“It Was Hard, and It Still Is . . .”: Women of Color Navigating HSI STEM Transfer Pathways

Abstract

Women of color (WOC) continue to be underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), where they often experience racism and sexism within disciplinary contexts that have historically privileged men and Whiteness. Participant narratives gained through focus-group and follow-up interviews illuminate the racialized and gendered STEM transfer experiences of 21 WOC who attended 2- and 4-year Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). Using a multidimensional intersectional approach, we explore the interplay between the complex identity experiences of WOC and the dynamic intersections of their transfer pathways across 2- and 4-year HSIs and within STEM disciplinary contexts. Findings underscore the inequities that continue to pervade STEM and highlight opportunities for transforming disciplinary and institutional cultures, particularly within HSI STEM transfer pathways, where there is great potential for these diverse institutions to support, validate, and benefit from the unique contributions of WOC.

Advancing “Intersectional Servingness” in Research, Practice, and Policy With Hispanic-Serving Institutions

“…One set of articles considers students at 2- and 4-year HSIs and uncovers how their intersecting identities shape their experiences and outcomes across their educational trajectories (Herrera et al, 2022; Kovats Sánchez, 2021; López et al, 2022). These three articles collectively show how the environments at HSIs continue to marginalize students based on intersectional social identities.…”

“…Although some of the articles in this special topic collection specifically use intersectionality theory as a guiding analytic tool (Herrera et al, 2022; Hora et al, 2022; López et al, 2022), others draw on critical theories, such as borderlands theory (Villarreal, 2022) and critical organization theory (Aguilar-Smith, 2021), to interrogate HSIs as racialized systems and highlight how systems of oppression affect students, faculty, and staff in HSIs. Some authors also use critical methods, including intersectional consciousness (Vega et al, 2022), critical discourse analysis (Casellas Connors, 2021), and pláticas and testimonios (Kovats Sánchez, 2021), to critically analyze how power systems affect Latinx/e people within HSIs.…”

“…Accounting for state and regional contexts is another important layer to consider at HSIs, given that many Latinx/e students attend colleges that are close to where they live, often with their families, and also work close to home (Cuellar, 2019; Núñez & Kim, 2012). Hora et al (2022) show how the surrounding location influences the internship opportunities available to students at HSIs, while Herrera et al (2022) convey the interconnections between HSIs in a region, given students’ transfer pathways. Moreover, Villarreal (2022) conceptualizes a borderland HSI as distinct.…”

Exploring computing identity development for Latinx students at a Hispanic-serving community college.

“…It is possible that rooting one’s computing identity in the context of their home communities could, to a degree, counteract the stigma of community colleges. In terms of the intersections of gender, Latina women, similar to other women of color, may have both racialized and gendered experiences in their HSI STEM transfer journeys, including navigating microaggressions and challenging stereotypes (Herrera et al, 2022). Although these studies address the STEM identity experiences of Latinx students at HSCCs, these studies do not disaggregate by disciplinary field and provide nuance to development within those contexts.…”