Glossary of Common Terms in Higher Education

 

   A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   O   P   Q   R   S   T   U   V   W   X   Y   Z 

 

A

ABLEISM: A system of privilege and oppression based on the social construction of superior and inferior physicality, which is expressed in structural, institutional and individual forms and functions for the benefit of those deemed able-bodied. (Disability, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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ACHIEVEMENT GAP: The Achievement Gap refers to disparities in achievement and attainment outcomes between and among students from different demographic groups. It is reflected in such measures as grades, standardized test scores, and enrollment, retention, and completion rates. (See Disparities)
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ADVERSE IMPACT: According to the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (1978), "adverse impact is a substantially different rate of selection in hiring, promotion or other employment decision which works to the disadvantage of members of a race, sex or ethnic group. Under Federal equal employment opportunity law the use of any selection procedure which has an adverse impact on any race, sex or ethnic group is discriminatory unless the procedure has been properly validated, or the use of the procedure is otherwise justified under Federal law. [1]
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AFFIRMATIVE ACTION: Affirmative action in the employment arena describes the proactive efforts of an organization to correct documented underutilization people of color, women, persons with disabilities and covered veterans. Required of federal contractors and subcontractors, voluntary affirmative action is also permissible when based on documented underutilization of women and people of color.[2]  Affirmative action in education, which began as a policy tool for correcting the effects of institutional exclusion, has been reframed by Court rulings to refer to race-conscious admissions and financial aid strategies that seek to promote the broad educational benefits of diversity. Though the Supreme Court has upheld the use of narrowly tailored voluntary affirmative action policies in education (most recently in Fisher v. University of Texas), eight states, including Washington, have banned them.
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AFRICAN AMERICAN OR BLACK:  For U.S. government purposes, African American is used interchangeably with Black and defined as a person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. However, Black is the more inclusive term, referring to peoples of African descent whatever their nationality.[3]  As collective self-ascription, the choice of terminology reflects the continually shifting nature of identity in relation to socio-political currents. For example, in the U.S., the descendants of Africans have variously preferred “colored,” then “Negro,” followed by “African American,” and later, “black,” to describe their common heritage, history, culture, and political solidarity. Since the advent of the Black Power movement of the 60s, black has come into popularity as an assertion of the pride and empowerment. Nevertheless, the terms “colored” and “Negro” survive in limited contexts where they reference longstanding proper names, such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the “Negro national anthem”.
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AGE DISCRIMINATION IN EMPLOYMENT ACT of 1967 (ADEA): The 1967 act prohibits employment discrimination against persons 40 years of age or older. [4]
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AGEISM:  A system of privilege and oppression based on the social construction of age superiority and inferiority, which is expressed in structural, institutional and individual forms and functions for the benefit of younger adults. 
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AMERICAN INDIAN OR ALASKA NATIVE: “A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.” [5]
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AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT OF 1990 (ADA):  Passed by Congress in 1990, this act requires that "reasonable accommodation" be made in public accommodations, including the workplace, for individuals with disabilities. [6] (See Disability, Reasonable Accommodation, Rehabilitation Act, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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ANDROGYNOUS: “Typically used to describe a person’s appearances or clothing as having elements of both femininity and masculinity.” (See Gender, Gender Expression)[7]
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ANTIRACISM: The active practice of exposing and dismantling the interlocking and multidimensional manifestations of racism.
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ASIAN: “A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.”[8]
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ASSIMILATION:  The process by which a marginalized cultural group adopts the culture and practices of the dominant culture. Forced assimilation occurs when the dominant culture practices the systematic erasure of the cultural and social practices of a subordinate culture and imposes its own way of life in their place. The Indian boarding schools movement in the 19th and 20th century is an example of forced assimilation. Cultural assimilation is also imposed through hegemony, the process by which subordinated cultures are led to accept the ideas and values of the dominant culture as natural and right. (See Hegemony)
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B

BIAS: A preference for or tendency toward a particular viewpoint or outcome. Bias stems from the internalization and institutionalization of particular values, beliefs, and assumptions. Not to be confused with bigotry, which is motivated by ill intent, bias can be unconscious and co-exist with good intentions, but nevertheless result in outcomes that are inclined to favor some groups over others. (See Implicit Bias)
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BICULTURAL: To be bicultural is to navigate within and between two cultures. (See Culture; Hegemony)
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BIOLOGICAL SEX:  Refers to the label assigned to an individual at birth, based on biological characteristics. Biological sex is not the same as gender, which refers to the culturally prescribed roles and behaviors that are associated with each sex category. (See Gender)
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BIPHOBIA: Prejudice, fear, or hatred directed toward bisexual people.[9] (See Bisexual)
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BIPOC: The acronym BIPOC refers to Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color. Like “people of color,” it is designed to decenter whiteness and reflect the solidarity of those who are subjected to the systemic oppression of white supremacy. It foregrounds Black and Indigenous people to give visibility to their unique experiences of enslavement and genocide. However, some argue this marginalizes the struggles of other groups of color and is therefore counterproductive to coalition-building. They assert the importance of naming groups specifically when addressing the unique dynamics of their oppression. This debate is an example of the need for deep reflection on the politics of naming and for consultation with those being named. Otherwise, language that might otherwise function as a source of self-determination, empowerment, and movement-building, will be reduced to shorthand that does little to challenge power relations. (See Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and Women of Color)
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BIRACIAL:  Often used to describe a person whose parents belong to two different racial categories. The term is not interchangeable with “bicultural”. For example, a child of an African-American parent and a parent of European descent may claim the ethnic cultures of both parents, while nevertheless identifying racially as black.
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BISEXUAL: “A person emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to more than one sex, gender or gender identity though not necessarily simultaneously, in the same way or to the same degree”[10] (See Biological Sex, Gender, Gender Identity)
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BLACK: See African American.
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BULLYING: “Unwanted, repetitive and aggressive behavior marked by an imbalance of power. It can take on multiple forms, including physical (e.g., hitting), verbal (e.g., name calling or making threats), relational (e.g., spreading rumors) and electronic (e.g., texting, social networking).” [11]
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C

