(Re)Defining Freedom: Prison to University Pathways of Black Scholars through a Counseling Lens

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 1:45 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Cultural Identity, Race, and Resilience in Counseling

Abstract

This paper shares the educational journeys of formerly incarcerated Black men through a counseling lens. The research-practitioner applied narrative inquiry and grounded theory to conduct in-depth interviews with Black scholars who successfully transitioned from the California prison system to a university setting. The study uplifted participants academic narratives highlighting how education and counseling services were essential in envisioning life beyond prison. This qualitative study utilized a reimagined methodical design and conceptual framework that critically examined the collusion of the carceral state and white supremacy. The (Re)defining Freedom Model emerged from the data with themes related to the participants’ intrinsic strengths, educational journey, support systems, and challenges connected in the core of freedom.

Author

• Lauren Sneed, San Francisco State University