Emerging Through Adversity: An Exploratory Qualitative Study on Undergraduate Students’ Identity Safety on HBCU Campuses

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 7:45 am - Gold 1
  In Roundtable Session: Roundtable Session 3: Student Learning and Development in College and Beyond

Abstract

This exploratory secondary analysis investigates how adverse experiences impact identity development among Black undergraduate students. Drawing on qualitative responses from a multi-HBCU survey, the study examines how students negotiate identity in ways that preserve a sense of safety within college environments. Using grounded theory analysis and a social constructivism lens, this study reveals emerging themes that include protective identity factors, cultural affirmation, intersectionality, and the impact of environmental transitions. These findings demonstrate how identity development serves as a protective factor against social and psychological adversity. The ongoing research contributes to trauma-informed educational discourse by centering identity safety within learning environments and proposing new frameworks for evaluating how culturally relevant pedagogy promotes identity safety among Black undergraduates.

Authors

• Sharonda Clay, Howard University

• Kimberley Edelin Freeman, Howard University