Robert A. Rhoads

The Student-Initiated Retention Project: Theoretical Contributions and the Role of Self-Empowerment

Despite the many studies of student departure, colleges and universities continue to face difficulties in retaining underrepresented student populations. The authors argue that contemporary social integration and multicultural theories of student retention theory do not adequately address the academic needs of underrepresented students of color. Relying on case studies of student-initiated retention projects (SIRPs) at the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, the authors develop insights into how student retention theory might be reconsidered for students of color. Three key components of SIRPs are discussed: developing knowledge, skills, and social networks; building community ties and commitments; and challenging social and institutional norms. Findings are then synthesized with theoretical constructs largely deriving from the work of Pierre Bourdieu, Frantz Fanon, and Paulo Freire. The result is a theoretical framework grounded in the concepts of cultural and social capital, collectivism, and social praxis.

Graduate employee unionization as symbol of and challenge to the corporatization of U.S. Research universities

The authors explore criticism of the corporatization of the academy as offered by graduate employee organizers. They suggest that graduate employee unionization may serve as both a symbol of and a challenge to corporatization. Methodologically, the authors draw from qualitative case studies conducted at graduate employee unions located at three public universities and one private university.

Citizenship in a Global Context: The Perspectives of International Graduate Students in the United States

Since the inception of political theory, citizenship has been a dynamically evolving, geographically and historically specific concept. Most recently, citizenship has been at the center of debates on globalization, a phenomenon defined as “the intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles away and vice versa” (Giddens 1990, 64). Although conceptualizing citizenship by looking beyond state borders has a long history, globalization has left its distinct mark by bringing renewed emphasis to the expanded geographic scope of belonging, allegiance, and civic participation in an increasingly global space. Indeed, “global,” “cosmopolitan,” “fluid,” and “flexible” have become frequent attributes of citizenship, stressing the need to go beyond the nation-state in describing the rights and duties of citizens. These developments hold special significance in educational settings, where preparing students for a global world has come to play an important role in citizenship education. For example, NAFSA: Association of International Educators, promoting study abroad by undergraduates in the United States, states that “the challenges of the new millennium are unquestionably global in nature. This reality imposes a new and urgent demand on Americans, one this country has been all too quick to ignore: international knowledge and skills are imperative for the future security and competitiveness of the United States” (2003, iv). By contrast, studies of international students are largely limited to examining adjustment, psychological well-being, and educational engagement, with rare attention to how students’ experiences shape, challenge, and build upon their existing views and experiences as citizens (Al-Sharideh and Goe 1998; Zhao, Kuh, and Carini 2005). Yet international students’ notions of citizenship are hardly negligible given our present time of political instability, the growing role of the United States in global relations, and the recent challenges to international education following the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Coming into intense contact with the U.S. geopolitical and

Higher Education Reform as a Social Movement: The Case of Affirmative Action

This paper explores affirmative action as a social movement with two goals in mind: (a) to challenge dominant notions of higher education reform, while advancing a social movement perspective; and (b) to advance understanding of the role of collective action in supporting affirmative action in college admissions. The authors highlight ways in which proponents and opponents of affirmative action have utilized collective action as a means for advancing particular ideological visions relative to race-based admissions policies.

Globalization and Resistance in the United States and Mexico: The Global Potemkin Village

This paper explores resistance to globalizationthrough an analysis of three movements in whichuniversity students played pivotal roles: thestudent strike at the National AutonomousUniversity of Mexico (UNAM), global tradeprotests, and the graduate student unionmovement in the U.S. Of special interest arethe effects of globalization on highereducation and the relevance of the neoliberalcritique offered by critical theorists andglobalization protesters. The author revealshow anti-globalization rhetoric deriving fromthe three movements seeks to counter thehegemony of corporate globalism. Previousliterature on globalization and socialmovements is called upon to inform the study.

Crossing Sexual Orientation Borders: Collaborative Strategies for Dealing with Issues of Positionality and Representation.

This paper explores the role the researchers identity as a heterosexual plays in exploring the identity struggles of gay and bisexual college men. The author discusses issues of positionality and representation from the perspective of critical postmodernism and feminism. With cultural diversity as a driving force, a number of social theorists have explored issues of representation and the role of the qualitative researcher in studying diverse others. Although efforts have been made to better understand the relationship between the researcher and the researched in terms of important identity categories, such as race and gender, little to no attention has been devoted to the complexities of heterosexuals exploring the lives and identity struggles of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. This article seeks to fill some of this void by advocating greater collaboration between the researcher and research participants.

The Cultural Politics of Coming Out in College: Experiences of Male Students

Abstract: This article explores the sense of solidarity and group struggle that emerges from the coming-out experiences of gay and bisexual college men situated at a large research university. Many of these students adopt the term queer as a self-identifier and to create their own representations of what it means to be gay. The struggle for self-representation is explained in terms of the politics of language and identity.

The World Bank and higher education in the developing world: The cases of Uganda and Thailand

Globalization has become such an all-encompassing concept that it is almost meaningless. However, most scholars recognize that the term conveys in some manner or form a shrinkage of time and space such that events happening in one part of the world have the potential to impact other locales (Giddens, 1999; Held, 1991). Beyond this most basic meaning, it is hard to find any agreement on what the term actually conveys or when in fact the world actually entered a global age (Morrow & Torres, 2000). Given the vagueness of globalization as a concept, the challenge then is to be as clear as possible in discussing various forces related to globalization that may impact a particular phenomenon under study. In the case of this chapter, the phenomenon of interest is university transformation in the developing world.

Tangles in the Tapestry: Cultural Barriers to Graduate Student Unionization

Using a case study approach, the authors identify cultural barriers confronting graduate student unionization. A theoretical framework grounded in principles associated with organizational culture is utilized. The findings have significance for universities as graduate student unionization increases in magnitude throughout the United States.

The Internationalization of Faculty Life in China.

This article examines one of Chinas top universities – Renmin University – and changes in faculty life linked to internationalization and the push to build world-class universities. Employing academic culture as a theoretical lens and case-study methodology, the authors highlight several significant changes, as described in semi-structured interviews with 27 Renmin faculty members. Some changes discussed include increasing reliance on international standards of scholarship, greater emphasis on faculty acquiring international experience, increased collaborations with foreign scholars and organizations, and the adoption of various pedagogical and curricular facets associated with Western universities. Serious attention is given to concerns raised by several Renmin faculty members apprehensive of certain forms of internationalization and concerned about the likelihood of Chinese universities becoming colonized by Western norms and methodologies.