Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.), Xavier University, 2023, Psychology

Racial disparities among adults and juveniles pervade the current US (retributive) justice system, with White and younger offenders often getting more lenient treatment. Very little research has explored the possibility that Restorative Justice (RJ) practices may be subject to the same biases. The current study explored how opinions about RJ were impacted by the offender's racial identity, the offender's age, and factors associated with respondent's identification with the offender. Participants (N=225) were randomly assigned to 1 of 6 survey vignettes. Each depicted the same road rage incident but varied the race (African American, European American, Hispanic) and age (17 years old/35 years old) and accompanying mugshot photo. Participants rated the appropriateness of seven potential consequences, which included retributive justice and RJ practices. Contrary to predictions, no significant differences in consequence severity appropriateness ratings emerged across offender race, age, or their interaction. Overall, participants rated RJ outcomes as significantly more appropriate for all offenders than retributive justice outcomes. However, results indicated that participants' who reported higher racial bias rated more severe consequences as more appropriate for African American offenders and LatinX offenders but did not show this pattern for European American offenders. Racial bias showed significant positive associations with identifying as non-White (r = .37) and with political conservatism (r = .28). The findings suggest that RJ practices are viewed positively by most individuals and as equally appropriate for all offenders.

Committee: Susan Kenford Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Kathleen Hart Ph.D., ABPP (Committee Member); Jennifer Gibson Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: African Americans; Criminology; Hispanic Americans; Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2021, Educational Studies

The purpose of this narrative study was to explore the racial literacy of white faculty members at a predominantly white higher education institution. This study employed a narrative methodological approach (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000) anchored in critical epistemology (Tierney, 1993) with the use of Critical Race Theory (DeCuir & Dixson, 2004; Delgado & Stefancic, 2001). This study was guided by the following two research questions: (1) How do white faculty describe how they learned about race, racism, and whiteness? and (2) What does racial literacy look like for white faculty at a predominantly white institution? Additionally, two sub research questions also informed this study: (a) How do white faculty speak about and interpret racialized incidents involving Black people, on and off campus? and (b) What role do white faculty have in ensuring a positive racial climate for Black students? Seven white participants with varying social identities served as the sample for this study. Data were collected through two semi-structured interviews. Four themes emerged from the participant interviews that helped identify the ways faculty learned about race, racism and whiteness throughout their lives. These themes include: Entryways to Making Meaning of Difference, Earliest Experiences Navigating Race, The Failures of K-12 Education for Racial Literacy Development and Learning Race in Adulthood. Additionally, the way participants applied their knowledge of racial literacy varied. This application was categorized in three ways: Ignorant, Emergent and Critical.

Committee: Marc Johnston Guerrero (Committee Chair); Susan Jones (Committee Member); Cynthia Tyson (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Higher Education

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2020, Leadership and Change

This thesis explored social worker discourses to learn what they could reveal about professional workplace practices and experiences with race and racism. The study traced the subtle and elusive racism often found in everyday professional conversations that are not considered racist by dominant consensus. Using tools of thematic and critical discourse analysis (CDA), and van Dijk's (1993, 2001, 2008, 2009, 2011) general theory of racism and denial (1992, 2008), data from 14 semistructured interviews and one focus group with a racially diverse group of social workers was analyzed in two ways. First, thematic analysis offered a horizontal or flat exploration that illustrated various manifestations of racism, denial, and whiteness. The second, vertical critical discourse analysis took a sociocognitive approach to examine underlying discourse structures that hold racism and whiteness in place. Findings suggest the presence of subtle and nuanced racism and whiteness in social worker discourses, and I discuss how these forces work in tandem to produce dynamics that preserve hegemonic structures and support dominant status. This power analyses brought attention to often overlooked forms of counter-power and resistance embedded in participant narratives. Inferences from focus group discourse illustrated four interpersonal capacities that supported constructive racial dialogue. Findings revealed vastly different racial experiences between Black, biracial, and White social workers in their professional settings. Implications for social work (and more broadly the helping professions) education, training, and leadership and change practices are provided. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and OhioLINK ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/

