Straddling Class in the Academy

By Sonja Ardoin, becky martinez © 2019

26 Stories of Students, Administrators, and Faculty From Poor and Working-Class Backgrounds and Their Compelling Lessons for Higher Education Policy and Practice

  • Why do we feel uncomfortable talking about class?
  • Why is it taboo?
  • Why do people often address class through coded terminology like trashy, classy, and snobby?
  • How does discriminatory language, or how do conscious or unconscious derogatory attitudes, or the anticipation of such behaviors, impact those from poor and working class backgrounds when they straddle class?

Through 26 narratives of individuals from poor and working class backgrounds – ranging from students, to multiple levels of administrators and faculty, both tenured and non-tenured – this book provides a vivid understanding of how people can experience and straddle class in the middle, upper, or even elitist class contexts of the academy.

Get your copy here

Other books & articles

Debunking the Myth of Job Fit in Higher Education and Student Affairs

Edited By Brian J. Reece, Vu T. Tran, Elliott N. DeVore, Gabby Porcaro

Buy here

Building class and race intersections in leadership development

becky martinez, Tanya O. Williams

Buy here

Race Caucuses: An Intensive, High-Impact Strategy to Create Social Change

Kathy Obear, becky martinez

Buy here