In this article, faculty and administrators describe their personal and institutional experiences with racial justice and equity.

Providing effective leadership and mentorship to students often requires an understanding of power systems and a focus on amplifying marginalized voices. The author, who identifies as a queer white woman, in her years as a graduate student, has found that attention to voice is essential, but also messy. As Donna M. Lanclos reminds,…

In recent years, the increasing cost of higher education has introduced a new level of scrutiny toward colleges and universities, including the concern of prospective students and their families about the return on investment (ROI) of a college education. California's Pepperdine University wants its students to be transformed, inside and out, to…

The author is a Black woman working and teaching within the field of criminology. Her students at Ball State University are predominantly White and have had few interactions with Black, Indigenous, and people of color. The author feels that it is important for her to disrupt stereotypes her students may have by introducing them to Black people who…

Kate Queeney, a professor of chemistry at Smith College, turned to a former student to receive one-on-one instruction in swimming. The student, who had been unsure and scared in chemistry class, seemed like an entirely different person when teaching the teacher. This article describes how the author learned that there is something undeniably…

The structure of higher education today, in conjunction with those actively trying to devalue a liberal arts degree in the public sphere, has set the table for what seems like a completely rational solution: finding a "niche." Broadly speaking, colleges offering a liberal arts education identify their "niche market" in terms of…

Underlying much of what people do in higher education is the often unstated assumption that a college education is a transformative experience. Transformation in a university occurs at all levels--student, faculty, programmatic, institutional, and social. Indeed, Paulo Freire argues that the proper purpose of education is cultural transformation…

Think of the United States Military Academy and the typical images are of duty, character, leadership, and possibly even regimented conformity. Intellectual liberation, integrative innovation, and holistic development--hallmarks of a liberal education--are not always associated with the public's perception of the West Point experience. Yet,…

The disciplinary major has long served as the backbone of higher education. Every student has at least one major, and each major prescribes a program of study that is supported by a series of courses both within the field and from the general education curriculum. Yet relying solely on the formal academic curriculum to achieve the outcomes of a…

Evidence abounds that, in recent decades, students have typically entered college relying on perspectives they have uncritically accepted from others and are not sufficiently challenged and supported to transition to internal authority during college. Students who have experienced significant challenge, particularly as a result of marginalization,…