Views from the middle: Racialized experiences of midlevel student affairs administrators.

Abstract

The continued underrepresentation of student affairs Professionals of Color poses an ongoing challenge to fully realize the supposed values of social justice and inclusion in student affairs. Midlevel student affairs administrators provide a unique experiential lens to better understand organizational culture, critique structures, and challenge existing dominant practices. Using narrative inquiry, this study explored the professional and personal experiences of seven racially minoritized midlevel student affairs professionals. Analysis using Ray's Theory of Racialized Organizations reveals ongoing issues of intrapersonal racism and illuminate how institutional structures further contributed to racialization of the participants. Four main themes are identified: racialized middleness, organizational conditions, intrapersonal relationships, and navigating unwritten rules of the field. Findings also draw important considerations for improved practice beyond campus communities. Implications for institutional leaders, graduate preparation programs, and the responsibility White folks must take on are provided. Additional considerations for future research are also discussed.

"This is bigger than me:" Why Black women create inclusive environments in predominantly white campuses

“…Few research studies have focused on Black Women administrators and the ways in which they lead. Rather, studies have focused on the underrepresentation (Flowers, 2003;Harper, 2005;and Townsend, 2021), isolation (Patitu, 2003;Gregory, 2001;and Willis, et al, 2019), and marginalization (Bazner, 2021;Lloyd-Jones, 2014;and Mitchell, et al, 2014) of Black Women in higher education. Limited research also discusses the experiences of Black Women administrators at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), while rarely highlighting their experiences in a positive light at predominantly White institutions.…”

“We’re Not Going to Overcome Institutional Bias by Doing Nothing”: Latinx/a/o Student Affairs Professionals as Advocates for Equity

“…Despite the vast role and responsibility that mid-level administrators play, they tend to be overlooked within the literature, although more studies are focusing on this critical position within higher education administration [6,8,9]. There is significantly less published research detailing the experiences of racially and ethnically minoritized mid-level administrators who may be more likely to advocate for equity and justice, including Latinx/a/o mid-level administrators who work in student affairs divisions [10,11] We utilize the term Latinx/a/o, which includes racial/ethnic heritages from Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Central America, South America, as well as gender inclusive terms that move beyond the gender binary (for a comprehensive review of the evolution of the term Latinx, please see Salinas and Lozano [12]). In citing existing research, we utilize the terms used by the author(s) (e.g., Hispanic, Chicana/o, Latina, and Salvadoran, to name a few).…”

“…Mid-level administrators are accustomed to fostering effectiveness with limited formal authority and might finesse the processes in place to address equity issues [10]. Cooper and Saunders [17] noted that the most desired skills for mid-level administrators were:…”

Race, Whiteness, and Student Life in On-Campus Housing: A Case Study of Three Universities

“…As such, white people occupied nearly all administrator roles across the campuses we studied. Scholarship, broadly, has also detailed how Staff of Color experience individual and institutional racism at PWIs (Bazner, 2022; Briscoe, 2022). In contrast, white staff’s and administrators’ experiences, often devoid of critical considerations of whiteness, are largely validated and normalized (Ray, 2019).…”