In this episode we elevate the voice of one alumni of an HSI who calls themselves a critical friend to the institution. Throughout this episode we grapple with the tensions of calling on HSIs to change the structural ways they serve students while acknowledging some of the progress being made. I talk to Carlos Benitez Cruz (they/them) who is a PhD student in Community Psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Carlos reflects on their time as a student at Dominican University, highlighting how they advocated for a cultural center on campus by learning from the legacy of struggle highlighted in the PBS documentary, The First Rainbow Coalition. Carlos also reflects on lost opportunities, like the failed retention of a Latina staff member who was highly favored by students of color, and calls to question the role of class struggle in HSIs, which continue to be neoliberal institutions that rely on the production of students who get jobs and the money they bring into the institution. The confessions of a critical friend are also the confessions of a highly engaged, politically active, student artist-activist at an HSI that didn’t adequately serve them.
Guest: Carlos Benitez Cruz (they/them), PhD Student in Community Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago
Social Media: X: @xismoso_
APA Citation:
Garcia, G.A. (Host). (2024, February 11). Confessions of a Critical Friend to HSIs (No.402) [Audio podcast episode]. In ¿Qué pasa, HSIs?. https://www.ginaanngarcia.com/podcast/
Attachments / Show notes:
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free