College Leaders’ Perspectives Of Diversity At A Community College System In Texas: A Phenomenological Study Of Validation

Author

Xandelyn Wright Washington, Prairie View A&M University

Date of Award

8-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Degree Discipline

Education Leadership

Abstract

The United States has undergone dramatic changes in student demographics over the last 40 years. Nowhere is this reflected more than in the field of education (Center for Public Education, 2012; Fabina et al., 2023). Disaggregation of student demographics is a useful and common method for measuring student outcomes, and in the United States, non-majority students consistently have lower student outcomes (Gay, 2013; Howard, 2010; Ocay et al., 2023).

Ma and Baum (2016) and McNair et al. (2015) stated that the role of community colleges is pivotal in postsecondary education. As such, college leaders and administrators have focused attention on ensuring the campus climate is conducive to meeting the needs of their diverse student population in order to improve completion rates. What has received less attention in recent years is an exploration of the policies and practices of community college administrators designed to create educational environments that promote success in tangible ways that affirm and support all students’ persistence and completion. Therefore, this qualitative phenomenological study, using Rendon’s (1994) Validation Theory, sought to illuminate, from a leadership perspective, the creation and institutionalization of a community college campus climate in Texas that fostered success for the range of diverse students they enroll.

The research questions were: (1) What specific policies and practices do community college administrators consider integral to creating a validating campus climate? and (2) What specific policies and practices have community college administrators developed to promote interaction among diverse groups on campus? Two themes emerged from the data: Current Climate Mask Efforts and Personal, Not Institutional.

Given the present realities of the current political and social discourse concerning diversity, the net effect of the two themes may represent the quandary some community college leaders, indeed, all college leaders, face. Although data is not always destiny, data is instructive. The United States is more diverse today than it has ever been in its history. Relatedly, diversity encompasses more than race/ethnicity. As such, all American institutions are microcosms of society. The findings are instructive for postsecondary educational leaders navigating real and imagined minefields.

Keywords: community college and campus environment, non-majority student populations, Validation Theory

Committee Chair/Advisor

Pamela Barber Freeman

Committee Member

Douglas Hermond

Committee Member

Patricia Hoffman-Miller

Committee Member

Abul Pitre

Publisher

Prairie View A&M University

Rights

Date of Digitization

09/02/2025

Contributing Institution

J. B . Coleman Library

City of Publication

Prairie View

MIME Type

Application/PDF

Recommended Citation

Washington, X. W. (2025). College Leaders’ Perspectives Of Diversity At A Community College System In Texas: A Phenomenological Study Of Validation. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.pvamu.edu/pvamu-dissertations/120