Debunking the Grit Narrative in Higher Education : Drawing on the Strengths of African American, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Latinx, and Native American Students

Debunking the Grit Narrative in Higher Education examines pressing structural issues currently impacting African American, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Latinx, and Native American students accessing college and succeeding in U.S. postsecondary environments. Drawing from asset-based work of critical race education scholars such as Yosso, Ladson-Billings, and contributing author Solórzano, the authors interrogate how systems and structures shape definitions of academic merit and grit, how these systems constrain opportunities to attain access and equitable educational outcomes, and challenge widely held beliefs that Students of Color need grit to succeed in college. Dominant narratives of educational success and failure tend to focus mostly on individual student effort. Contributing authors explore the myriad ways that institutional structures can support Students of Color utilizing their strengths through critical perspectives, asset-based, anti-deficit perspectives to access postsecondary environments and experience success. Scholars, scholar-practitioners, students affairs professionals, and educational leaders will benefit from this timely edited book as they work to transform postsecondary institutions into entities that meet the needs of Students and Communities of Color. Cover Half Title Endorsement Page Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Preface Background and Context COVID-19 Pandemic, Racial Trauma, and Precarity Grounding our Ideological Orientation References Acknowledgments List of Contributors Chapter 1: Introduction: The Problem with Grit The Problem with Grit Background The Objectives of the Book The Organization of the Book Summary References Part I: Contexts and Foundations: The Origins of Grit Chapter 2: Critiques of Grit as a Measure of Academic Achievement in STEM Higher Education What is Grit? How is Grit Measured? What is Grit’s Relationship to Academic Achievement? Critiques of Grit Grit’s Modest Predictive Power Conceptual Muddiness and Grit Historical Origins: Debunking Grit as “Neutral” or “Universal” Grit in Higher Education: An Examination of Students of Color in STEM Grit as an Exclusionary Concept Promising Institutional Interventions for Student Achievement in STEM Discussion and Conclusions References Chapter 3: Challenging Everyday Structural Racism: A Critical Race Analysis of Grit in STEM My Introduction to Race, Ethnic, and Gender Studies Recognizing Relational History to Name and Recognize Systemic and Everyday Racism My Introduction to Paulo Freire My Journey to Critical Race Theory My CRT>grit>STEM Analysis The Intercentricity of Race and Racism with Other Forms of Subordination CRT>grit>STEM Analysis The Challenge to Dominant Ideology CRT>grit>STEM Analysis The Centrality of Experiential Knowledge CRT>grit>STEM Analysis The Commitment to Racial Justice CRT>grit>STEM Analysis The Transdisciplinary Perspective CRT>grit>STEM Analysis Recent CRT Work in the Medical Sciences Conclusion Notes References Chapter 4: The Grit Narrative: Shifting the Gaze and the Danger Framework Critical Inquiry Indigenous Feminist Theories Grit and Resilience Assumed Indigenous Students and Grit Assumptions of Grit Role of Invisibilization in Grit Narratives Dangerous Thinking and Privilege Time and Again References Chapter 5: Sometimes You’re Gritty, and Sometimes You’re Not: The Racialization of Grit for Asian Americans An Axe to Grind with Grit A Note about Asian American Things to Our Readers The Conceptualization of Grit in Higher Education The Meritocratic Asian American Racialized Grit and the Model and Deviant Minority A Cautionary Tale for Higher Education References Part II: College Structural Barriers and Research Studies Chapter 6: More than Grit: Toward Critical Race College Retention and Persistence for Latina/o/x Students Theoretical Frameworks New Juan Crow in Education Community Cultural Wealth Literature Review Surveillance and Policing in K-12 High-Stakes Testing Inadequate Academic Resources Enacting Community Cultural Wealth to Access and Transition to College Methods Findings Navigating a New Juan Crow Education Enacting Community Cultural Wealth within New Juan Crow Education Maintaining College Aspirations Transitioning to College Persisting in College Discussion and Implications Conclusion Note References Chapter 7: Gritty Enough?: African American Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Student Success Factors Why African American STEM Achievement Matters Population Growth and the Diversity of the STEM Pipeline What Is Grit? Reliability of Grit Measures Historical Context Methodology Participant Sample Data Collection, Instrumentation, and