CAMPUS SAVE ACT (CAMPUS SEXUAL VIOLENCE ELIMINATION ACT): As part of the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the Campus SaVE Act amended the Clery Act to require institutions to disclose statistics related to incidents of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; provide certain rights, information, and protective measures to those who experience sexual violence; meet specific standards for the resolution of complaints; and provide sexual violence education to students and employees.[12] (See Clery Act, Violence Against Women Act)
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CISGENDER: “[A] gender identity, or performance in a gender role, that society deems to match the person’s assigned sex at birth.  The prefix cis- means ‘on this side of’ or ‘not across.’ A term used to call attention to the privilege of people who are not transgender.”[13] (See Biological Sex, Gender, Gender Expression, Gender Identity, Privilege, Transgender)
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CIVIL RIGHTS: The legal rights guaranteed equally to all citizens.
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CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964: Prohibits discrimination in programs receiving federal funds. Title VI prohibits discrimination on the bases of race and national origin in federally-financially assisted programs. Title VII prohibits discrimination in employment on the bases of race, color, religion, national origin, and sex (including pregnancy).[14]
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CLASS:  Definitions of class vary across disciplines. A comprehensive working definition by Yeskel and Leondar-Wright (1997) is “class is ‘a relative social ranking based on income, wealth, status, and/or power.’” [15] (See Classism)
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CLASSISM:  A system of privilege and oppression based on social or economic class, which is expressed in structural, institutional and individual forms and functions for the benefit of the dominant class at the expense of the rest. (See Class)
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CLERY ACT (JEANNE CLERY DISCLOSURE OF CAMPUS SECURITY POLICY AND CAMPUS CRIME STATISTICS ACT):  Named for murdered college student Jeanne Clery, the Act requires all higher education participants in Title IV programs to publish annual crime statistics, information about campus security policies, and timely information about crimes that may pose an ongoing threat to the campus. In 2013, the Campus SaVE Act amended it to mandate the reporting of sexual violence statistics, protections of victims’ rights and safety, and the provision of sexual misconduct prevention and awareness programs to students and employees.[16] (See Campus SaVE Act)
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CLOSETED: Describes an LGBTQ person who has not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity.[17] (See Coming Out)
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COLORBLINDNESS:  The claim not to see racial distinctions. In a racialized context, such as the U.S., the refusal to see race denies what may be an important aspect of personal and collective identity, and ignores the contemporary and historical evidence of systems of power and privilege based on race.  Accordingly, one must see race and understand its impact in order to correct the effects of past and present racial oppression.
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COMING OUT: Coming out refers to coming out of the closet, as in “voluntarily making public one's sexual orientation and/or gender identity. It has also been broadened to include other pieces of potentially stigmatized personal information. Terms also used that correlate with this action are: ‘Being out’ which means not concealing one's sexual orientation or gender identity, and ‘Outing,’ a term used for making public the sexual orientation or gender identity of another who would prefer to keep this information secret.” [18] (See Closeted, Gender, Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation)
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COMMUNITIES OF COLOR: The term “of color” embraces Black, Asian, Latino, and indigenous peoples both within the U.S. and transnationally, whose collective marginalization as “colored” peoples and colonial subjects informs coalition politics that cut across many issues. “Communities of color” is sometimes used interchangeably with people of color but can also refer to the geographic areas in which they are concentrated. (See People of Color)
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COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS: Community organizations, or community-based organizations, refers to nonprofit or grassroots organizations that operate in and for the benefit of a specific community. 

CONTRAPOWER HARASSMENT: Harassment of those with more organizational power by those with less.  For example, while a female professor may have more formal institutional power than a male student, because society still conveys more power and authority to men, the male student has greater informal power on the basis of gender. Parallels can be drawn with other binaries of power, such as race, age, sexual orientation, and social class.[19] (See Harassment)
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CRITICAL PEDAGOGY: Henry Giroux defines critical pedagogy as "a public philosophy that addresses how to construct ideological and institutional conditions in which the lived experience of empowerment for the vast majority of students becomes the defining feature of schooling.” In doing so, critical pedagogy challenges mainstream views of knowledge and schooling as neutral and learning as an end only unto itself. In Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Paulo Freire outlines critical pedagogy as a tool by which students develop a critical consciousness of themselves in relation to the structure of oppression and of their creative power to transform it. bell hooks argues that critical pedagogy “makes education the practice of freedom.”[20]
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CRITICAL RACE THEORY (CRT): CRT is an interdisciplinary field of critical studies developed by legal theorists to interrogate the ways in which institutions and systems perceived as egalitarian perpetuate white privilege and supremacy.  Central to CRT is the focus on the counternarratives of people of color, giving voice to those silenced by white supremacy, and on the praxis of social justice.
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CULTURE: While the definition of culture varies within and among academic disciplines, a comprehensive definition is that it denotes the way of life of a people, encompassing their ideas, values, beliefs, norms, language, traditions, and artifacts. Institutional cultures reflect the dominant culture of the society of which they are a part. (See Bicultural, Hegemony)

CULTURAL COMPETENCE: The National Center for Cultural Competence references the seminal definition provided by Cross et al, 1989: "Cultural competence is a set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and policies that come together in a system, agency or among professionals and enable that system, agency or those professions to work effectively in cross-cultural situations.

The word culture is used because it implies the integrated pattern of human behavior that includes thoughts, communications, actions, customs, beliefs, values and institutions of a racial, ethnic, religious or social group. The word competence is used because it implies having the capacity to function effectively.

