How can instructors in higher education understand and address the challenges of cultivating critical social justice knowledge and perspectives? In this paper an embodied knowledge framework is used to interpret the accounts of two former doctoral students within a US research institution who, while expressing appreciation for a graduate seminar…

In this paper, Anniina Leiviskä examines the moral, political, and epistemic claims of the social justice movement known as "decolonizing the university" from the perspective of Jürgen Habermas's distinction between objective and normative validity and the respective notions of truth and moral rightness. Leiviskä challenges the view,…

There is a fragmented and complex literature about higher education leadership representing a diversity of ideological perspectives about its nature and purposes. Internationally, the literature has been strongly shaped by the importation of concepts and theories from management studies and a tradition of scholarship led by university…

This qualitative research paper investigated the intersection of the COVID-19 pandemic and the year 2020 in sparking a phenomenon of hiring chief diversity officers (CDOs) in higher education. By exploring the interplay between the pandemic, racial justice movements, evolving higher education landscape, and institutional accountability, this study…

The 3rd annual Praxis Lecture exemplifies the National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education's (NAKHE's) ongoing commitment to the principles and practices of social justice, diversity, and inclusive excellence as pillars of leadership development. This year's lecture focused on perspectives, insights, and recommendations for NAKHE as…

Universal Design (UD), a theory that encompasses a proactive approach to accessibility and inclusion, has spread from its roots in architecture and product design to a host of applications including educational contexts. Over more than two decades, applications of UD in postsecondary settings have undergone exponential growth. In this theoretical…

Decolonising work in Higher Education (HE) has become increasingly mainstreamed. One issue is the relationship between such work and that of equality, diversity and inclusivity (EDI), or the potential reduction and co-option of decolonising for EDI purposes. This article discusses the characterisations of, and drivers for, decolonising inside UK…

This paper explores the experiences of nonbinary and trans (NBT) facilitators of Safe Zone workshops, what we call LGBTQ+ social justice educational interventions (SJEIs). Despite their prevalence in higher education for over 3 decades, there remains a paucity of research about them and those who facilitate them. This research focused on 33 NBT…

Restorative practices can serve as a proactive approach to address behavior in a way that not only repairs harm and restores relationships, but also creates stronger communities. Using a circle-style conversation to elicit our perceptions of the potential of these practices to support and advance liberatory principles, we sought to uncover the…

In UNESCO's 2021 report, "Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education," futures emerge as a key orientation for establishing not just improved educational systems but for creating liberatory worlds for everyone. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, social and economic instability, and the climate crisis, the future of…

Recent racial justice protests in response to police-related brutality in the U.S. illuminate tensions reflective of persistent power differentials and social and racial traumas of which the U.S. education system has played a pronounced role in both historically producing and, more recently, reproducing by trafficking in an "ethos" of…

Higher Education Student Affairs (HESA) practitioners play important roles in supporting their campus communities, specifically students, when bias incidents occur on campus. These HESA practitioners often hold the same minoritized identities as students impacted by bias and see their work in higher education as advancing missions of inclusion and…

This article presents initiatives undertaken by the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine (GHSM) at King's College London (KCL), exploring avenues to decolonise higher education institutions (HEI). HEI must integrate anti-racism agendas, challenge the European-centric academic knowledge domination, and dismantle power asymmetries. During…

Contemporary population trends impact leisure experiences and service delivery, requiring recreation and leisure departments to prepare students to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse clientele. However, with little formal training on how to teach content concerning diverse populations, this can be a daunting task. The panel session…

With the current priorities and challenges surrounding equity in higher education, many institutions are looking for new resources to support diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals at their institutions. One resource that has been shown to be underutilized across social justice development in higher education are peer leaders. While some…