CREATING EQTUIALBE ENVIORNMENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION 1

Creating Equitable Environments in Higher Education

Yazmin Colin

California State University, Fresno

CREATING EQTUIALBE ENVIORNMENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION 2

Creating Equitable Environments in Higher Education

Prior to starting this course, I did not have a well-rounded understanding of the different

perspectives that as a student affairs professional I can use when interpreting policies and

enforcing them onto students. For the most part, policies and practices that are currently in place

disproportionately give male Caucasian students an upper hand over students of color. This

setup is due to the fact that higher education was intended for rich Caucasian men. Without any

major changes occurring to higher education, it is imperative to be critical of how ethical current

policy and practices are and how I, as a student affairs professional, can start to create an

equitable environment in higher education for marginalized students.

My work in a registrar’s office has reinforced the notion that policy tries to have a “one

fits all” model however, after reading Linder (2007), I came to understand that we should

demonstrate more compassion to our students. As the graduation coordinator I have become a

gatekeeper for students being awarded their degree or not. With strict deadlines and policies, I

have been told that it is difficult to provide any leeway for students. This mentally is due to many

in the office having a positivist mindset, seeing graduation policies as a black and white, and not

allowing for exceptions to occur. Yet as Linder (2007) indicates, “If we remain open, students

will teach us about our culture, our campus, our community, and the larger world,” (p. 24).

Taking a more compassionate understanding to students’ struggles we not only allow for these

students to learn from what has occurred but also allow us to learn how our own policies and

practices truly affect students. Without listening to our students' needs or concerns we could be

impeding their successes and their development, and this is counter intuitive to the purpose of

higher education. By hearing our students, we are allowing for a true assessment of our practices

to occur. Now this does not mean that we should make unreasonable or unrealistic exceptions, or
CREATING EQTUIALBE ENVIORNMENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION 3

that we will give exceptions to all, but is necessary to allow for us to think critically to determine

if the practices that we oversee are realistic for students to meet and if they are creating a more

inequitable playing field.

Another form to create more equitable practices in higher education is to find alternative

ways for students to meet admission criteria. Weissbourd et al (2016) illustrated ways for

colleges and universities to create more “compelling messages that both ethical engagement—

especially concern for others and the common good—and intellectual engagement are highly

important…” (pp1). It has become normalized that universities place more value on certain

community engagement projects than others. Universities might not inquire about why students

are engaging in the projects to determine if students' community engagement lies within the

students' passion, or merely something students are doing to meet admission standards. While

many students can make time to partake into community projects, others do not have that time.

The report takes into consideration the obligations and home responsibilities that students from

working families have and how admission offices should place more value in these

responsibilities. For students like myself, having to work to help alleviate the financial burden on

our parents, we did not have much free time to participate in community serving activities.

Weissbourd et al (2016) ask that admission offices take this as part of a students’ community

engagement as not all policies fit every student's circumstances at home. This type of

interpretation provides equity to these students as it will be leveling out the field.

Students do not go through their higher educational journey on their own, they have the

support from their families. However, with policies such as the Family Education Rights and

Privacy Act [FERPA], parents have limited access to help their students through their

educational journey. This is because when students enroll at a college or university all rights to
CREATING EQTUIALBE ENVIORNMENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION 4

view a student’s educational records gets transferred from the parent to the student (The Family

Educational Rights and Privacy Act). This means that if a parent has an inquiry regarding the

student’s academic struggles, a college or university will not share this information. This creates

a potential hostile relationship between parents and the university. This policy no longer meets

the needs of today's parents of college age students. Kennedy (2009) indicates that parents of

millennial students are more involved in their student’s lives than ever before. He credits this due

to the following reasons: the changing relationship between parents and children, the increase in

communication due to technological advances, the financial investment parents are making

towards their students' education, and lastly the belief from both parents and students that parents

intervening on students’ behalf are effective when resolving an issue. Due to this change, the

FERPA policy should be revisited in order to easily facilitate the relationship between parents

and university. This should also encompass a way for non-English speaking parents to partake in

their students' journey in the same way as English-speaking parents. This will ensure that

university and college practices are evolving with current times but also creating an equitable

space for all families that want to be involved in their students' lives.

As a student affairs professional I need to ensure that my decision-making strategy is

ethical and Oliver and Hioco (2012) describe an ethical decision-making model that

encompasses five different ethical theories: teleological, justice, deontological, virtue ethics, and

ethic of care. I can use one of more of these theories to go about answering the nine questions

they pose for us to follow when trying to make an ethical decision. While in the midst of

creating a decision, it is important to have an understanding of my own ethical and moral values

as Oliver and Hioco (2012) indicated that “critical and ethical thinkers must gain an

understanding of their own ethical framework, comprising values, principles, standards, and
CREATING EQTUIALBE ENVIORNMENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION 5

theoretical lenses” (pp 248). Reading through the ethical theories presented in Oliver and Hioco

(2012), I relate more to the justice theory as I want to create equal rights and as a social justice

professional, I want to ensure that equity is the result of my ethical decisions.

Higher education policies and practices follow the “one size fits all” model without

taking the time to think that perhaps these policies or practices can create inequitable

opportunities for marginalized students. When making decisions, I must ensure that as a student

affairs professional I am compassionate and when I need to make ethical decisions, I am

following an ethical decision model such as Oliver and Hioco (2012). As well as providing

alternative ways for students to meet requirements. By doing so I place value on different

experiences and create equitable opportunities.

 CREATING EQTUIALBE ENVIORNMENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION 6

References

Kennedy, K. (2009). The politics and policies of parental involvement. About Campus, 14(4), 16-25.

Linder, K. (2007). I'm Glad Someone does it! The joy of judicial affairs. About Campus, 11(6), 22-24.

Oliver, D. E., & Hioco, B. (2012). An ethical decision-making framework for community college

administrators. Community College Review, 40(3), 240–254.

https://doi.org/10.1177/0091552112445611.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act: Guidance for eligible students. (2011, February).

Available: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/students.html

Weissbourd, R., Thacker, L., & Anderson, T. R., Cashin, A., Feigenberg, L. F., & Kahn, J. (2016).

Turning the tide: Inspiring concern for others and the common good through college admissions.

Cambridge, MA: Making Caring Common Project.