Five essential elements contribute to a system's institution's, or agency's ability to become more culturally competent which include:

1. Valuing diversity
2. Having the capacity for cultural self-assessment
3. Being conscious of the dynamics inherent when cultures interact
4. Having institutionalized culture knowledge
5. Having developed adaptations to service delivery reflecting an understanding of cultural diversity

These five elements should be manifested at every level of an organization including policy making, administrative, and practice. Further these elements should be reflected in the attitudes, structures, policies and services of the organization.”

(National Center for Cultural Competence, Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development (n.d.). Definitions of Cultural Competence. Retrieved August 11, 2021, from https://nccc.georgetown.edu/curricula/culturalcompetence.html

CULTURAL APPROPRIATION: The non-consensual adoption of the language, symbols, artifacts, garb, music, and religious or other practices of oppressed cultural groups by the dominant cultural group, in a manner that strips them of their sociohistorical context, perpetuates unequal power relations, and is economically exploitive, stereotypical, trivializing, and/or demeaning. Examples include college students wearing blackface or Mexican garb as part of a culturally-themed party.
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CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE: Not to be confused with cultural appropriation, in the educational context, culturally appropriate describes school practices that foster congruence between the home cultures of historically marginalized students and the dominant culture of the schools they attend. In a broad sense, such practices, also described as culturally congruent, relevant, or responsive, are designed to ensure that teachers and other school staff understand the cultures of the students they serve and draw upon students’ cultural strengths to enhance their learning and empowerment (Gay, 2000; Ladson-Billings, 1994; Yosso, 2005).
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D

DACA (DEFERRED ACTION ON CHILDHOOD ARRIVALS PROGRAM):  After the DREAM Act failed to pass, in 2012, President Obama initiated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy to provide temporary relief from deportation and eligibility for a work permit to “DREAMers,” the young undocumented immigrants who fall under the requirements of the DREAM Act. In September of 2017, the Trump administration announced it was rescinding the program, but as of March of 2018, two court injunctions require the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to continue to accept renewal applications from current DACA recipients. [21] (See DREAM Act, DREAMers)
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DISABILITY: Definitions of disability fall into two categories, the medical model, and the social model. The medical model defines disability in terms of physical or mental impairments that reside in the individual, and which must be addressed through individualized accommodation. Civil rights laws against disability discrimination follow this model. Accordingly, person-first language is often promoted as a way of distancing people from the negative perceptions and consequences associated with their impairments (e.g., I am a person with a disability). Alternately, the social or social justice model defines disability in relation to the environmental and cultural barriers and biases that disable people. Rather than minimizing disability, this approach treats it as central to identity (e.g., I am a disabled person). The Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) has adopted the latter.

Like any community, members of the disability community may disagree on terms of self-ascription. In addition to being clear about when and why to use one term over the other, whenever possible, it is important to ask about and respect their preferences. (See Ableism, Americans with Disabilities Act, Disabled Person, Non-Disabled Person, Identity-first Language, People-first Language, Reasonable Accommodation, Rehabilitation Act, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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DISABLED PERSON: Following the social or social justice model of disability, “disabled person” is preferable to “person with a disability, because it treats disability as a central to identity, rather than something from which to distance. The Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) has adopted this terminology because it is more consistent with its social justice approach to disability. (See Ableism, Americans with Disabilities Act, Disability, Non-Disabled Person, Identity-First Language, People-first Language, Reasonable Accommodation, Rehabilitation Act, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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DISCRIMINATION: Discrimination denotes different treatment. Discrimination is illegal if it denies equal rights and protections based on characteristics such as gender, race, ethnicity, religion, and disability. (See Disability, Ethnicity, Gender, Protected Class, Race)  
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DISPARATE TREATMENT: Refers to the different treatment of individuals and groups on bases that are illegal. Disparate treatment is only one cause of disparities across social groups, which can often result from implicit bias. (See Disparities, Implicit Bias)
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DISPARITIES: Disparities are differences in educational, health, economic, legal and other outcomes between and among social groups. They can stem from intentional discrimination as well as implicit bias, and highlight the salience of social group membership in structuring privilege and inequality. (See Achievement Gap, Discrimination, Disparate Treatment, Equity-Mindedness, Implicit Bias, Privilege)
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DIVERSITY: Individual differences (e.g., personality, learning styles, and life experiences) and group/social differences (e.g., race/ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, country of origin, and ability as well as cultural, political, religious, or other affiliations).”[22] (See Inclusion, Inclusive Excellence)
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DREAM ACT (DEVELOPMENT, RELIEF, AND EDUCATION FOR ALIEN MINORS ACT):  Since its first introduction in 2001, various versions of the DREAM Act have sought to provide a pathway to legal status to certain young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children and have lived and gone to school here. The bill has never passed.[23] (See DACA, DREAMERS)
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DREAMERS: Young undocumented immigrants who fall under the provisions of the DREAM Act are widely referred to as “DREAMers”. Having been brought to the U.S. as children, DREAMers have resided and been educated in, and often know no other home than, the U.S.  Nevertheless, because they do not qualify for federal financial assistance, many lack access to postsecondary opportunities. In Washington state, SB 5194, passed in 2021, enables eligible undocumented students to pay in-state postsecondary tuition rates, and the REAL Hope Act, signed into law in 2014, gives those who qualify for in-state tuition eligibility to apply for state financial aid. [24] (See DREAM Act)
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E

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY (EEO): The absence of illegal employment discrimination based on race, class, gender, religion, and nationality, as prohibited by a number of legislative acts and enforced by the courts. (See Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)
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EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION (EEOC): Congress established the EEOC in 1965 to enforce Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting illegal discrimination in employment. The Federal Government's premier civil rights agency is also charged with the enforcement of the Equal Pay Act (EPA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).[25] (See Equal Employment Opportunity)
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THE EQUAL PAY ACT OF 1963 (EPA):  The EPA provides employers may not pay unequal wages to men and women who perform jobs that require substantially equal skill, effort and responsibility, and that are performed under similar working conditions within the same establishment.[26] 
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EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT (ERA):  Written in 1923 by Alice Paul, suffragist leader and founder of the National Woman's Party, as a means of guaranteeing "equal justice under law" to women as well as men, the ERA has been introduced into every session of Congress since, but has failed to be ratified by the required number of states. The ERA Task Force of the National Council of Women's Organizations supports these bills and urges groups and individuals to advocate for more co-sponsors and passage.[27] 
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EQUALITY: Equal treatment that may or may not result in equitable outcomes. (See Equity)
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EQUITY:  Equity in education is realized when we...

