Date of Award

5-2026

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Educational Leadership, Research and Technology

First Advisor

Donna Talbot, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Ramona Lewis, Ph.D.

Third Advisor

Karen Blaisure, Ph.D.

Keywords

Black american students, higher education, higher education staff, pwi, sense of belonging

Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore how Black students at Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs) describe meaningful interactions with Black staff and how they make meaning of those interactions as it relates to building a sense of belonging. The conceptual framework for this study incorporates Strayhorn’s (2019) college students’ sense of belonging theoretical model as a foundation with Museus’s (2014) culturally engaging campus environment model as a lens for analysis of the findings.

Using a hermeneutical phenomenological approach, 12 Black undergraduate students were recruited to participate. Each of the students attended a public 4-year PWI in the Great Lakes region of the United States. All were enrolled in their third, fourth, or fifth year of study and had attended the same institution for their entire college career. Students participated in two semistructured interviews focused on their experiences attending a PWI, their meaningful interactions with Black non-instructional staff members, and their conceptions of belonging.

Through analysis of the interview data, four themes have been identified. In Theme One: Two Different Sides – When Race Divides Campus, students shared challenges during their time on campus, including difficult interpersonal experiences with White students and faculty, as well as challenges connected to the environment of their institutions. Theme Two: My Village – Finding Black Community encompasses students’ search for community with others who share their racial identity. Students’ descriptions of relationships with Black staff and the distinct roles that Black staff have played in their experiences of campus are described in Theme Three: I Couldn’t Do This Without Them – The Necessary Role of Black Staff. Theme Four: When I Know I Belong – Signals and the Impact of Belonging provides insights into the spaces, physical or relational, in which students have found belonging and the ways they have been able to engage in those spaces of belonging.

This research demonstrates the critical role that Black non-instructional staff can play for Black students as they develop a sense of belonging on the campus of a PWI. It extends the literature around the role of staff on college campuses, the importance of same-race relationships between Black staff and Black students, and offers pathways for PWIs to strengthen belonging for Black students on their campuses.

Access Setting

Dissertation-Open Access

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