Running head: FINAL REFLECTION PAPER

Final Reflection Paper

Krysta Coleman
Western Michigan University

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Final Reflection Paper

Upon entering this course I expected to learn a lot about other identities and how I could
alter my approach to working with students with identities that were different from my own.
While I definitely found these concepts to be prevalent in this course, I also learned more about
something else that I didnt anticipate: my own privilege, identities, and how they affect my
biases and practices as a person and student affairs professionals. Through the readings, class
discussions, conversations with my discussion partner, and self-reflection I have gained new
insight and understanding on topics related to equity and privilege. This course has required me
to deeply reflect on my understanding of privilege and perceptions of different identities in order
to better understand how these concepts affect my work as a student affairs professional.
Furthermore, I have considered how I can continue to deepen my understanding of inequities and
privilege beyond this course in order to create a welcoming campus climate for all of my
students in the future.
Understanding my privilege and biases
As I described in my first reflection paper, I have become increasingly aware of the ways
in which my own privilege affects, and sometimes oppresses, others. Throughout this last
semester I have become increasingly aware of my own privilege in everyday life. I have noticed
how I am treated differently than other non-White customers. I have noticed how I can easily
talk about my religion and be sure that I will be able to celebrate its holidays without missing
work or school. For me, this has been both a liberating and frustrating experience; I have come
to appreciate the privilege that I experience that I had never before considered, while also feeling
obligated to use my privilege to help others advocate for themselves. While I often feel that I do
not have the power to make significant change for those who are oppressed, I have made a

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conscious effort to level the playing field for others in my personal life, and for the students that I
work with on a daily basis. Though I am ashamed to admit it, I feel that it is important to point
out that making an effort to acknowledge my privilege has been something that I have had to
work hard to recognize, and something that I have had to work even harder to actively combat in
my everyday life. However, by meeting my students where theyre at, and truly making an effort
to level the playing field, I have noticed a distinct change in the way my students and I
communicate and how it has had an overall positive impact on our relationship.
A large part of my revelation this semester came through my discussions with Chris, a
young black male who attends Western Michigan University (WMU); he is pursuing a dual
major in engineering and communications. Chris is an involved member of campus and
participates in several student organizations including the Campus Activities Board (CAB) and
the Young Black Males Support Network (YBMSN). The intense difference between his
academic and social involvements has created a unique experience for him throughout his
college career. Chris noted the differences he has experienced with his different groups of
friends, mostly on the basis of race, and how others often perceive him when he says he is
colorblind in the sense that he does not see race. This approach created interesting
conversation as we both shared our views on how race impacts the perceptions that others have
on us and how we are treated in everyday situations. Chris shared with me that he acts the same
way with his White friends as he does his Black friends, but that he often receives different
reactions from each group of friends. For example, when he talks to his Black friends about
CAB, the group that most of his White friends are involved with, he often gets asked why he
acts so white. In contrast, when he talks about race with his White friends he gets
uncomfortable reactions, while with YBMSN it is a common topic that often stimulates strong

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conversation and opinions about advocacy and action. This discrepancy provided me with an
interesting perspective into how topics of race and social interactions are perceived by different
groups of undergraduate student on campus that I would likely have not had insight into based on
my own identities (Chris Bracey, personal communication, February 5, 2014).
Chris and I also talked about the oppression he had faced in his childhood growing up in
a low-income area as his parents struggled to provide for him and his siblings. However, by the
time he was in middle school, his family was able to move to a higher income area, and I believe
that this experience is one that truly contributed to Chriss ideas about socioeconomic status.
Specifically, I asked Chris about making the move from a low-income neighborhood to a middle
class suburb and how that had changed his perception of social class. While I expected him to
express empathy for those who were still in that situation, he instead talked about the idea that if
his family could do it, anyone could make the move out of their current situation in order to
make a better life for themselves (Chris Bracey, personal communication, February 26, 2014).
While this is an optimistic view, it was difficult to help Chris understand that oftentimes, this is
not the case for many families. As we discussed in class, there has always been, and for the
foreseeable future, will always be a stigma associated with coming from a low-income area. As
a society we expect everyone in society to make contributions that help their own situation as
well as those around them. In other words, we expect that, even when things are difficult, that
everyone should be able to pull themselves up by their boot straps and try again. However, we
do this assuming that everyone has a pair of boots from which to pull; this is not always the case.
While I truly believe that Chriss comments came from a place of optimism, and hoping the best
for others, it is important to remember that we must continue to educate our students on issues

