From Integration to Cultural Consciousness: The Call for Culturally Engaging Environments on Community College Campuses. Insights on Equity and Outcomes. Issue 23

This brief raises the issue of how community colleges that are predominately white struggle with creating warm and welcoming campus environments to engage and equitably meet the cultural needs of their diverse learners, particularly for students who hold racially minoritized identities due to systems of oppression. Moving from integration to cultural consciousness begins with acknowledging and deconstructing the racist philosophies and practices that have historically been embedded in predominantly white institutions. To make this happen, the following barriers identified in this brief must be overcome to create gateways for institutional success: chilly campus environments and a sense of not belonging, color evasiveness, politics, and racial inequity; the absence of culturally responsive practices; and leadership that is not reflective of the student body.