differ in relation to the racial representation of the staff team in a postgraduate institution. A survey (N=16) and two interviews were conducted. Thematic analysis was used and a range of themes were created. These included benefits of belonging,…

White defensiveness in response to racial justice education has increasingly been understood through the "white fragility" framework. This study puts forth a new framework that instead identifies a typology of white defensive moves that actively work to uphold and fortify the white racial contract. Inspired by Solórzano and…

Drawing on a study involving interviews with 20 students each semester until graduation, this article examines how participants understood and articulated their writing processes and how they perceived those processes changing over time. Although they initially struggled to find language to describe what they were doing when they wrote, falling…

The term "Latinx" has gained much popularity in some higher education spaces, yet its meaning to and use by those categorized as such has remained unexplored. In this study, we employ narrative inquiry and the lens of Critical Race Feminism to understand how Latinx has evolved into an identity for three individuals who embrace Latinx as…

Introduction: Student retention is a critical issue in higher education. Universities have responded by implementing supports like early alert systems. Objective: We investigated students' knowledge of and experiences with an early alert system designed to enhance academic persistence. Method: We surveyed (N = 356) undergraduates at a large public…

Universities often sponsor workshops about diversity and inclusion that students are mandated to attend. Yet, little is known about students' expectations and reactions to such workshops, as well as how such expectations and reactions are associated with students' gender identity, racial-ethnic identification, and race-related attitudes such as…

College students' interactions with campus leaders are a crucial element of their success and satisfaction in higher education; however, little is understood about students' identification, perceptions, or expectations of campus leaders. To help fill this gap in the literature, I led two exploratory studies in collaboration with my committee chair…

The authentic research experience, which provides students with meaningful collaborative research opportunities designed to promote discovery and innovation under the guidance of mentors, is increasing as a way to attract and engage students in STEM fields. However, despite the increase in authentic research experiences offered to students, there…