Ethnically Diverse Faculty in Higher Ed: Belonging, Respect, and Role as Cultural Broker
The authors have completed a pilot study of the state of diverse faculty in higher education in the United States. Inquiries included the areas of belonging (if and how they developed a sense of belonging), professional respect (how colleagues regarded their achievements), and the role of cultural broker (how they functioned as cultural brokers in positions of influence and with diverse students). Initial results suggest that some diverse faculty members believe that racism is alive and well in higher education today. Others emphasize the challenge of adapting and belonging in higher education while retaining their unique cultural voices and having those voices be heard and utilized in movement toward cultural pluralism in the institutional environment of higher education.