The Untold Counterstory: A Researcher's Account of Investigating the Experiences of Black Students Studying Biology

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 11:40 am Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: The Biographical and Documentary Research SIG Roundtable (Table 4)

Abstract

Positioned as both a researcher and a graduate student, this paper focuses on how I interrogated my emotions and biases while studying the experiences of Black students in biology at a Minority Serving Institution (MSI). Drawing on counter-storytelling, a core principle of Critical Race Theory (CRT), and highlighting the importance of humanizing research, additionally, this paper draws attention to the counterstory of scholars whose work focuses on the communities to which they belong. In sharing my transformative experience, I illustrate how conducting such studies is not only liberating but also daunting at the same time. I present key takeaways that higher education scholars should consider when working with communities close to their lived experiences.

Author

• Analisa Brown, University of California - Davis