• Prevent and remove barriers for groups of students with histories of exclusion, discrimination, and marginalization
• Achieve equal educational outcomes for historically underrepresented groups relative to their peers
• Lead with racial equity to maximize student potential across all populations, including racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, sexual identity, gender identity, and differing ability
• Maintain a culture of belonging that advances racial, social and economic justice in service to our diverse communities

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EQUITY-MINDEDNESS: “The term ‘Equity-Mindedness’ refers to the perspective or mode of thinking exhibited by practitioners who call attention to patterns of inequity in student outcomes. These practitioners are willing to take personal and institutional responsibility for the success of their students, and critically reassess their own practices. It also requires that practitioners are race-conscious and aware of the social and historical context of exclusionary practices in American Higher Education… Part of taking on this framework is that institutions and practitioners become accountable for the success of their students and see racial gaps as their personal and institutional responsibility.”[28] (See Disparities, Equity, Inclusive Excellence)
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ETHNICITY:  A people’s sense of group membership based on shared characteristics such as ancestry, history, language, religion, and values. Ethnicity is not the same as race, as illustrated by the fact that Hispanics, designated an ethnic group in the U.S., may identify as being of any race. (See Race)
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ETHNOCENTRISM:  Prejudicial views and different treatment of ethnic groups different from one’s own. Ethnocentrism is not the same as racism, which is rooted in the social construct of race. (See Ethnicity, Racism)
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F

FEMINISM:  Refers broadly to an ideology and movement advancing full gender equity. According to scholar/activist Angela Davis, there is general agreement “that feminism in its many versions acknowledges the social impact of gender and involves opposition to misogyny.” While differing in the names they call themselves, many who are committed to the ideal of gender equity believe, like Davis, that “the most effective versions of feminism acknowledge the various ways gender, class, race and sexual orientation inform each other.”[29] (See Misogeny)
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FEMINIST: A feminist is one who subscribes to feminism. Some are not comfortable with that label, seeing it as focused on the particular struggles of Western, white middle-class women.  They may identify instead with the terms "womanist" or “black feminist,” which signify simultaneous struggles to eradicate racism and gender oppression; or with “Third World feminist,” which connotes resistance to oppression based on gender, race, class, and nationality. [30] (See Feminist)
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G

GAY: “A person who is emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to members of the same gender.”[31] (See LGBTQ)
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GENDER: “A set of social, psychological, and/or emotional traits, often influenced by societal expectations, that classify an individual as man, woman, a mixture of both, or neither.”[32] Gender is not the same as biological sex. (See Biological Sex, Gender Expression, Gender Identity)
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GENDERQUEER: “Refers to individuals who identify as a combination of man and woman, neither man or woman, or both man and woman. Is sometimes used as an umbrella term in much the same way that the term ‘queer’ is used, but only referring to gender, and thus should only be used when self-identifying or quoting someone who self-identifies as genderqueer.”[33] (See Gender, Gender Expansive, Gender Fluid, Gender Identity, Queer)
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GENDER EXPANSIVE: “An umbrella term sometimes used to describe children and youth that expand notions of gender expression and identity beyond what is perceived as the expected gender norms for their society or context. Some gender-expansive individuals identify with being either a boy or a girl, some identify as neither, and others identify as a mix of both. Gender-expansive people feel that they exist psychologically between genders, as on a spectrum, or beyond the notion of the man/woman binary paradigm, and sometimes prefer using gender-neutral pronouns.”[34] (See Gender, Gender Expression, Gender Identity, Gender Neutral, Nonbinary, Preferred Gender Pronouns)
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GENDER EXPRESSION: “The manner in which a person communicates about gender to others through external means such as clothing, appearance, or mannerisms. This communication may be conscious or subconscious and may or may not reflect their gender identity or sexual orientation. While most people’s understandings of gender expressions relate to masculinity and femininity, there are countless combinations that may incorporate both masculine and feminine expressions—or neither—through androgynous expressions. The important thing to recognize is that an individual’s gender expression does not automatically imply one’s gender identity.” [35] (See Androgynous, Gender, Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation)
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GENDER FLUID: “A person whose gender identification and presentation shifts, whether within or outside of societal, gender-based expectations. Being fluid in motion between two or more genders.”[36] (See Gender, Gender Expression)
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GENDER IDENTITY: “One’s innermost concept of self as male, female, a blend of both or neither – how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One's gender identity can be the same or different from their sex assigned at birth.”[37] Gender identity is not the same as sexual orientation. (See Biological Sex, Gender, Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation)
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GENDER NEUTRAL: “Not gendered. Can refer to language (including pronouns), spaces (like bathrooms), or identities (being genderqueer, for example).”[38] (See Gender, GenderQueer, Preferred Gender Pronouns)
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GENOCIDE:  Article II of the Genocide Convention defines genocide as “any of the  following acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group: killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group, and forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”[39] 
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H

