Dispossession of Student Affairs

The purpose of this institutional ethnography was to uncover the ruling relations shaping student success efforts at large research universities. Using this critical qualitative approach, we examined the tensions between university leaders' efforts to enhance student success and the persistent disparities in retention, progression, and graduation rates for Black and Latinx students at Prestige University. Our findings reveal that economic logics (neoliberalism, marketization, and academic capitalism) intersect with testimonial and hermeneutic injustices, undermining equitable support for these students. Prestige-seeking behaviors and traditional organizational patterns at Prestige U not only marginalize the needs of Black and Latinx students but also dispossess student affairs professionals who are central to implementing holistic support strategies. This study calls for reevaluating success metrics and institutional practices to create a more inclusive and just environment for marginalized students and the professionals who support them

Embeddedness · Ethnography · Higher education · Prestige · Qualitative research · Sensemaking · Student affairs · Testimonial · Evacuation and Crowd Dynamics · Human Mobility and Location-Based Analysis · Urban Transport and Accessibility