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like this, and remind them that everyone does not play on a level playing field, and that while
your climb may be all uphill, someone elses hill may be even steeper.
Implementing theory in practice
Through the process of coming to acknowledge my privilege, I have also become
increasingly aware of my own biases about other identities. I have noticed that I sometimes
expect more from my female students than my male students based on my own high expectations
for myself. I have tried to become more conscious of this, and to level the playing field for my
students in order to create a more inclusive environment for all of my students. In contrast, I
noticed that I often tried to form the same types of relationships with my White students as I did
with my minority students, in particular, one of my Latino male students. As research indicates,
Latinos are entering college at an accelerated rate, making them the most prominent minority
group on college campuses (Fry & Lopez, 2012). Latino males, especially those who are first
generation students, are often expected to take familial influences into account when it comes to
higher education (Torres, 2003). After coming to understand these things about the Latino
identity and learning more about how those affect some hardships that student has faced with his
family this semester, I have been able to take a more individualized approach to working with
this student, and the results have been incredible. I have noticed that he is more engaged with
me, and his coworkers, more committed to his work and speaks up more. This has been a
rewarding experience and is something will be beneficial to my practice as I continue to
encounter students whose identities differ from mine so much.
Discussions with Chris allowed me to realize some of the biases our students, and
perhaps even our colleagues, may have when it comes to understanding and accepting other
identities. One of our conversations revolved mostly around the lesbian, gay, bisexual and

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transgender (LGBT) population, in particular transgender students. We talked about how from a
very young age we are socialized to put things, and people, in categories: black or white, short or
tall, male or female, etc. The transgender identity challenges our binary system as we consider
that sex and gender are not the same, and that perhaps people can flow between categories more
fluidly than we have been taught. While Chris kept an open mind throughout all of our
conversations, this particular identity seemed to be somewhat of an unsettling topic for him. He
struggled with the idea of preferred pronouns and how we should always be respectful of the
pronouns that people prefer, even if their outward appearance contradicts that pronoun(Chris
Bracey, personal communication, March 20, 2014). While it was somewhat frustrating, I was
reminded of a reading we had earlier in the semester: It makes sense to start with yourself, but
its equally important not to end with yourself (Johnson, 2006, p. 152. Having this conversation
was good practice for me in approaching an uncomfortable topic and challenging a student to
consider new perspectives when learning to accept other identities.
Implementing theory into my own practice has allowed me to develop better relationships
with my students and to begin to educate them about privilege and the various identities that we
all possess. This education is the first step in creating a more inclusive campus for all of our
students. By educating ourselves, our colleagues, and our students we can take the first steps in
creating a more positive campus climate. Inclusive programming is an important next step as we
strive to create environments on campus that welcome all students my making programs
physically and socially accessible. Furthermore, it is our job to help in the implementation of
new policies that protect the various identities our students possess. This may take the shape of
altering non-discrimination policies to include identities that have not previously been included,
or offering options for preferred name and other accommodations on student paperwork. No

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matter what the form, these practices are vital to the development and sustainability of diversity
on our campuses.
Continuing diversity education
Throughout the course of the semester I feel I have grown tremendously in understanding
privilege and in learning to work with students whose identities differ from mine. While
learning the theory is helpful, I believe that my most tremendous growth has come from being
able to apply the theory, and the discussions that we have in class, to my work with students in
the student activities office. Having a better understanding of my students identities and the
challenges that they experience as a result of them has helped me to help them succeed in their
roles as student leaders and employees. While I have already grown tremendously, I know that I
have much more growing to do, especially in coming to understand the intersection of various
identities as well as how campuses can make specifics changes in order to improve their campus
climate. I believe one of the most vital steps to continue my growth is to continue having
conversations around diversity, equity, privilege and oppression with others in the field, both
from my institution and outside of it. Understanding our institutions climate, and then being
able to discuss our challenges with colleagues from other colleges and universities can help all
institutions benefit and grow in order to be more inclusive. Taking these ideas into campus
committees revolving around campus climate and diversity will help me, and more importantly
my future institution, to grow in regards to knowledge of diversity and equity issues.
Conclusion
Talking about privilege is not an easy conversation; but if student affairs does not take the
responsibility to start the conversation, who will? Taking the initiative to begin these difficult
conversations can help our students to become more culturally intelligent and globally aware.

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By starting this inclusive trend on our campuses, we can only hope that it will spread beyond the
borders of our own campuses as our students go out and become leaders in global corporations.
Becoming more aware of my own privilege and biases, and learning to put those aside in order to
better serve my students and meet them where theyre at, has been an eye-opening experience. I
am looking forward to being able to improve my practice even more through continuing my
education on these topics and striving to make campus climates at all of my future institutions
more welcoming for students of all identities.

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References

Fry, R., & Lopez, M. H. (2012). Now largest minority group on four-year college campuses:
Hispanic student enrollments reach new highs in 2011. Retrieved from PewResearch
Hispanic Trends Project website: http://www.pewhispanic.org/2012/08/20/hispanic
student-enrollments-reach-new-highs-in-2011

Johnson, A. G. (2006). Privilege, power, and difference (2nd ed.). Mountain View, CA:
Mayfield Publishing Company.
Torres, V. (2003). Influences on ethnic identity development of Latino college students in the
first two years of college. Journal of Student Development, 44, 532-547.