Harassment: “Harassment is unwelcome conduct that is based on legally protected characteristics, such as race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability and genetic information. Harassment [in the workplace] becomes unlawful where 1) enduring the offensive conduct becomes a condition of continued employment, or 2) the conduct is severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that a reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Anti-discrimination laws also prohibit harassment against individuals in retaliation for filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in an investigation, proceeding, or lawsuit under these laws; or opposing employment practices that they reasonably believe discriminate against individuals, in violation of these laws.”.[40] (See Contrapower Harassment, Discrimination, Protected Class)
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HEGEMONY: A form of oppression by which those in power naturalize and legitimate their dominance. In contrast to physical force, hegemony flows through the power of taken-for-granted ideas and cultural values, which, when internalized by the masses of people, render them unconscious of the forces that structure their powerlessness. (See Assimilation, Imperialism)
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HETERONORMATIVITY: “A set of lifestyle norms, practices, and institutions that promote binary alignment of biological sex, gender identity, and gender roles; assume heterosexuality as a fundamental and natural norm; and privilege monogamous, committed relationships and reproductive sex above all other sexual practices.”[41] (See Biological Sex, Gender Identity, Heterosexism, Queer Theory)
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HETEROSEXISM: “The assumption that all people are or should be heterosexual.  Heterosexism excludes the needs, concerns, and life experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and queer people while it gives advantages to heterosexual people.  It is often a subtle form of oppression, which reinforces realities of silence and erasure.”[42] (See Heteronormativity)
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HISPANIC-SERVING INSTITUTIONS (HSIs): To be designated by the US Department of Education as Hispanic-Serving Institutions, colleges and universities must be accredited and grant degrees and have full-time equivalent undergraduate enrollments of at least 25% Hispanic/Latino students and at least 50% students who are eligible for Title IV federal financial aid. Designation as an HSI qualifies institutions to apply for federal grants that will assist with expanding educational access and opportunity to Hispanic/Latino students.[43]
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HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES (HBCUs): Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions established prior to 1964, in the context of legal segregation, to provide access to higher education to African Americans.
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HISPANIC OR LATINA/O: For U.S. government purposes the terms are used interchangeably and defined as: “a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.” The terms describe an ethnic group and not a race. Accordingly, on many federal forms, Hispanics/Latino/as can also express a racial identity on a separate race question. According to the Office of Management and Budget, the choice of terms is a matter of regional usage. “Hispanic is commonly used in the eastern portion of the United States, whereas Latino is commonly used in the western portion.”  For many, Latino is preferred as a term of self-naming, signifying identification with the empowerment movement of peoples who share a common history of colonialism and oppression.[44] (See Latinx)
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HISTORICALLY MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES: Historically marginalized communities or populations are: “Individuals, groups, and communities that have historically and systematically been denied access to services, resources and power relationships across economic, political, and cultural dimensions as a result of systemic, durable, and persistent racism, discrimination and other forms of oppression. Long standing and well documented structural marginalization has resulted in poor outcomes – health, social, political, economic and overall increased vulnerability to harm. Historically Marginalized Populations are often identified based on their race, ethnicity, social-economic status, geography, religion, language, sexual identity and disability status.” (Historically Marginalized Populations Engagement Toolkit, 2021).[45]
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HISTORICALLY UNDERUTILIZED BUSINESS (HUB): Businesses of which 51% or more of ownership is held by women, persons of color, or persons with disabilities.
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HOMOPHOBIA: “The fear and hatred of or discomfort with people who are attracted to members of the same sex.”[46] (See Heteronormativity, Heterosexism)
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HUMAN RIGHTS: “Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, language, or any other status. All human rights are indivisible, whether they are civil and political rights, such as the right to life, equality before the law and freedom of expression; economic, social and cultural rights, such as the rights to work, social security and education, or collective rights, such as the rights to development and self-determination, are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. The improvement of one right facilitates advancement of the others. Likewise, the deprivation of one right adversely affects the others.”[47] (See Civil Rights)
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I

IMPERIALISM: Refers to the political, economic, and cultural domination and exploitation by one nation of other lands and peoples through military force as well as ideological hegemony. (See Hegemony)
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IMPLICIT BIAS: “Implicit bias refers to the attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner.”[48] (See Bias)
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INCLUSION: Inclusion has roots in the disability movement, as a strategy for including students with disabilities in mainstream classrooms. Over time, it has come to describe the process by which all students who have historically been excluded and marginalized because of their race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, citizenship status, and gender identity and other social identity markers, can experience belonging, be respected and valued, and fully participate in all aspects of the educational environment. In this sense, inclusion goes beyond mere integration to require the removal of barriers to educational participation. However, it falls short of requiring equitable outcomes or the transformation of institutional power arrangements. (See Diversity, Inclusive Excellence)
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INCLUSIVE EXCELLENCE: Coined by the American Association of Colleges & Universities, inclusive excellence refers to a framework for institutional change through which higher education can link commitments to diversity, inclusion and equity across all dimensions, in the service of student learning and institutional excellence.[49] (See Diversity, Equity, Inclusion)
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INDIVIDUAL RACISM: Individual expressions of normative behavior in a society structured on a specious racial hierarchy.  [50] (See Institutional Racism, Racism, Race, Racism, Structural Racism)
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INSTITUTIONAL RACISM: Institutional racism occurs when the basic structures of society (i.e. courts, law enforcement, prisons, schools, financial and healthcare institutions, and all levels of government) function to legitimize and normalize the power and racial privilege of the superior race. (See Individual Racism, Race, Racism, Structural Racism)[51]
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INTERNALIZED OPPRESSION: The process by which a member of a systematically oppressed group internalizes and acts out the negative characteristics attributed to the group.
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INTERSECTIONALITY: Coined by legal scholar Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, intersectionality refers to the analytical framework through which the relationship among systems of oppression can be understood. African American women made an early contribution to this analysis in the 19th Century. Recognizing that they experienced racism and sexism differently from both black men and white women, even while they shared commonalities with both, they argued that a struggle that did not simultaneously address sexism and racism would only perpetuate both. Since then, movements against racism, sexism, heterosexism, disability, colonialism, and imperialism both within the U.S. and abroad have recognized similar correspondences, enabling more broad-based coalition building.[52]
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ISMS: The “isms” refer to systems of privilege and oppression, such as those based on race (racism), sex sexism), class (classism), age (ageism), ability (ableism), and sexual identity (heterosexism). While they turn on different axes of social identity, these systems share several conceptual similarities. All are rooted in doctrines of superiority and inferiority; find systemic expression in individual, institutional, as well as cultural forms; and function through the dynamics of power and privilege. The relationship of the elements may be expressed in the equation: prejudice + power = oppression (ism).
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L