Committee: Philomena Essed PhD (Committee Chair); Donna Ladkin PhD (Committee Member); Donna Jeffery PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication; Minority and Ethnic Groups; Multicultural Education; Social Research; Social Work

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2017, Educational Studies

This critical narrative inquiry was guided by two overarching research questions. First, this study examined how white undergraduates interpreted and gave meaning to their white racial identities. This line of inquiry sought to understand how participants made sense of their white racial selves, the self in relation to people of color, and the self in relation to systems of racism and white supremacy. Thematic analysis of participant narratives resulted in three constructions of white racial identity: Ignorant, Emergent, and Critical. Second, this study explored how white college students perpetuated racial ideologies of whiteness on campus. This line of inquiry examined how, through discourse, white undergraduates maintained the dominant/subordinate relationship between white students and students of color. In order to do so dialogic/performance analysis of narratives was utilized. Such an approach is concerned not only with the content of narratives, but the structure and telling of a given account. This analysis resulted in four distinct narratives that participants frequently employed within the context of the interview: Narratives of Campus Racial Harmony, Narratives of Imposition, Narratives of Enlightenment, and Narratives of White Racial Innocence. Each narrative represented a motivated telling with a unique plotline. Further each narrative operated to mask racial hostility, protect white innocence, and locate problems of racism elsewhere.

Committee: Susan Jones (Committee Chair); Tracy Davis (Committee Member); Kelly Purtell (Committee Member); Marc Guerrero (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Higher Education

Doctor of Education , University of Dayton, 2022, Educational Leadership

Through a critical phenomenological approach, this study captured the lived experiences of directors in the Ohio Private Academic Libraries (OPAL) consortium and their responses to dual pandemics, the COVID-19 pandemic and the pandemic of racism. Individual qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten OPAL directors to examine their roles as leaders in times of upheaval. Findings indicate that the pandemics amplified challenges in emotional and practical ways. Directors contended with emotional labor marked by ambiguity and burnout. Practical challenges (staff reductions, enforcing safety protocols, and the Great Resignation) further impacted morale. Racially just, equitable systems encourage workplaces defined by compassion, autonomy, and respect. Thus, directors must prioritize antiracism actions to dismantle white supremacy and racial capitalism in their libraries.

Committee: Meredith Wronowski (Committee Chair); Miriam Matteson (Committee Member); Thomas Oldenski (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Leadership; Higher Education; Library Science

Bachelor of Arts (BA), Ohio University, 2021, Environmental Studies

This thesis explores racial inequality and oppression in the food and agricultural systems of the United States and the ways that Black urban farmers seek to overcome this through food sovereignty. Over generations of systematic discrimination and racism, the current food and agricultural systems have been designed to strip Black people of their autonomy and control over their food and foodways. This has created a system of food apartheid that accounts for why communities of color are more likely to lack access to fresh, healthy foods while junk foods and fast foods are abundant. Recently there has been an increase of urban agriculture in Black communities based on philosophies believing that the path to true liberation is through agriculture and self-sufficiency. This research analyzes the historical context of systemic racial inequality towards Black people in the food and agricultural systems in addition to performing a qualitative content analysis of mission statements from Black-led urban farms and conducting semi-structured interviews with Black urban farmers. Findings reveal that by growing their own food, Black urban farmers actively work to reclaim sovereignty over their food through self-determination and self-reliance.

Committee: Stephen Scanlan (Advisor) Subjects: Agriculture; Black History; Environmental Studies; Ethnic Studies

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2019, Counselor Education (Clinical Mental Health Counseling)

