Jordan Easley
Joshua Carrierre
Chandni Pandey
I am a male student of color at ACC. I am trying to reach my completion goal. Still, I experience a lack of sense of belonging because none of my professors and few of my peers look like me, and laws are being passed in the country that continues to marginalize me, which makes me feel unsupported and excluded.
1.1 As a Latino student, I feel disconnected from my campus experience. I take night classes after working full-time and don’t have time to build relationships with professors or peers. I am struggling academically but hesitate to ask for help because I don’t feel like anyone truly understands his background or experiences.
1.2 I am the only Black student in my coding classes and often feel invisible. My professors, though knowledgeable, don’t seem to acknowledge my perspective, and group work feels awkward since peers overlook my ideas. The constant news of policies that marginalize people of color makes me question whether I belong in this field.
Men of Color: Refers to men who do not identify as white, encompassing individuals from racial and ethnic minority groups such as Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Asian, Native American, and Pacific Islander backgrounds.
Belonging: Seeing yourself represented/considered in the classroom.
CILA: The Change Initiative Leadership Academy (CILA) is a faculty learning community with a focus on decreasing withdrawal rates in the top eight high-enrollment, high-withdrawal courses at ACC: EDUC-1300, ENGL-1301, ENGL-1302, HIST-1301, HIST-1302, MATH-1314, MATH-1342, and MATH-1414 (you may have also heard it referred to as RELA).
SB17 (Senate Bill 17): Texas law signed in 2023 and effective January 1, 2024, restricts public higher education institutions from engaging in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) activities, including banning DEI offices and mandatory training.