For Us by Us about Us: Constructing Latinx-Centered Higher Education Institutions

Higher education institutions' organizational identities, cultures, and praxis have neglected to honor the values, culture, and knowledge assets of Latinx communities, making it difficult to gain educational justice and equity, which could be attained through Latinx-centered models of higher education. The Latinx higher education experience needs to be deconstructed and reconstructed by resisting whiteness as normative and including People of Color as "holders and creators of knowledge" (Bernal, 2002). Alternatives to normative higher education institutions are limited in the literature, particularly those that have been founded by Latinx communities. Thus, the purpose of the study was to explore how organizational identity, culture, and praxis at higher education institutions founded by Latinx communities reflected Latinx-centered approaches that built upon, promoted, and centered the assets (knowledge, values, culture, and experiences) of Latinx People. As a counternarrative, FUBU-"About Us" was considered a concept and approach for the study, informing decisions around literature, design, and centering of research participants (referred to as collaborators) in the findings. Through a qualitative interpretive instrumental multi-case organizational study approach of two U.S. historically Latinx-founded institutions, data collected included 28 individual interviews and five focus groups, document and artifact reviews, and observations. A conceptual framework brought together organizational theories with asset-based concepts from Latinx theorists that helped guide the design of the study, data analysis, and discussion of the findings. Individual college portraits and distinct findings for each case were presented, for example for case 1: ownership as resistance and empowerment, integrated roles as a practical and values-oriented practice, and for case 2: rooting historical activism as central to identity and planning processes speaking to values, among others. In addition, an analysis of shared and nuanced findings across the cases revealed the importance of place; naming strengths in the midst of challenges; arts and culture as staples of institutional identity, culture, and practices; and counterspaces, among others. The study offers a discussion on contributions of the study to the literature, a revised conceptual to real-life framework for FUBU-"About Us" institutions of higher education, as well as implications for practice, policy, and future research. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]