Multicultural counseling competence is described in the literature as a close companion and complement to social justice (Ratts, 2011; Ratts, Singh, Nassar-McMillan, Butler, & McCoullah, 2015). Social justice in the counseling profession involves work with individuals, groups, and systems to improve the human condition by removing oppressive barriers in the environment through empowerment and advocacy (American Counseling Association, 2014; Lewis, Arnold, House, & Toporek, 2002). Calls from the profession are evident in the development of the Advocacy Competencies, the inclusion of advocacy in the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics, and 2016 CACREP training standards. Counselor trainees are expected to obtain training in multicultural counseling and social justice advocacy and engage in such practices during their profession. The following study explored social justice training, training environment supports and barriers, perception of institutional support on social justice and student beliefs on colorblind racial attitudes, social justice interest, social justice commitment, and social justice self-efficacy. Master's level trainees in CACREP accredited Clinical Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling programs were surveyed using the Color-Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (Neville et al. 2000), Social Issues Questionnaire (Miller et al., 2009), and the Training Environment Support and Barriers scale (Miller & Sendrowitz, 2011). This study sought to identify if formal training experiences and supportive training environments influence, if at all, Masters' level counseling trainees beliefs on colorblind racial attitudes, social justice interest, commitment, and self-efficacy. Survey results did not find statistically significant differences between students that did and did not take a multicultural course, social justice course, or completed at least three conferences or workshops on social justice on their reported social justice interest, commitment, self-efficacy, or colo (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: John Laux (Committee Chair); Christopher Roseman (Committee Member); Shanda Gore (Committee Member); Sammy Spann (Committee Member) Subjects: Counseling Education

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2016, City and Regional Planning

The planning field has a long history of intersecting with, contributing to and addressing issues of social, racial and geographic equity, from the late 19th century work of Jacob Riis and Jane Addams to contemporary movements such as progressive regionalism and environmental justice. Planning has had a conflicted history in engaging issues of equity and racial or social inclusion, with the profession at times being at the forefront of social justice issues, and at others acting as an accomplice in many of the most discriminatory urban policies in 20th century American history. While planning has often served the needs of marginalized groups, racial discrimination has been interwoven with various aspects of planning practice and policy throughout the 20th century. The model of sustainable development, which has become dominant in planning practice in the past two decades, presents a vision for balancing economic development, environmental protection and social equity, known as the three “e's” of sustainable development. By the late 2000s the principles of sustainability have made their way into the thinking of many federal agencies. The Department of Housing and Urban Development's Sustainable Communities' Initiative (SCI), introduced by the Obama Administration, sought to take these principles and translate them to practice at a scale not previously attempted in the United States. HUD invested more than $200 million in seventy- four regions across the U.S. who received three- year regional sustainable development planning grants. The planning initiatives were intended to better coordinate housing and transportation while supporting more sustainable and equitable land use, infrastructure, and zoning decisions. SCI included a strong equity and fair housing mandate, introduced new equity planning and fair housing tools, and provided extensive support for equity planning in the program. My research examines the experience of forty- five regional planning grantees (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Jennifer Evans-Cowley PhD (Committee Chair); Jill Clark PhD (Committee Member); Rachel Kleit PhD (Committee Member); Bernadette Hanlon PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; Architecture; Area Planning and Development; Black Studies; Environmental Health; Environmental Justice; Environmental Studies; Ethnic Studies; Geography; Legal Studies; Native American Studies; Public Health; Public Policy; Sustainability; Transportation Planning; Urban Planning

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2024, Arts and Sciences: Political Science

Legalizing marijuana is often advocated as a measure to address the persistent racial injustices within the American criminal justice system. Previous research indicates that support for marijuana legalization has become increasingly entrenched. However, there has been no prior study that directly evaluates the influence of pro- and anti-legalization arguments by elites, specifically those framed in terms of their impact on the African American community. Considering this, the primary objective of this study is to understand how deeply rooted opinions about marijuana legalization are. I do so by examining the extent to which elite racial appeals prime voters' racial predisposition to marijuana policies. Specifically, I investigate the effect of explicit elite racial framing on respondent's policy position on the extent of legalization (recreational use nationwide, medical use nationwide, illegal nationwide, or leave the decision to the states), social equity-focused policies (reparative justice), and beliefs about whether legalization would help improve underrepresented communities. I further study why some sectors of the population are fiercely opposed to marijuana policies even when exposed to positive information about legalization, thereby investigating whether the American public is willing to change their beliefs towards marijuana policies in the face of countervailing information that confounds stereotypes. To address these research inquiries, I employ a two-step methodology. Initially, I analyze support for marijuana policies utilizing nationally representative surveys. Subsequently, I incorporate a novel survey-embedded experiment to assess the impact of elite racial communication on voters' views about marijuana. The experimental manipulation revealed statistically significant differences across the three conditions on several dependent variables. These include respondents' policy positions on the extent of legalization, opinions on th (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Stephen Mockabee Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Brian Calfano Ph.D. (Committee Member); David Niven (Committee Member) Subjects: Political Science