LATINX: “Pronounced “La-TEEN-ex”, is a non-gender specific way of referring to people of Latin American descent. Other commonly known ways of referring to people of Latin American descent are Latinos, Latina, Latin@, Latino. The “x” at the end replaces “o” and “a” which have been gendered suffixes, it moves beyond terms like Latino/a & Latin@, which still reinforce a gender binary.[53]   “We use the term “Latinx” to embrace the challenge to gender binaries posed by LGBT, genderqueer, and nonnormative gender activists and intellectuals. Latinx reflects the shifting terrain of identification and the ongoing commitment to building unity through embracing the diversity of Latinidad by not erasing difference and specificity. Further, the term Latinx is an important tool to signal the colonial nature of the imposition of gender binaries and opens up the possibility for recognizing the diversity of Indigenous sex gender systems in the Americas, many of which included more than two genders.”[54] (See Hispanic or Latina/o)
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LESBIAN: “A woman who is emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to other women.”[55] (See LGBTQ)
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LGBTQ: “An acronym for ‘lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer.’”[56] (See Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Queer, Transgender)
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LOW-INCOME COMMUNITIES: According to the federal government,  a “’low-income individual’ means an individual whose family's taxable income for the preceding year did not exceed 150 percent of the poverty level amount,” as established by the Census Bureau. (Federal TRIO Programs Current-Year Low-Income Levels, 2021). Low-income communities, then, refers to a collective of individuals so defined. [57]
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M

MARGINALIZATION: The experience of groups who are denied political, economic and social equity in society, and thereby relegated to its margins. It can also refer to the process of rendering an individual or group voiceless or irrelevant in particular social context.
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MICROAGGRESSIONS: A term coined by psychiatrist Chester M. Pierce in 1970 to describe the subtle, daily, cumulative insults experienced by African Americans. Microaggressions are intentional or unintentional slights based on one or more marginalized identities.”[58] 
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MINORITY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE (MBE):  A business that is majority owned/operated/controlled by one or more member of an officially defined racial or ethnic minority group.
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MISOGYNY:  Hatred of women (See Feminism)
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MULTICULTURAL: Arising from or informed by cultural heterogeneity. As a description of pedagogical practices, it encompasses classroom strategies, content inclusion, institutional policies, as well as values that challenge some or all aspects of “monocultural” educational environments. Goals for multicultural education vary along a continuum that includes demographic inclusion, student empowerment, intergroup understanding, educational equity, and social transformation.
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N

NATIVE HAWAIIAN OR OTHER PACIFIC ISLANDER:  “A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands. (The term "Native Hawaiian" does not include individuals who are native to the State of Hawaii by virtue of being born there.) In addition to Native Hawaiians, Guamanians, and Samoans, this category would include the following Pacific Islander groups reported in the 1990 census: Carolinian, Fijian, Kosraean, Melanesian, Micronesian, Northern Mariana Islander, Palauan, Papua New Guinean, Ponapean (Pohnpelan), Polynesian, Solomon Islander, Tahitian, Tarawa Islander, Tokelauan, Tongan, Trukese (Chuukese), and Yapese.”[59]
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NONBINARY: “Refers to individuals who identify as neither man or woman, both man and woman, or a combination of man or woman. It is an identity term which some use exclusively, while others may use it interchangeably with terms like genderqueer, gender creative, gender noncomforming, gender diverse, or gender expansive. Individuals who identify as nonbinary may understand the identity as falling under the transgender umbrella, and may thus identify as transgender. Sometimes abbreviated as NB.”[60] (See Gender, GenderQueer, Gender Expansive, Gender Identity)
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NON-DISABLED PERSON: According to the social justice model of disability, “non-disabled person is identity-first language that mirrors “disabled person.” Disability Rights activist Judith Heumann prefers it to “able-bodied,” which suggests that disabled people have no abilities. She also believes the term aptly describes people who are not yet disabled, but who are statistically likely to acquire a disability over the course of their lifetimes. (Judith Heumann - Defying Obstacles in "Being Heumann" and "Crip Camp" | The Daily Show 141,698 views) Mar 10, 2020. (See Ableism, Americans with Disabilities Act, Disability, Disabled Person, Identity-First Language, People-first Language, Reasonable Accommodation, Rehabilitation Act, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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NONRESIDENT ALIEN: A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely.[61] 
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O

OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER): “Open educational resources (OER) are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others.”[62] By significantly lowering the cost of course materials for students, OER can help improve college access and affordability.
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OPPORTUNITY GAP: Refers to gaps in access to the necessary conditions for quality education (as measured by per pupil spending, robust expectations and support, highly qualified instructors, etc). It locates the causes of educational disparities in institutions and systems, and not students. [Back to Top]

