Futuring the Effects of Rapid Technological Change on Inclusivity and Equity in Higher Education

Dear Colleagues,

Another era of rapid technological change is upon us. Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and the metaverse (metaversity) are two of many potential examples. The effects of the pace of technological change on inclusion and equity may be profound and need to be studied. Consideration must be given to the variety of factors that define individuals and populations: race/ethnicity, gender, socio-economic status, age, (dis)ability, other. In addition, consideration must be given to the types of institutions these students enrol in: two-year and four-year institutions, elite colleges and universities, minority-serving institutions (MSIs), other. Collectively, we can theorize that these dynamics will coalesce in interesting and unexpected ways to create new dilemmas, challenges, and opportunities for higher education research, scholarship, policy, and practice.

This Special Issue aims to focus on the fact that another era of higher education is being fashioned right now, in real time. The articles in this volume will capture aspects of the shifting landscape, which is largely being driven by technology changes, and help to scope and define what the shift means for inclusion and equity across student and faculty populations and institutions. Emerging methodological approaches are welcome.

Topics of interest for this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following. Articles should give special attention to how these topics affect or intersect with inclusivity and equity (race/ethnicity, gender, socio-economic status, generation, (dis)ability):

• Leading change in an era of technological advancement and uncertainty (can focus on specific types of institutions such as MSIs, or can be more general);
• Strategies for resourcing institutions of higher education to procure and implement cutting-edge technologies;
• Higher education in the metaverse (metaversity);
• Special considerations for GenAI in the higher education context (for faculty, for students);
• Applying futuring or foresight theory to strategic planning to colleges and universities;
• Case studies of colleges and universities on the leading edge of harnessing and institutionalizing technological changes for faculty and students;
• Exploration of existential and other philosophical questions for colleges and universities navigating traditional and virtual worlds;
• Historical analysis where history contains lessons for the future.

Dr. Andrew T. Arroyo
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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