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2024, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Criminal Justice

This dissertation seeks to augment research in crime, health, and wellbeing by introducing life satisfaction, or subjective wellbeing into criminological framework. Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamic's (PSID) supplemental file, Transition to Adulthood, this study tests 1) the relationship between criminal justice contact and life satisfaction, 2) the moderating influence of religiosity, and 3) the racial/ethnic variance of these relationships. Agnew's 1992 General Strain Theory (GST) is employed as the theoretical underpinning. These relationships are assessed across six waves of data using multiple imputation for missing cases and ordered logistic fixed effects. Findings from this study suggest that criminal justice contact did not have any effect on reported level of life satisfaction across the general sample. Further, religiosity did not significantly moderate the relationship between criminal justice contact and reported level of life satisfaction. However, when stratifying these relationships across race/ethnicity, significance emerged. First, evidence suggests that Blacks who have experienced arrest history relative to never having this experience had higher log odds of reporting higher life satisfaction. Hispanics who had experienced jail incarceration relative to never having experienced this, had lower log odds of reporting higher life satisfaction. Second, religiosity held a positive moderating effect on probation and jail incarceration for Hispanics. Greater importance and higher frequency of service attendance moderated the effect of jail incarceration on reported level of life satisfaction while higher frequency of service attendance moderated the effect of probation history on reported level of life satisfaction. Conclusively, this study found that criminal justice contact is associated with reported level of life satisfaction when considering race/ethnicity. Further, religiosity is evidenced to be a salient factor for Hispanics (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Hexuan Liu Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Byron Johnson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Ben Feldmeyer Ph.D. (Committee Member); Sarah Manchak Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Criminology

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2023, Antioch New England: Environmental Studies

Climate change affects everyone but lack of racial diversity in the climate movement makes it challenging for it to be truly inclusive, champion solutions that are equitable, and affect transformative change. This dissertation describes a two-part study of diversity in the climate movement using a survey of 1,003 climate activists and interviews with 17 people of color who work or volunteer in the U.S. climate movement. The study analyzes differences between Whites and people of color in terms of their (a) demographics, (b) engagement in climate action, (c) experience of climate impacts, (d) worries, (e) challenges and barriers to participation, and (f) proposed strategies for diversity, equity, and belonging. My research provides the following takeaways: (a) Progress has been made in terms of diversity in the U.S. climate movement, but diversity is insufficient without equity belonging. (b) Anti-racism must go beyond symbolic gestures towards deep transformation at the individual, interpersonal, institutional, and systemic levels. (c) Oppression is intersectional, with racism intersecting with other oppressions of gender, age, class, physical ability, among other identities. (d) People of color and those with marginalized identities contribute essential perspectives and skills to the climate movement. The discussion includes implications for theory, practice, and further study.

Committee: Abigail Abrash Walton Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Jason Rhodes Ph.D. (Committee Member); Carolyn Finney Ph.D. (Committee Member); Marcelo Bonta (Committee Member) Subjects: Climate Change; Demographics; Environmental Justice; Environmental Studies; Minority and Ethnic Groups; Sociology

PHD, Kent State University, 2023, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Foundations, Leadership and Administration

This constructivist grounded theory study conceptualized how White women educated at Jesuit colleges and universities and engaged in racial justice ally behavior developed their identities as White women and racial justice allies. Nine participants from six different Jesuit universities engaged with the researcher through two interviews and a written reflection. A model of identity development was constructed utilizing Charmaz's (2014) constructivist grounded theory data collection and analysis methodologies, along with critical and feminist perspectives. The constructed model focuses the processes associated with development of four salient identities—White, woman, White woman, and racial justice ally. Specifically, these developmental processes are characterized as evolving identity as White, defining identity as a woman, integrating identity as a White woman, and choosing identity as a racial justice ally. Within this model, development progresses through subprocesses characterized as subprocesses of reflection or action that give meaning to the identity development experiences. The model also considers the influence of family, community, education, and faith and the influences of the current events and the Jesuit higher education context. This study and the resulting model of identity development contribute to the scholarship of the identity development of White women and racial justice allies while offering implications for and critiques of the role of institutional context in these developmental processes.

