Maneuvering Neoliberal Directives to Disrupt Hierarchical Power and Discourse

• In Event: 34.066 - Program Directors for Social Equity: Eliminating Barriers to Opportunities and Success

Abstract

Purpose
This paper will share one program director’s approach to disrupting the power and control of production over knowledge production from senior administrators who dictate how academic units are funded, how curricula are developed, and who become the educators of our generation. This particular doctoral program focuses on the characteristics, strengths, and educational needs of individuals and groups whose learning potential and opportunities for success are frequently unrealized.
Theoretical Perspective
Theoretically, the program confronts deficit ideology (Valencia, 1997) through a criticalist approach to examining educational phenomena; hence, the need to model a critical approach for students within the context of the program itself.
Methodology
A critical discourse analysis of program materials and outcomes as well as a few events illuminates the power “developed and exercised through the control of knowledge” (Grbich, 2007, p. 147). Data sources include four years of student annual review data, four years of institutional effectiveness data, seven years of student travel funding requests, procedures for requesting student travel funding, responses from upper administration to meeting requests from students, and anecdotal information for demonstrative purposes.
Findings
Despite the neoliberal discourse to be self-sufficient and offer curricula that prepares students to be economically productive and obedient citizens, program faculty and students find creative ways to meet their needs. By working together, sharing information, and on-going communication, program constituents are able to achieve their goals. Students have come to understand, as have faculty members, that they have more power in negotiating processes than they believed. Through persistent and concerted efforts, the program director, faculty, and students have been successful in maintaining their socially just efforts.
Significance
As the director of the program, my role is to support students and faculty members even if it is at odds with the economic and workforce development goals of upper administration (Jenlink, 2015). Ultimately, critical program administrators need to come together to bolster resistance to the hierarchical power and discourse of higher education supported by most upper-level administrators. This will engender the environment necessary to better prepare future educators and academicians who strive to provide a quality education for all students and disrupt oppressive forces (Authors, 2015).

Authors

• Lisa L. Zagumny, Tennessee Technological University

• Tessa Bishop, Tennessee Technological University