Analysis Researcher Positionality Findings Pre-College Factors Contributing to Student Success College Achievement Programmatic Support Building Community Representation and Confronting Negative Stereotypes Faculty Involvement Post-Graduate Involvements Discussion Pre-College Factors and the Application Process Learning and Growing in College Opportunities for Further Exploration Conclusion References Chapter 8: Beyond the Bootstraps Mentality: The Fallacy of Grit as a Measure of Success for Black and Latine/x Men in California Community Colleges Segregation and Structural Inequality Community Colleges A Landscape of Black and Latine/x Male College Enrollers Theoretical Framework Degree Aspirations for Men of Color Finances and Family “Traditional” Students Career Goals Institutional Contexts External Context Academic Achievement Method Sample CCSSE Benchmark Scores Measures of Degree Aspirations Analyses Descriptive Statistics Exploratory Factor Analyses (EFA) Logistic Regression Findings Pre-College Characteristics Academic Achievement and External/Institutional Indicators of Success Discussion Transfer Aspirations Non-Traditional College Students Financing Educational Costs Withdrawing from College Challenge and Support References Part III: Educational Practices Supporting Achievement Chapter 9: Returning to Campus: Equity-Minded Approaches to Degree Completion Grit as a Concept for Student Success? Need for More College Graduates Higher Education Agenda Centers Traditional College Students Some College, No Degree Higher Education’s Limitations in Serving Those with Some College, No Degree Policies and Practices that Put Adult Learners Behind If You Need Another Reason to Care: Equity What Needs to Be Implemented to Serve All Students An Inclusive Campus Culture that Values the Returning Student Supporting Adult Learners Who Are Parents/Caregivers Evaluating the Landscape to Understand How Existing Policies and Practices Impact Returning Students Articulating the Skills and Experience Returning Students Bring to the College (Credit for Prior Learning) Keen Attention to College Affordability and Financial Aid Structures Admissions Processes Designed for the Returning Student Flexible and Predictable Course Scheduling in Various Modalities Systemwide Efforts Can Create Consistency for Returning Students The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Colorado’s One Million Degrees Indiana’s “You Can. Go Back.” Tennessee’s Reconnects Michigan’s Reconnect Recommendations Grit Fails Students Facing Structural Barriers, Like Returning Students References Chapter 10: A Counternarrative to Grit through Scholarship on Latinx/a/o Students and HSIs: A Systematic Review of the Literature Overview of Key Terms Conceptual Framework Methodology Findings Providing a Counternarrative to Grit Understanding/Conceptualizing Servingness Cultivating a Culture of Care Implications for Research and Practice Decolonize Grit to Remove Barriers Bringing a Culture of Care to Campus Life Note References Chapter 11: Holo i ka ʻAuwai, Flowing with the Power of the Stream: Empowerment-Based Evaluation and Research Concepts for Empowerment and Capacity Building The Historical Context of the Community and Relationships Across Communities: The Epistemology of Place Intergenerational Engagement Through the Lens of Story-Making: Collaboration Over Competition Research and Evaluation Methods for Empowerment and Capacity Building Asset Mapping Q-Sort Methodology Digital Storytelling Pláticas Conclusion References Chapter 12: Centering the Student in Undergraduate Research as a Retention Strategy Undergraduate Research Experiences (UREs) Overdue for a Critical Analysis Varying Forms of UREs Critiques of Grit and in Undergraduate Research Practice Access to Research Opportunities Disciplinary Differences Faculty Roles and Interactions Reimagining Undergraduate Research Experiences as a Retention Strategy Program Priorities Defining Success and Outcomes Faculty and URE Relationship Student-Centered Staff Peer Advising: Helping with Retaining Students Exemplar Programs Extended Pipeline Approach: Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship (MMUF) Comprehensive Engagement Model-Meyerhoff Scholars Program Federally Funded Model: The Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program Retention Program Model-Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) Key Components to Reimagining Undergraduate Research Experiences as a Retention Strategy Ethic of Care in URE Practices Principles of Practice: Racially Inclusive Practices in Undergraduate Research Summary Note References Chapter 13: Conclusion: The Problem with Grit is White Supremacy Eugenics, the Frontier, and Grit Character Education as Tools of Exclusion Academic Achievement Institutional Contexts and Support Implications References Index