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New Directions for Diversity, Inclusion and Sustainability in Higher Education

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Education and Approaches".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2023) | Viewed by 7191

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Terrell Lamont Strayhorn

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Guest Editor

Department of Educational Administration & Foundations, College of Education, Illinois State University, Normal, IL 61790, USA
Interests: diversity; equity; inclusion and belonging in higher education; faculty productivity; staff performance/evaluation; student success
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite submissions for this Special Issue of Sustainability. This Special Issue aims to push the boundaries of research, science, and scholarship on the nexus between diversity, inclusion, and sustainability in postsecondary and higher education.

The real success of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) efforts in higher education depends, in part, on their sustainability, and an integral component of sustainability is the capacity to embrace diverse communities, voices, and approaches in equitable and inclusive ways that foster belonging. Thus, forward-thinking institutions and individuals agree that diversity and inclusion are important for sustainability, even if it is less clear how, why, when, to what extent, and under what conditions this is the case. For example, many leading corporations attribute record-setting revenue generation, client satisfaction, employee productivity, and “Fortune” status to links between their sustainability strategy and their DEIB plan, according to reports.

In light of increasing challenges faced by higher education related to the global pandemic (COVID-19), record-breaking turnover and burn-out (“The Great Resignation”), international wars and political unrest, climate change, remote teaching/working, and rising costs, to name just a few, it is more important than ever that scholars, practitioners, campus/community leaders, and those who cross these categories (e.g., practitioner–scholars) conduct, commission, and curate high-quality research that charts “New Directions for Diversity, Inclusion, and Sustainability in Higher Education.” This is the expressed scope and purpose of this Special Issue of Sustainability.

This Special Issue will usefully advance, critique, and supplement existing literature by developing, examining, identifying, interrogating, and promoting scalable and sustainable policies and practices that address issues of diversity, level (in)equitable “playing fields,” enact social justice, and achieve DEIB across all aspects of the higher education enterprise. Original research articles, reviews, short communications, technical reports, commentaries, case studies (i.e., programs that work), research notes, and book reviews are welcome. All methods, methodologies, and approaches are encouraged: quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, historical, policy analysis, legal writing, and more.

Research topics may include (but are not limited to) the following:

Accessibility, (dis)ability, compliance, and ethics;
Decolonization of the curriculum/canon;
Indigenous value systems and practices
Narratives of place and place-based scholarship;
Capacity-building at minority-serving institutions (MSIs) including Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs), historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), tribal colleges, and Asian–American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions (AANAPISIs);
Racial justice movements;
Economic, environmental, and social sustainability of higher education institutions;
Future of for-profit colleges;
Campus or government (federal/state) policies and procedures that address systematic problems (e.g., food/housing [in]securities, affordability);
Academic planning and enrollment management at community colleges, MSIs, and technical schools;
DEIB metrics, benchmarks, and strategic planning;
Institutional or organizational health, well-being, and overall functioning.

Prof. Dr. Terrell Lamont Strayhorn
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

diversity
equity, inclusion
belonging
sustainability
higher education
strategic planning

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 1602 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Flash On: Capturing Minoritized Engineering Students’ Persistence through Photovoice Research

by Lupita Herrera, Kristin L. Schaefer, Le Shorn S. Benjamin and Jerrod A. Henderson

Sustainability 2023, 15(6), 5311; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15065311 - 16 Mar 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1742

Abstract

Background: The attrition of engineering students remains an issue, and even more so for historically marginalized students at some institutions. This study aimed to investigate the challenges minoritized students face in engineering and the ways they navigate toward success. Method: We used photovoice, a methodology where participants take pictures in response to a prompt, and collectively identify the strengths and weaknesses of their community. The final aspect of photovoice is a collective sustainable change, such as policy change. We used thematic analysis of focus group interview transcripts triangulated with results from a pre-survey, photos and their associated hashtags, and written descriptions of photographs as sources of data. Results: Two themes emerged, financial constraints and engineering stress culture, as barriers to student success, while social networks (e.g., student organizations, faculty, and family), finding balance, and positive reassurance were determined to be facilitators to their success. Conclusions: While underrepresented, engineering students continue to face challenges; their collective reflection and discussion initiated by photovoice served as psychosocial support. As institutions grapple with how to support students better, the power of photovoice as a sustainable practice has implications for the teaching, research, and service that can improve student success. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Directions for Diversity, Inclusion and Sustainability in Higher Education)

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20 pages, 2572 KiB

Open AccessArticle

How Does Graduate Training Promote Sustainable Development of Higher Education: Evidence from China’s “Double First-Class” Universities’ Programs

by Man Wang and Cheng Zhou

Sustainability 2023, 15(2), 944; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15020944 - 4 Jan 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1946

Abstract

Higher education is crucial to sustainable development. The construction of a “double first-class” university (the 42 top universities in China) is an important initiative to improve the quality of higher education and promote its sustainable development. The aim of the study discussed here was to explore how graduate training promotes the sustainable development of higher education and the main characteristics of graduate training in China’s “double first-class” universities. The research in this paper involved 42 “double first-class” universities’ graduate training programs (including training objectives, training process, and training methods) for which coding analysis using NVivo12 plus was carried out. It was found that the main characteristics of China’s “double first-class” university graduate training are as follows: (1) clear decomposition of quality and ability structure; (2) taking quality as the core of the connotative development of higher education; and (3) innovation in talent training methods. This study focused on talent training itself, which is of significant importance in the competition for talent around the world. China’s double first-class universities can not only provide experience for the graduate education of domestic universities, but also for those in other countries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Directions for Diversity, Inclusion and Sustainability in Higher Education)

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18 pages, 1950 KiB

Open AccessSystematic Review

Racial Disparities in the Construction Domain: A Systematic Literature Review of the U.S. Educational and Workforce Domain

by Josiane Isingizwe, Ricardo Eiris and Masoud Gheisari

Sustainability 2023, 15(7), 5646; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15075646 - 23 Mar 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1958

Abstract

Trends in the construction domain, educational enrollment, student graduation, student industry employment, and workforce retention demonstrate that minorities—Hispanics, African Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans—are often excluded, segregated, or ignored in this domain. A systematic literature review (N = 68) was conducted to investigate the causes and effects of racial disparities produced by systemic racism in the educational and workforce domains of construction. Particularly, this paper focuses on exploring how racial disparities in construction impact minorities, the current state of the racial divide, the practices that perpetuate racial inequities, and the strategies currently used to prevent, in a sustainable manner, such practices. The results of this systematic literature search revealed that exclusionary practices and ideologies cause an underrepresentation of minorities in construction that directly affects employment and industry representation in the United States. Previous studies show that systemic racism in construction has been supported by meritocracy and colorblindness ideologies, creating an unwelcoming environment where racial minorities have difficulties identifying with the construction domain. Furthermore, systemic racism affects students after graduation from construction programs, as industry trends showcase issues with minorities joining or staying in the field. Although racial disparities caused by systemic racism are an existing issue in the education and workforce domains of construction, there are a rising number of publications that strive to understand how to sustainably increase diversity, equity, and the inclusion of racial minorities. An increasing number of available tools, such as anti-bias and awareness training programs, are being used as a sustainable practice in construction education and in the construction industry to mitigate the effects of systemic racism. Ultimately, this paper’s contribution centers on describing the “who”, “how”, and “what” regarding the effect of racial disparities in the construction domain, which reduce the number of minority professionals coming into and staying in the industry. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Directions for Diversity, Inclusion and Sustainability in Higher Education)

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