Climbing the Ladder or Fighting the System? How Hierarchies and Power Struggles Threaten Latinas Cultural Identity in Higher Education (Poster 45)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Friday 3:20 p.m.
  In Invited Poster Session: 2025 AERA Undergraduate Fellows Research Poster Fair

Abstract

Systemic injustices continuously shape the experiences of Latinx students in higher education, particularly in STEM fields at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) (Gina, G. A. 2023). Structural barriers, including educational leadership practices, fail to account for Latinx students' cultural identities and needs. While such programs aim to support Latinx students, these institutions often fall short by neglecting cultural responsiveness and replicating the very power imbalances that contribute to systemic inequities.

Culturally responsive evaluation can indicate the areas of growth for programs at HSIs serving Latinx students. The study investigates hierarchical structures and power struggles within a STEM federally-funded program threatening Latinas’ cultural identity in evaluation procedures. Using a qualitative approach, guided by cultural intuition (Delgado Bernal, 1998), our team conducted thirteen interviews with program leadership , however analysis focuses on one interview with a fellow Latina. I engaged in a reflexive testimonio where I revisited the interview’s discursive complexities in relation to program evaluation practices and dynamics, acknowledging that the person I interviewed was at a higher role within the program’s hierarchy. Prominent themes include (1) discursive complexities of power dynamics in the interviewer/interviewee relationship, (2) (un)cultural responsiveness of leadership serving Latinx STEM students, and (3) cultural intuition in program evaluators. This study highlights the necessity of grounding program evaluation in cultural responsiveness to effectively analyze and advance the goals of a STEM Latinx-centered program. While this study looks at only one educational leader, future directions include a systematic analysis of the entire program’s leadership and their relationship to cultural responsive service.

Author

• Maritza Ordaz, University of California - Santa Barbara