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Community Activism

Decent Essays

Differences in Activism based on the Type of Institution The student activism literature finds differences in the occurrence of campus activism based on institutional characteristics (Kane 2013; Van Dyke 1998; Reyes 2015; Soule 1997). For example, one study found that religious institutions were far less likely to have campus LGBT groups than non-religious institutions (Kane 2013). In contrast, more selective institutions and institutions with larger endowments were more likely to have LGBT student groups (Kane 2013). In addition, larger schools seem to have more student activism (Van Dyke 1998). Institutions with a greater percentage students living in the dorm seems to have more student activism (Van Dyke 1998). During the 1980s, …show more content…

Furthermore, the author sought to understand both the occurrence of activism and campus receptiveness to activism at these two types of colleges and universities. However, there was not a huge body of literature that specifically examined activism at secular private universities and religiously affiliated universities. Extensively searching through EBSCO, GoogleScholar, and the author’s own college library search engine yielded a few articles that directly discuss activism on these campuses.
Secular Private Colleges and Universities The literature examined secular private colleges and universities through the study of liberal arts colleges and elite private institutions (Reyes 2015; Soule 1997; Warnock and Hurst 2016; Winston 2013). Research suggests secular private institutions have higher rates of activism than other types of colleges and universities (Soule 1997). However, more in-depth examinations of activism on these types of campuses provides a much more nuanced perspective. Reyes (2015) examined how Latino students engaged in political activism at one liberal arts college. While “students inhabited Latino politics through deliberation, dialogue, and even professional pursuits”, students were reluctant to protest because they had “close, personalized relationships with administrators” (Reyes

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