QUEER ADVOCACY LEADERSHIP: A Queer Leadership Model for Higher Education

Abstract

This study explored the experiences of college staff members engaged in advancing LGBTQ equity at a small fine arts college in the Midwestern United States. This qualitative case study advanced a conceptual framework for queer leadership in higher education. Findings illuminate how campus leaders engaged queer leadership strategies and LGBTQ advocacy to advance LGBTQ equity through college policy and practice. This study reveals rich implications for college administrators and higher education leaders advancing change for LGBTQ equity.

QUEER REPRESENTATION IN LEADERSHIP EDUCATION: An Integrative Literature Review

“…We also understand that "queer" was traditionally used as a slur, and in some circles may still be perceived as such. However, we feel that "queer" most accurately encapsulates a broad spectrum of identities and orientations that are non-heterosexual or cisgendered (Pryor, 2020;Renn, 2010).…”

“…The first is like the previous decade that directly ascribes a leadership identity to a queer one (Davis et al, 2020;Kanagala & Oliver, 2020;Means et al, 2017;O'Malley et al, 2014;Pryor, 2020). Much like the activist theme from the early 2000s (Renn & Bilodeau, 2005a;Renn & Bilodeau, 2005b;Renn, 2007;Renn & Ozaki, 2010), researchers appear to attribute a positive relationship between the development of a leadership identity and the development of a queer one.…”

“…Another description of queer people highlights the way that those who are in power can reinforce a hierarchy within the community. Opposite to descriptions of unique and complex beings, is the flattened image of the token queer (Means et al, 2017;Pryor, 2020). Here, queerness is compounded to a palatable dose and then held up as a representation of social progress.…”

Category is, supporting BIQTPoC at community colleges: A systematic literature review to aid community college leaders in advocacy

“…Resource centers are of importance within the campus climate conversation as these affinity spaces are often staffed with a full time professional who understand the needs of queer and trans students. Work that often is spearheaded by PRIDE center staff directly tackles the traditional cisheterogenderism (that is, the systems that position cisgender, heterosexual, and the gender binary as normal and regulates those that deviate from them as such) that is embedded in higher education (Gonzalez, 2022b; Preston & Hoffman, 2015; Pryor, 2020; Nguyen et al., 2018). Although it is not the sole responsibility of resource centers to dismantle cisheterosexism and racism within institutions, they can serve as a safe space out of the classroom for BIQTPoC to feel validated, supported, and seen.…”

Cheers and a Charge to the Journal of Leadership Education on Its 20th Anniversary

“…While many accomplished, well-respected journals -some in our field of leadership -have remained steadily rooted in what has worked in the past, JOLE continues to innovate to meet the interests and desires of educators and practitioners doing this work of leadership education. Looking to some of JOLE's most recent articles that explored topics such as resilient leadership during a global health crisis (Thwaite, 2022), self-efficacy among freshman at Historically Black Institutions (Apesin & Gong, 2021), and queer advocacy leadership (Pryor, 2020) JOLE indeed, may be guiding ALE towards its important mission of being (and becoming) a home for all those interested in the scholarship and practice of leadership education.…”