Committee: Christa Porter (Committee Chair) Subjects: Higher Education Administration

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2022, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Criminal Justice

This dissertation seeks to understand how national origin and legal migration status of noncitizen defendants in federal criminal courts shape incarceration and sentence length decisions. Using the annual United States Sentencing Commission Monitoring of Federal Criminal Sentences datasets (2011–2016), this study examines the impact of defendant's (1) national origin, (2) legal versus illegal migration status, (3) gender, and (4) race/ethnicity on incarceration and sentence length decisions in federal criminal courts. For its theoretical basis, I use Focal Concerns theory and Racial/group threat arguments. Findings indicate that, for the incarceration decision, noncitizen defendants have higher odds of incarceration than U.S. citizens, net of other factors. However, these effects are less consistent in the sentence length decision. These relationships systemically differ across national origin and legal migration status. In regards to gender, the noncitizen disadvantage in incarceration appears to exist for both men and women, however, the prison sentence length analysis shows no consistent effect for both male and female defendants. Lastly, in regards to race/ethnicity, when the defendant's race/ethnicity aligns with the most prominent race/ethnicity from their country of origin (e.g., Hispanics from Latin American countries and Mexico; Black defendants from African countries), defendants have particularly high odds of incarceration. However, outside of this pattern, there did not appear to be other consistent race/ethnicity effects. In conclusion, punishment disadvantages based on one's citizenship are particularly pronounced for defendants from Mexico, Latin America, and Africa and especially for those with “illegal” migration status. As noncitizen populations continue to grow in federal courts and in the United States more broadly, understanding and addressing these citizenship disparities in punishment will be increasingly important.

Committee: Ben Feldmeyer Ph.D. (Committee Member); John Wooldredge Ph.D. (Committee Member); Noah Painter-Davis Ph.D. (Committee Member); Joshua Cochran Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Criminology

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2022, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Criminal Justice

Research has consistently shown that Non-White youth come into contact with the juvenile justice system at greater rates than White youth and are overrepresented at most stages of the juvenile justice process. Research has also demonstrated that there is a cumulative effect across the juvenile justice process, which has negatively impacted Non-White youth. Scholars have attributed these RED to two main perspectives. The differential offending perspective posits that RED are the result of Non-White youth engaging in more serious forms of delinquency and doing so with greater frequency than White youth. The differential treatment perspective posits that RED are due to discriminatory policies or actions by system actors. This dissertation examines the unique relationship between race, preadjudication detention, and secure confinement. Specifically, preadjudication detention is a particularly important stage of the process because it inflicts loss of freedom on youth and is associated with harsher dispositions (e.g., secure confinement). This study uses a mixed-methods framework to present findings from an analysis of over 38,000 juvenile court cases and data from interviews with 121 juvenile justice personnel. Using a case-control design, I examine the effects of race on preadjudication detention and secure confinement among similarly-situated youth, whether preadjudication detention mediates the relationship between race and secure confinement, and whether there are joint effects between race and key predictors (i.e., gender, preadjudication detention, and offense type) on secure confinement. I use thematic analysis to analyze the interview data focusing on juvenile justice personnel's perceptions of RED and possible explanations as well as the factors related to the preadjudication detention decision point. The findings revealed that race is significantly related to both preadjudication detention and secure confinement when controlling for legally-relevant fa (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Christopher Sullivan Ph.D. (Committee Member); John Wooldredge Ph.D. (Committee Member); Alex Piquero Ph.D. (Committee Member); Joshua Cochran Ph.D. (Committee Member); Valerie Anderson Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Criminology

PHD, Kent State University, 2022, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Sociology and Criminology

The Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI) is one attempt to alleviate the effects of mass incarceration. This initiative largely focuses on reducing recidivism and lowering the financial cost of incarceration (Sabol and Baumann 2020). However, JRI reforms largely fail to address the racialized nature of mass incarceration (Tonry 2011). By examining the population of adult White and Black felony offenders in North Carolina between 2000 and 2018, this dissertation uses the focal concerns perspective and casual attribution theory to examine how two JRI reforms relate to changes in the likelihood of being incarcerated, changes in the prison and jail sentence lengths offenders receive, and the racial and gender disparities in these outcomes. The results of this dissertation are mixed. JRI reforms in North Carolina, which recalculated measures of an offender's criminal history, failed to lower the likelihood that an offender would be incarcerated. In contrast, JRI reforms in North Carolina are related to reductions in offenders' prison and jail sentence lengths despite not explicitly attempting to change these sentence lengths. Most importantly, racial and gender disparities in sentencing outcomes persist under North Carolina's JRI sentencing reforms. Across time, Black men receive the longest incarceration sentence lengths and highest odds of being incarcerated when compared to Black women, White men, and White women. As detailed in the dissertation, these findings may demonstrate that color-blind reforms to sentencing policies will only reproduce racial disparities in sentencing outcomes.

Committee: Katrina Bloch (Committee Co-Chair); Tiffany Taylor (Committee Co-Chair); Daniel Chand (Committee Member); Starr Solomon (Committee Member); Christopher Dum (Committee Member) Subjects: Criminology

BA, Oberlin College, 2021, Comparative American Studies

This thesis draws on interviews with voters and organizers to disrupt preconceived popularized notions of the Deep South, arguing for a reimagining of the region's value through the lens of electoral politics and the Democratic Party's campaign efforts. There is plenty of room for revision in the apathetic approach that national Democrats and progressives treat the South with. This historic and contemporary disdain, paired with common guilt in the promotion of a limited and exclusionary idea of what the South is, contributes to the marginalization of Southern communities of color, queer and trans people, working class folks, and more. However, through attention to voter access, revised organizing tactics, and more, the Democratic Party can be a part of the solution.

Committee: Shelley Sang-Hee Lee (Advisor); Wendy Kozol (Other); Caroline Jackson-Smith (Committee Member); Charles E. Peterson (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; African Americans; American History; American Studies; Black History; Black Studies; Communication; Demographics; Economic History; Environmental Justice; Ethnic Studies; Gender; Glbt Studies; History; Journalism; Minority and Ethnic Groups; Political Science; Regional Studies

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2021, Leadership and Change

Womanism is a term curated by Alice Walker (2004) that centers Black women's lived experiences, past and present, encouraging Black women to no longer look to others for their liberation (Floyd-Thomas, 2006). Soul 2 Soul Sister's Facing Racism program is facilitated by Womanist instructors, who work with groups of mostly white people to address anti-Black racism. This qualitative study explored the experiences of white participants who took part in this program, Facing Racism, which holds Womanism as its central guiding principle. Although pre- and post-surveys were routinely conducted over the years about participants' experiences with Facing Racism, this study sought to take a deep dive using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis to understand how the white participants made sense of the Facing Racism experience and the longer-term outcomes it promoted in addressing and ending anti-Black racism. The interpretive phenomenological analysis explored the experiences of white people who completed the Facing Racism program. Eight white participants were interviewed using open-ended questions. The key findings of the study included: a) indications of the transforming impact of Womanist and intergroup dialogue in anti-racism work, b) revelations of the preconceptions and biases antithetical to ending anti-Black racism that participants brought with them, c) an affirmation of anti-racism work that works beyond the intellect and the importance of heart and gut/soul work, and d) the identification of racial justice work as life-long work. The key contributions include: a) the verification of a Womanist epistemology as an effective means to address anti-Black racism, b) the value of Womanist ethos in conducting anti-Black racism work centering Black women and Black experiences, c) the introduction and nomenclature of a love-based revolution to address and eradicate anti-Black racism, d) identification of ways for white people to dismantle white supremacy (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Donna Ladkin Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Aqeel Tirmizi Ph.D. (Committee Member); Rev. Regina Groff Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; African Americans; Black Studies; Clergy; Gender; Gender Studies; Philosophy; Womens Studies

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2021, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Criminal Justice

