Envisioning a Critical and Liberatory Approach to Trans and Queer Center(ed) Diversity Work
Summary
Through unabashedly critical, liberatory, and intersectional lenses, Catalano, Duran, Jourian, and Pryor and the chapter authors challenge readers to use this text to resist the oppression TQ lives face in higher education: "we must envision what we hope to transform our campuses into and use that vision as our compass" (Introduction). The editors have crafted a path toward a future already in progress; rich with insights, the book is accessible at all levels across higher education. It is a love letter that speaks with and to TQ center(ed) diversity work(ers), acknowledging the history and ongoing-ness of our struggle, while remembering that we will always be. This text is essential reading for those whose imaginations are bold enough to embrace it.
– D-L Stewart, Ph.D. Professor and Chair, Higher Education Department, University of Denver
There has never been a more urgent moment for Envisioning a Critical and Liberatory Approach to Trans and Queer Center(ed) Diversity Work. The editors bring together cutting-edge thinkers to address the nuances of TQ-centered diversity work across campus locations. As opposition to DEI intensifies, understanding the foundations presented here is critical for educators committed to equity for TQ students, staff, and faculty.
– Kristen Renn, Professor of Higher, Adult, & Lifelong Education, Mildred B. Erickson, Distinguished Chair Emerita Michigan State University
Catalano, Duran, Jourian, Pryor and their contributors have created a testament to the transformative power of education when grounded in liberation. It reminds us that transformative change is both possible and necessary, offering affirming pathways forward. Since our book in 2002, no comprehensive volume has explored LGBT student services or TQ-centered work with such depth. This is a must-read for scholar-practitioners, educators, and activists invested in institutional change.
– Sue Rankin, Retired Associate Professor of Education and Associate in the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the Pennsylvania State University
Thoughtful and creative scholarship on transgender identities in higher education has long been limited. This essential book champions critical, intersectional, and liberatory TQ-centered engagement, sparking imagination and offering support for the vital work being done on campuses. Congratulations to the editors for their insight and their passion as they move far beyond anything my colleagues and I could have envisioned decades ago.
– Ronni Sanlo, Playwright, author, and LGBT historian. Former director of the UCLA LGBT Center and professor in the UCLA Graduate School of Education
Grounded in historical context, this book is an indispensable guide to how TQ ideas, activism, and leadership have shaped equity work in higher education. It honors the courage, creativity, and persistence of those transforming educational policy and practice. It enlivens the work we do with lessons of the past, even as we envision liberatory futures. This book is an excellent roadmap to the home we dream of.
– Susan Marine, Ph.D., Professor, Merrimack College.
Excerpt
Table Of Contents
- Cover
- Half Title
- Beth Powers and Virginia Stead
- Title
- Copyright
- Contents
- List of Tables
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction: Conceptualizing a Critical, Liberatory Approach to TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- Part I Historical and Theoretical Foundations
- 1: Histories, Foundations, and Tensions of TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- 2: Frameworks to Guide TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work: Bridging Critical Theories with Practice
- Part II Present Realities
- 3: Advocating for Equitable Policies for Trans and Queer Communities in Higher Education
- 4: Engaging Institutional Politics Through a Power Analysis in TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- 5: Beyond Silos: Opportunities for Collaborations Across Student and Academic Affairs with TQ Center(ed) Diversity Workers
- 6: Rethinking Staffing and Hiring in TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- 7: From “Safe” to Liberatory: A New Approach to Educating Campus Communities with TQ Center(ed) Diversity Workers
- 8: Serving Trans Students and Addressing Trans Oppression within TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- 9: Who Said It Was Simple?: Reframing Difficulties and Failures of Supporting Trans and Queer People of Color (TQPOC) Students in TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- 10: Attending to Ableism in Trans and Queer Center(ed) Diversity Work
- Part III Visions for the Future
- 11: Senior Leaders as Trans and Queer Advocates for TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
- 12: TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work in Challenging Sociopolitical Environments
- Conclusion: Dreaming of Liberation & Solidarity: Notes for How We Keep Going
- Notes on Contributors
- A Book Series for Equity Scholars & Activists
Beth Powers and Virginia Stead
Series Editors
Vol. 21
Contents
Introduction: Conceptualizing a Critical, Liberatory Approach to TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work D. Chase J. Catalano, Antonio Duran, T.J. Jourian, and Jonathan T. Pryor
Part I Historical and Theoretical Foundations
Chapter 1 Histories, Foundations, and Tensions of TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work Roman Christiaens
Chapter 2 Frameworks to Guide TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work: Bridging Critical Theories with Practice Antonio Duran and J. Audra Williams
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Chapter 3 Advocating for Equitable Policies for Trans and Queer Communities in Higher Education Em C. Huang and Andy Cofino
Chapter 4 Engaging Institutional Politics through a Power Analysis in TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work Jonathan T. Pryor, Antonio Duran, and Vanessa Aviva González-Siegel
Chapter 5 Beyond Silos: Opportunities for Collaborations Across Student and Academic Affairs with TQ Center(ed) Diversity Workers Chelsea E. Noble and Justin A. Gutzwa
Chapter 6 Rethinking Staffing and Hiring in TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work R.B. Brooks and Tristan Crowell
Chapter 7 From “Safe” to Liberatory: A New Approach to Educating Campus Communities with TQ Center(ed) Diversity Workers Kalyani Kannan and D. Chase J. Catalano
Chapter 8 Serving Trans Students and Addressing Trans Oppression within TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work Alex C. Lange