OPPRESSION: A system of individual, institutional, and cultural beliefs and practices that privilege a dominant group at the expense of the subordinate groups. (See Discrimination, Isms, Privilege)
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OUTING: “Exposing someone’s lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender identity to others without their permission. Outing someone can have serious repercussions on employment, economic stability, personal safety or religious or family situations.”[63] (See Closeted, Coming Out)
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P

PARITY:  The proportional distribution of desirable outcomes, or equity, across groups. Sometimes confused with equality, equity refers to outcomes, while equality can simply mean equal treatment. Where individuals or groups are dissimilarly situated, equal treatment may be insufficient for or even detrimental to equitable outcomes. An example is individualized educational accommodations for students with disabilities, which treat some students differently in order to ensure their equitable access to education. (See Equality, Equity)
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PASSING: Passing refers to the concealment of subordinate group membership in order to access the psychological and material benefits of membership in the dominant group. Passing is not available to all members of subordinate groups, particularly those who bear easily discernable markers of their group, such as dark skin color, breasts, or physical disabilities. A popular theme in African American literature and films, passing is sometimes motivated by feelings of shame and self-loathing stemming from the internalization of subordinate status in a system of oppression. As such it can sever familial and community ties, provoking feelings of abandonment and resentment. At other times, however, it may be employed as a subterfuge for the purposes of disrupting the mechanisms of oppression. In either case, it should not be confused with cross-dressing, the performance of transgression of gender norms or with blackface minstrelsy, which seeks to reinforce the boundaries of whiteness through the exaggeration of contrasts with its inverse, blackness. (See Gender, Internalized Oppression, Whiteness)
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PEOPLE OF COLOR: The term “of color” embraces Black, Asian, Latino, and indigenous peoples both within the U.S. and transnationally, whose collective marginalization as “colored” peoples and colonial subjects informs coalition politics that cut across many issues. In contrast to the label “minority,” which carries negative connotations, “of color,” is an example of self-naming that is positively associated with a politics of empowerment. (See Communities of Color)
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PREFERRED GENDER PRONOUNS (PGP): “A preferred gender pronoun, or PGP—sometimes called proper gender pronoun—is the pronoun or set of pronouns that an individual personally uses and would like others to use when talking to or about that individual. In English, the singular pronouns that we use most frequently are gendered, so some individuals may prefer that you use gender neutral or gender-inclusive pronouns when talking to or about them. In English, some individuals use they and their as gender-neutral singular pronouns. Others use ze (sometimes spelled zie) and hir or the pronouns xe and xer.” (See Gender, Gender Neutral)
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PREJUDICE: A preconceived judgment or bias. A prejudice can be positive or negative. Prejudice is commonly conflated with the larger systems of oppression, such as racism, of which it is only a part. Prejudice is not merely a phenomenon of individual bias. It can also be understood as the bias that is built into facially neutral institutional policies and procedures as well as seemingly innocuous cultural values in ways that reproduce inequity.
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PRISON-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX:  The Prison-Industrial Complex refers to the proliferation of mass incarceration in the US, fueled largely by the disproportionate imprisonment of people of color in the interest of corporate profits and political control, not justice. [64]
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PRIVILEGE:  Privilege is a system of advantage conferred to one group at the expense of one or more others. Terms such as white privilege, male privilege, and heterosexual privilege give visibility to those for whom the privilege functions.
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PROTECTED CLASS: A protected class is a social group that has been subjected to documented past and continuing effects of illegal discrimination and consequently, whose civil rights require legal re-enforcement. In the U.S., protected classes include members of certain racial and ethnic groups, women, persons over 40, qualifying veterans, and persons with disabilities. Protected class status is sometimes misconstrued as conferring “special” rights that are unavailable to other groups, when, in fact, it is meant to ensure the equal protection of rights that are guaranteed to all citizens. (See Discrimination)
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Q

QUEER: “Historically, queer has been used as an epithet/slur against people whose gender, gender expression and/or sexuality do not conform to dominant expectations. Some people have reclaimed the word queer and self identify as such. For some, this reclamation is a celebration of not fitting into norms/being ‘abnormal.’ Manifestations of oppression within gay and lesbian movements such as racism, sizeism, ableism, cissexism, transmisogyny as well as assimilation politics, resulted in many people being marginalized, thus, for some, queer is a radical and anti-assimilationist stance that captures multiple aspects of identities.”[65]
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QUEER THEORY: A critical theoretical tool originating in feminist theory and Queer Studies that challenges the social constructs of fixed definitions of sexuality and gender that undergird heteronormativity. (See Heteronormativity)
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R

RACE: According to Maulana Karenga, "Stripped of all its cultural and scientific mystification, race is a bio-social category designed to assign human worth and social status, using Europeans as the paradigm of humanity and social achievement.”[66] (See Racism, Racist)
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RACIALIZE: To assign human worth and value and structure benefits on the basis of a racial taxonomy. (See Race, Racism)
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RACISM:  Racism is a system of oppression rooted in the bias against people of color and for whites that is sanctioned and supported by social institutions, or simply, race prejudice plus power. This system operates at the personal, interpersonal, institutional, and structural levels. (See Race, Racist)
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RACIST:  A member of the racial group in whose interest racism is structured. (See Isms, Privilege, Race, Racism)
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REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION:  “A) making existing facilities used by employees readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities; and (B) job restructuring, part-­time or modified work schedules, reassignment to a vacant position, acquisition or modification of equipment or devices, appropriate adjustment or modifications of examinations, training materials or policies, the provision of qualified readers or interpreters, and other similar accommodations for individuals with disabilities.”[67] (See Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Disability, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973:  The Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in federal programs, in programs receiving federal financial assistance, and in the employment practices of institutions with federal contracts. Section 504 covers admissions, recruitment, and program and facilities accessibility in colleges and universities receiving federal financial assistance, and protects students, employees, and applicants.[68] (Americans with Disabilities Act, Disability, Reasonable Accommodation, Universal Design, Universal Design for Learning)
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RETALIATION:  An employer may not fire, demote, harass or otherwise "retaliate" against an individual for filing a charge of discrimination, participating in a discrimination proceeding, or otherwise opposing discrimination. The same laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, and disability, as well as wage differences between men and women performing substantially equal work, also prohibit retaliation against individuals who oppose unlawful discrimination or participate in an employment discrimination proceeding.[69] 
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S

