Latinas in Power: New Approaches to Community College Leadership

• In Event: Equitable Education Systems and Unpacking Perspectives of Latina/o/x Stakeholders

Abstract

Our study draws from year-long platicas with five Latina presidents in California seeking to better understand their racialized/gendered experiences as community college leaders. Holding space through platicas across two academic semesters, we learned the ways our collaborators navigate institutional leadership as the first Latina, many times also the first woman, president. From our conversations, we describe two salient findings. The first describes a “Chingona Mentality” that serves as a new approach to presidential leadership. The second highlights the ways Latina leaders draw on their identity, culture, and community as tools for their presidency. We highlight both the challenges and opportunities for Latina leaders, and the need for institutions to be open and receptive to new types of leaders and approaches.

Authors

• Eric R. Felix, San Diego State University

• Cynthia Estrada, California State University - Channel Islands