This Issue: Celebrating 25 Years of the Pullias Center |
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Our November newsletter comes out as 2020 finally starts mercifully coming to a close. The year marked by a deadly pandemic, economic uncertainty, racial injustices, and social unrest is also leaving a chaotic election aftermath as it heads for the door.
This issue's guest editor, Pullias Center Director Adrianna Kezar, highlights this historic moment in time on many fronts in her "Elections and Activism" essay. This issue also includes news of a special series of awards bestowed to our alumni and an exciting update about the next phase of our longest-running study. We also share a look inside how we marked the 25th anniversary of the Pullias Center.
Vasti Torres, Ph.D. Professor at Indiana University, Editor for the Journal of College Student Development, current AERA Division J Vice President, and colleague of the Pullias Center, reflects on the Center’s 25th Anniversary in the penultimate essay in the series, marking the occasion.
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Adrianna Kezar, Pullias Center Director, shares her perspective on this pivotal election
It’s November and hopefully you voted on or before Election Day and encouraged others to do so. The stakes for this current election could not have been higher, particularly as it relates to issues of racial justice and equity, but also xenophobia, global sustainability, health and safety of our populace to name a few critical items. While the results are still contested by some, it appears Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. and Kamala Devi Harris will be heading to the White House in January with a strong mandate for change. However, they will likely be greeted by a hostile Senate and the remnants of the previous administration committed to blocking progress on many important fronts. This keeps the responsibility on us, the people across this country, and particularly scholars who are committed to equity, to be activists in the coming years.
Over the past decade, I have been considering how important it is for academics and all of those who labor at colleges and universities to play a role in activism. In a recent book, I explored some of the many ways that faculty can engage in public scholarship. This activity can range from an op-ed to organizing teach-ins to marching in the streets. And it is quite possible, we will be needing people to be doing all of these activities in the coming months. And while the book was aimed at faculty, postdocs, and graduate students aspiring to be faculty members, the ideas and lessons are just as important to staff and students as they decide the best way they can support their values in the coming months
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Pullias Center staff, researchers, associates, and alumni met up virtually to reminisce about the organization’s first quarter century while considering what lies ahead. The event was originally planned as an in-person affair that, like so many things in 2020, had to be rethought in the shadow of the coronavirus. The resulting virtual gathering benefited from the digital nature of the event by facilitating attendance for many alumni and associates from outside Southern California.
Adrianna Kezar, Director of the Pullias Center started off the proceedings with a warm welcome to all guests. This included a brief speech highlighting the center’s evolution over 25 years and its latest focus on racial equity-related research and resources...
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The Pullias Center asked the organization’s alumni to submit proposals for research projects that explore racial equity and inclusion in higher education and presented $5,000 awards to support five of these projects.
“Anyone who has worked for the Pullias Center knows of our commitment and mission to improve college access and success for underserved and underrepresented students,” notes Adrianna Kezar, Director of the Pullias Center. “Oftentimes, students are underserved due to racial inequalities at play. In an effort to address these issues and to demonstrate support for our amazing alumni, we are excited to announce the creation of the Pullias Center Equity Alumni Award that will fund and support the work of five alumni as they amplify the voices of the underrepresented and continue to combat systemic racism.”
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As the Biden/Harris administration heads to Washington DC, many across the higher education landscape are turning thoughts towards what the first priorities on President Biden and Vice President Harris’ education agenda will be. In the past, President Biden has been a tireless advocate for public education while Vice President Harris’ is an HBCU graduate and has expressed her unwavering priority to make college more accessible to all individuals regardless of race, income, or disability. We also can’t forget soon-to-be First Lady Dr. Jill Biden who has been an educator for more than 30 years and is a long-time member of the National Education Association. The faculty members at the Pullias Center have their own ideas on what President Biden’s first priority should be on his education plan.
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Zoe Corwin, Associate Professor of Research and lead researcher on a recent groundbreaking study at the University of Southern California’s (USC) Rossier School of Education Pullias Center that redefined skateboarding culture, has been awarded a grant for another look at skateboarding.
The new study, titled “Mattering in the Margins: Skateboarders’ Stories of Mental Health Challenges and Opportunities” seeks to take a timely look at skateboarders during this current period of upheaval as racial injustice and a global pandemic resound across all corners of society. The study is designed to develop actionable suggestions for practitioner, policymaker, academic, and industry audiences serving at-promise youth...
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In reflecting on the role that research centers serve within the higher education scholarly community, the first things that come to my mind are creating space for reflection and the tackling of ungainly complex programs in the field.
This image fits the Pullias Center perfectly. From the provocative work of Bill Tierney, the center’s Founding Director, around organizational culture and student success to the work of Adrianna Kezar, the current Director, on change, leadership, contingent faculty, and student success programs – these topics intentionally engage and push policy makers, researchers, and scholars to think about their actions for the public good. I know that the publications that come from Pullias influence my own thinking about these topics and I hope they influence others in the same manner.
As a person who thinks it is important to learn something new every day, I find the approach Pullias Center staff take with their projects, newsletter, and research briefs constantly prompts me to consider new ideas. I thank the Pullias Center for being provocative and innovative. These traits are laudable and need to be celebrated, especially in higher education.
The Pullias Center has many products to celebrate around many varied areas of research throughout its first quarter century. To me, there are three that should be acknowledged as core to the Pullias Center contributions – tackling difficult questions, promoting the next generation of scholars, and taking national leadership.
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Quick Takes
from the Pullias Center
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Recommended Media
Suggestions from Dr. Kezar for your reading list
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The December issue will be guest-edited by Jennifer R. Keup, Executive Director, National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition
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