Chapter 9 Who Said it Was Simple?: Reframing Difficulties and Failures of Supporting Trans and Queer People of Color (TQPOC) Students in TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work Mycall Akeem Riley
Chapter 10 Attending to Ableism in Trans and Queer Center(ed) Diversity Work Ryan A. Miller and Liz Elsen
Part III Visions for the Future
Chapter 11 Senior Leaders as Trans and Queer Advocates for TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work Joshua Moon Johnson
Chapter 12 TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work in Challenging Sociopolitical Environments Kathleen Hobson and T.J. Jourian
Conclusion: Dreaming of Liberation & Solidarity: Notes for How We Keep Going D. Chase J. Catalano and T.J. Jourian
List of Tables
Acknowledgments
This book was our effort to offer a contemporary take on the formative 2002 book, Our Place on Campus: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Services and Programs in Higher Education by Drs. Ronnie Sanlo, Sue Rankin, and Robert Schoenberg. We were (un)surprised and disappointed that in the last 20 years, despite numerous mentions of the need for attention on TQ center(ed) diversity work and workers, a similar text did not emerge. Our motivation was simply to utilize our varying levels and lengths of service in TQ centers and the relationships we had across communities to contribute a book that would enliven conversations about doing and supporting TQ center(ed) work. We thank the Spencer Foundation for the Spencer Conference Grant (Racial justice and anti-racism work in LGBTQ+ Centers: Creating a shared vision with scholars and practitioners) that gave us the funding to bring together a collective of practitioners and scholars in the summer of 2022 to dream and discuss about what it means to engage in liberatory TQ center(ed) work. As we endeavored on this book project, in 2023 and 2024, legislative efforts targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in higher education and trans and queer existence and autonomy everywhere, which only increased the necessity for this book. We hope that within these pages TQ center(ed) workers find hope, inspiration, and strategies that will encourage everyone to resist this current iteration of state violence on minoritized communities and advocate for the resurgence of TQ centers shuttered during this time.
On behalf of all the editors, we sincerely appreciate the many individuals whose considerable labor led to the construction and completion of this book. We want to first acknowledge that this book would not be possible without each chapter author who contributed their insights and energies into the pages of this volume. We are grateful to the team at Peter Lang, especially Dr. Alison E. Jefferson, who saw the value in our proposal for practitioners and scholars. We are indebted to our external reviewers who provided important feedback through supportive questions and suggestions to ensure these were the strongest chapters possible: Brian Arao, Asher Burns, Justin A. Gutzwa, Joshua Moon Johnson, Susan Marine, Laila McCloud, Roberto Orozco, Daniel Tillapaugh, Rachel Wagner, Alina Wong. Of course, we also want to take a sentence to recognize each other as editors who approached this project with care and passion in our hopes to provide scholarship that supports TQ center(ed) workers and work. For Chase, Antonio, and Jonathan, we want to express our appreciation to the institutions where we work that encouraged our scholarship: Virginia Tech, Arizona State University, and California State University, Fresno, respectively. Lastly, we want to express our sincerest gratitude to every previous, current, and future TQ center(ed) diversity worker in higher education. We know your work often goes under/unacknowledged and under-resourced, and then pigeonholed as niche, despite the depth and breadth of what you do to cultivate transformative learning environments. We see you and know you are doing tremendous work to support students, staff, administrators, faculty, and our collective diverse communities. Thank you for all of your passion, investment, and fortitude.
Introduction: Conceptualizing a Critical, Liberatory Approach to TQ Center(ed) Diversity Work
D. Chase J. Catalano, Antonio Duran, T.J. Jourian, and Jonathan T. Pryor
The diversity worker has a job because diversity and equality are not already given; this obvious fact has some less obvious consequences. When your task is to remove the necessity of your existence, then your existence is necessary for the task.
Introduction
This chapter provides the overall approach to the edited volume including the language we use, the rationale for its existence, and who should read it. Within this introduction, we name significant bodies of literature that support this practical and scholarly volume, together with theoretical and conceptual ideas that undergird the entire text. Our introduction also provides clarity on what we mean by critical and liberatory approaches to practice. We conclude with providing readers a roadmap to the book that clarifies what they can expect within each chapter.
Initially named the Human Sexuality Office, higher education’s first LGBT Center in 1971 was at the University of Michigan (Fine, 2012; Marine, 2011; University of Michigan, n.d.). The decades that followed revealed a slow emergence of campus-based resources for trans and queer (TQ) students, whether through the creation of institutionally supported cultural centers or others through persistent work of grassroots leaders and tempered radicals (Broadhurst & Martin, 2019; Broadhurst et al., 2018). As of the spring of 2024, there are over 260 offices or centers staffed by at least one professional staff member who devotes half or more of their time or a graduate assistant for 20 hours per week whose responsibility officially includes LGBT services (The Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Professionals [Consortium], 2020). Over the next 50 years, an array of scholarship emerged to describe, document, and support those who engage in student-centered work for TQ populations (e.g., Bazarsky et al., 2022; Ritchie & Banning, 2001; Sanlo, 2000).
Details
- Pages
- XII, 246
- Publication Year
- 2025
- ISBN (PDF)
- 9783034350242
- ISBN (ePUB)
- 9783034350259
- ISBN (Softcover)
- 9783034350266
- DOI
- 10.3726/b22778
- Language
- English
- Publication date
- 2025 (October)
- Keywords
- Higher education trans transgender queer LGBTQ+ LGBTQ+ centers diversity work Envisioning a Critical and Liberatory Approach to Trans and Queer Center(ed) Diversity Work Jonathan T. Pryor T.J. Jourian Antonio Duran D. Chase J. Catalano
- Published
- New York, Berlin, Bruxelles, Chennai, Lausanne, Oxford, 2025. XII, 246 pp., 2 tables.
- Product Safety
- Peter Lang Group AG
