Ivy issues: An exploration of black students’ racialized interactions on Ivy League campuses.

Abstract

Recent attention to reports of racial bias and the vestiges of slavery and segregation on Ivy Leagues campuses raises concerns about physical and psychological safety of Students of Color attending these elite colleges and universities. This qualitative study centers the voices of 14 Black students attending five different Ivy League Institutions and contextualizes the impact of experiencing racism and racially motivated incidents on students' sense of belonging. Findings illustrate the ways students' experiences traversing the campus physical environment and engaging with others in academic and communal campus spaces, continue to be influenced by racist campus histories and racial bias against Black people. Consequently, students navigated experiences of "everyday racism" and grappled with institutional responses that served to invalidate their experiences and undermine their sense of belonging on campus. Institutional leaders must continue to establish specific, timely strategies to acknowledge, assess, and address racialized tensions within the collegiate environment in order to achieve the true benefits of racial diversity in higher education.

“We need to see action”: An institutional case study of the Summer of Hate and Black student resistance.

“…Furthermore, investigations on how to disrupt white students’ color-evasiveness and racial privilege are critically important in thinking about ways to initiate and sustain antiracist institutional action (Alimo, 2012). Black UVA students rejected postracial discourse because they were continually exposed and subjected to racial bias and discrimination (Johnson et al, 2022; Lee & Hopson, 2019); conversely, racial privilege allowed white UVA students to render the antecedents and aftermath of August 11th and 12th as unrelated to the university’s legacy of racism. While we acknowledge that there were white students, faculty, and staff who participated in the August 11th and 12th protests, as well as white allies who have historically challenged white supremacy at UVA (e.g., Sarah Patton Boyle, Paul Gaston, and William Elwood; Apprey & Poe, 2017), we generally lack sufficient empirical evidence on how to disrupt whiteness in day-to-day minutiae (e.g., social interactions and events on campus) and how to maintain antiracist action through institutional policy changes.…”

Examining Black, second-generation West Indian students’ relationships with faculty and staff in college.

“…This work provides some implications for college support programming, practice, and policy. Scholarship continues to echo the need for an increase in the diversity of faculty and staff to increase representation; address climate issues; improve students’ experiences; and embody diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging strategic directives (Baker, 2013; George Mwangi et al, 2018; J. M. Johnson et al, 2022; Newman, 2015).…”

“…This study further supports the need for the diversification and subsequent retention of faculty as well as staff. Diversity and retention of underrepresented faculty, staff, and students can further institutional advancement and student success (J. M. Johnson et al, 2022).…”

“…While there is a foundational understanding of student–faculty relationships, there are limited studies on Black student and staff (i.e., administrators) relationships. Some scholars offer recommendations that faculty and staff should collaborate to improve campus experiences for students, especially students of color, but offer limited data on the frequency, quality, or role of student–staff relationships (J. M. Johnson et al, 2022; McCoy et al, 2017; Schreiner et al, 2011).…”

“…While there is a foundational understanding of student-faculty relationships, there are limited studies on Black student and staff (i.e., administrators) relationships. Some scholars offer recommendations that faculty and staff should collaborate to improve campus experiences for students, especially students of color, but offer limited data on the frequency, quality, or role of student-staff relationships (J. M. Johnson et al, 2022;McCoy et al, 2017;Schreiner et al, 2011). Even within the limited, yet growing, body of research on summer bridge/support programs, in which many campus administrators and staff manage, the focus tends to be on the impact of programmatic components (courses and activities) and academic preparedness and less on students' interactions and relationships with staff or administrators (e.g., Gibbons et al, 2019;Sablan, 2014;Strayhorn, 2011).…”