The current study examined educators' perceptions of liberatory spaces in higher education. The literature review delves into an analysis of power and oppression in higher education, a description of liberatory spaces in the academy, and outcomes of those spaces, specifically self-empowerment. The methodological approach for the current study was qualitative using grounded theory. Twelve participants took part in semiformal interviews before saturation was reached. Data analysis was iterative and occurred simultaneously with data collection, using in vivo and pattern coding until the model for liberatory spaces in higher education emerged. Findings revealed four major elements of liberatory spaces: (a) the individual journey (i.e., liberatory practice); (b) leadership (i.e., liberatory leadership); (c) characteristics of the culture and structures (i.e., liberatory space); and (d) contexts of institutional and societal oppression. Liberatory spaces require leaders, individual participants, and a shared environment made up of culture and structures. The relationship between the four main elements was found to be equally as important as the elements themselves. Each of the four overarching elements also included several subelements. Liberatory spaces in higher education are fluid and complex, with dynamic moving parts that exist concurrently in a messy, natural, and interdependent ecosystem. Liberatory spaces are most impactful when there are many in one institution. Replication of liberatory spaces allows for both depth and breadth of impact and creates an entry point for scaling liberatory spaces without disrupting the integrity that makes a space liberatory. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]