Previous research has examined the overrepresentation of youth of color in the juvenile court; scholars have also found that lesbian, gay, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ+), along with gender non-conforming youth are overrepresented in the juvenile legal system. Literature suggests that youth with multiple marginalized identities, especially youth of color in the LGBTQ+ community, are exposed to more punitive treatment in the legal system. This study aims to examine the intersection of race/ethnicity and sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression (SOGIE) in the juvenile legal system and aims to gain a better understanding of how the juvenile court responds to youth. This study uses one year of data from one large Midwestern juvenile court's data management system from all youth entering the court that have provided SOGIE information (n = 1,208). This study examines the effect of race/ethnicity, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation on court processing outcomes. Findings indicate that youth with multiple marginalized identities may receive harsher treatment than non-marginalized youth. LGBTQ+ and/or GNC youth, Black youth, and boys were more likely to be placed in the official system than straight, cisgender, and GC youth, white youth, and girls. LGBTQ+ and/or GNC youth, Black youth, and girls were more likely to be given a mental health referral; however, when MASYI-2 scales are added to the model, Angry Irritable (AI), Depressed-Anxious (DA), and Suicide Ideation (SI) scales were of the main predictors of mental health referral, with the strongest predictor being Suicide Ideation. Girls were more likely than boys to receive delinquent adjudication and results suggest that gender identity may moderate the relationship between race/ethnicity and adjudication outcome. These results have implications for future research, practice, and policy within the juvenile legal system.

Committee: Valerie Anderson Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Christina Campbell Ph.D. (Committee Member); Joshua Cochran Ph.D. (Committee Member); Angela Irvine-Baker Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Criminology

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2021, Leadership and Change

This case study explored and developed the religious racial socialization (RRS) approach of a Black Baptist pastor in Orange County, California. The aim was to assess how the pastor's direct messages about race influenced and transformed members' racial and social views and actions and examined the message alignment between what the pastor said and what church members and the leadership team heard. This study took a multimethod exploratory approach, examining multiple sources of data gathered from a Likert scale members' survey, leadership team interviews, and archival materials. To support triangulation of the data, a word query and emergent thematic analysis was conducted on all qualitative data and a descriptive analysis based on closed-ended questions from the member survey. Results indicated that members perceived the pastor as a Coach when talking about racial and social justice matters and an Inclusive Leader because of his encouragement to love everyone. Additionally, archival findings revealed the church culture as Righteous because of the pastor and members' desire for morality and justice. Moreover, findings suggest that a Pastor who coaches and educates on racial matters, and advocates for justice in and outside of the church, is progressive and effective in transforming how members respond to racism and social injustice. The study provides examples on how to approach and manage racial discussions in the church, how to create an inclusive environment where diverse groups feel safe to talk about race, and how to prepare for and manage cultural change. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and OhioLINK ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/

Committee: Elizabeth Holloway Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Laura Morgan Roberts Ph.D. (Committee Member); Carol Baron Ph.D. (Committee Member); Margaret Moodian Ed.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; Religious Education

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2019, Counselor Education and Supervision

There have been strong calls in the profession for school counselors to engage in social justice advocacy. According to the American School Counseling Association, a social justice perspective is now at the center of good counseling practice. Although there is an abundance of conceptual literature pointing to the need for school counselors to act as social justice advocates, little is known through empirical research about the personal characteristics of these school counselors. The present study used a non-experimental correlational research design to determine the extent of the relationship between White racial identity development, multicultural competence and social justice advocacy competence among 171 White licensed and certified school counselors. Results of four hierarchical stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed that higher levels of self-reported White racial identity development statistically significantly predicted social justice advocacy competence. Results also revealed that knowledge of multicultural counseling statistically significantly predicted social justice advocacy competence in three out of the four subscales of advocacy investigated. Also discussed are the results compared to related research and theory, implications of results applied to counselor education/supervision and school counseling, limitations of the study and recommendations for future research.

Committee: Robert Schwartz Dr. (Committee Chair); Alfred Daviso Dr. (Committee Member); Varunee Faii Sangganjanavanich Dr. (Committee Member); Sean Cai Dr. (Committee Member); Judith Juvancic-Heltzel Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Counseling Education; School Counseling