SAFE ZONE: A Safe Zone, sometimes referred to as a Safe Space, describes the programmatic efforts of an organization to promote a sense of inclusion for LGBTQ individuals and their allies. Elements may include educational programming, training, and displays of explicit symbols identifying a network of supportive persons with whom they can feel safe. (See LGBTQ)
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SEGREGATION: Segregation refers to the system of racial exclusion created to uphold a system of racial privilege for whites. Though de jure segregation is illegal, de facto segregation, particularly in housing and education, continues to reproduce racial disparities across many life outcomes. (See Integration)
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SEXISM:  A system of oppression based on social constructions of gender superiority and inferiority, which is expressed in individual, institutional as well as cultural forms and functions for the benefit of the dominant sex. (See Isms)
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SEXIST: A member of the group for which sexism is structured. (See Isms, Privilege, Sexism)
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SEXUAL HARASSMENT: A form of illegal sex discrimination, sexual harassment is defined as “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.[70] 
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SEXUAL ORIENTATION: “An inherent or immutable enduring emotional, romantic or sexual attraction to other people.”[71] Sexual orientation is not the same as gender identity. (See Gender Identity)
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SOCIAL IDENTITY: Social identity is one’s conception of oneself as a member of a group or groups. 
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STRUCTURAL RACISM: Structural racism occurs when the dominant group structures society (the social order) on a specious racial hierarchy, by institutionalizing its superior racial power and privilege. [72](See Individual Racism, Institutional Racism, Race, Racism)
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SYSTEMIC RACISM: Systemic racism is that which operates within and across institutions in ways that maintain and perpetuate the specious racial hierarchy.  [73] (See Individual Racism, Institutional Racism, Race, Racism, Structural Racism)
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T

TITLE IV OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT Of 1964: Provides for nondiscrimination in education on the basis of race, color, religion, and national origin.[74 (See Discrimination)
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TITLE VI OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964: Prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin in the provision of benefits or services under federally assisted programs and activities including educational institutions. Employment is a factor under Title VI only where it is a primary objective of the federal assistance.[75] (See Discrimination)
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TITLE VII OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964: Federal law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, religion, and national origin. Federal financial assistance is not a factor.[76] (See Discrimination)
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TITLE IX OF THE EDUCATION AMENDMENTS OF 1972: Federal law prohibiting sex discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. Covers both employees and students, as well as athletics, physical education, and counseling. Does not cover curriculum materials. Requires institutional self-evaluation and appointment of Title IX coordinators.[77] (See Discrimination)
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TRANSGENDER: “An umbrella term for people whose gender identity and/or expression is different from cultural expectations based on the sex they were assigned at birth. Being transgender does not imply any specific sexual orientation. Therefore, transgender people may identify as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc.”[78] (See Biological Sex, Cisgender, Gender Expression, Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation)
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TRIBAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES: The Tribally Controlled College or University Assistance Act of 1978 defines a tribal college as “… an institution of higher education which is formally controlled, or has been formally sanctioned, or chartered, by the governing body of an Indian tribe or tribes, except that no more than one such institution shall be recognized with respect to any such tribe…”[79] Generally serving rural, reservation-bound communities, tribal colleges and universities are funded primarily by the federal government.
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U

UNIVERSAL DESIGN: “The term ‘universal design’ has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 3002) [which is: ‘The term 'universal design' means a concept or philosophy for designing and delivering products and services that are usable by people with the widest possible range of functional capabilities, which include products and services that are directly accessible (without requiring assistive technologies) and products and services that are interoperable with assistive technologies.’]”[80] (See Ableism, Americans with Disabilities Act, Disability, Non-Disabled Person, Identity-First Language, People-first Language, Reasonable Accommodation, Rehabilitation Act, Universal Design for Learning)
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UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING (UDL): An outgrowth of the social or social justice model of disability, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) seeks to make educational environments and processes, including the curriculum, barrier-free and therefore, accessible, and conducive to the needs of all learners. (See Ableism, Americans with Disabilities Act, Disability, Non-Disabled Person, Identity-First Language, People-first Language, Reasonable Accommodation, Rehabilitation Act, Universal Design)
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V

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT (VAWA): The Violence Against Women Act was first enacted in 1994 to strengthen criminal justice responses to sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking and to expand services for victims and survivors. Its 2013 reauthorization recognized tribes’ criminal jurisdiction over non-Native perpetrators of sexual violence on tribal lands, prohibited discrimination against domestic violence survivors in public housing, increased protections for immigrant women, and ensured LGBT individuals have equal access to sexual assault services. It also amended the Clery Act to require postsecondary institutions to meet certain requirements related to sexual violence reporting, response, and prevention education as a condition of their participation in Title IV programs.[81] (See Campus SaVE Act, Clery Act)
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W

WHITE: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.[82]
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WHITENESS:  Critical social theorists distinguish the racial category white from the concept of whiteness, which is a system of privilege that benefits members of that category. Whiteness describes an identity, an ideology, and a set of practices that perpetuate white racial dominance. (See Privilege)
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WOMAN BUSINESS ENTERPRISE (WBE):  A business that is 51% or more woman-owned/operated/controlled. 
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Questions and suggestions about the terminology and definitions appearing in this Glossary may be referred to Cheryl Nunez, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion at 360-475-7125 or @email. 
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