Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) are colleges and universities that enroll at least 25% Latinx students. Despite being recognized by the federal government since 1992, HSIs lack a historical mission to serve Latinxs. As such the idea of “servingness” has become an elusive concept. An abundance of literature centering HSIs has been published, yet there continues to be a debate about what it means to serve students. We conducted a systematic review of 148 journal articles and book chapters to better understand how researchers conceptualize the idea of servingness at HSIs. We identified four major themes used by researchers to conceptualize servingness: (1) outcomes, (2) experiences, (3) internal organizational dimensions, and (4) external influences. We also found that researchers are often unintentional in their efforts to conceptualize what it means to be an HSI. We offer a multidimensional conceptual framework of servingness to be used in research, policy, and practice.
This study used a spatial approach to explore metropolitan and nonmetropolitan variation of college enrollment at the interplay of place and race within the state of Texas. Analyzing Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS-USA) data and using population proportions as well as regression methods, we pay particular attention to the racial/ethnic diversity in non-metro areas and its relationship with college enrollment. We find geography is a factor in the college enrollment racial/ethnic gaps in nonmetropolitan areas of Texas, but considerable regional disparities exist. These disparities show diverse trends based on residential location. This indicates a need for more research to explore geographic differences in postsecondary opportunities and college access practices and policies with the racial/ethnic diversity of place in mind.
In this collaborative autoethnography, 3 scholars of color, who were enrolled in the same doctoral program at a Hispanic Serving Institution located in South Texas between 2012 and 2017, engaged in systematic self-reflection through writing and dialogue to coconstruct meaning regarding the ways in which their interests in giving back through the professoriate intersected with their decisions to live and work in their hometowns. Conceptualizing giving back as an act of critical agency, transformational resistance, and active engagement in reciprocity, the authors identified five salient themes useful in understanding how their pathways to the professoriate also led them home. The author/participants began their academic careers in their home communities so that they could give back through broadly contributing to communal well-being, doing research responsibly, connecting with students who look like them, pushing back against the norms of the academy, and feeling grounded and supported. Findings provide valuable insight for institutions and administrators committed to recruiting, hiring, and supporting faculty of color. Author/participants also discuss useful strategies for graduate students of color to consider in their pursuit of a career in the academy.
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