“Who am I to Judge?”: How a Jesuit University Addresses LGBT Issues on Campus

337 Pages·2015·1.1 MB·English

UCLA
UCLA Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Title
“Who am I to Judge?”: How a Jesuit University Addresses LGBT Issues on Campus
Permalink
https://escholarship.org/uc/item/69701030
Author
Hughes, Bryce Edward
Publication Date
2015

Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation
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University of California
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles

“Who am I to Judge?”:
How a Jesuit University Addresses LGBT Issues on Campus

A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the
requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy
in Education

by

Bryce Edward Hughes

2015
© Copyright by
Bryce Edward Hughes
2015
ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION

“Who am I to Judge?”:
How a Jesuit University Addresses LGBT Issues on Campus

by

Bryce Edward Hughes
Doctor of Philosophy in Education
University of California, Los Angeles, 2015
Professor Sylvia Hurtado, Chair

Although higher education has become more welcoming and inclusive of LGBT (lesbian,
gay, bisexual, and transgender) faculty, staff, and students, many religiously affiliated colleges
and universities face challenges to create an LGBT-affirming environment due to religious
beliefs regarding homosexuality. Jesuit universities, grounded in their commitment to holistic
education and social justice, offer different models of practice in engaging the tension between
religious proscriptions against homosexuality and providing support for the campus LGBT
community. The purpose of this study then was to explore how members of a Jesuit, Catholic
university addresses LGBT issues and organizational change.
The conceptual framework guiding this study brings together a model for understanding
grassroots leadership in higher education with the Multicontextual Model for Diverse Learning
Environments (MMDLE) to examine the everyday, sometimes invisible tactics and strategies
employed by faculty, staff, and students at a Jesuit university to improve the climate for the

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campus LGBT community. This case study triangulates interviews with 43 grassroots leaders
and 9 administrators, document review, and participant-observations. Embedded cross-case
analyses were employed to highlight differences by constituent group (faculty, staff, students,
and administrators), sexual orientation (sexual minority or heterosexual), and religious affiliation
(Catholic or other affiliation).
Findings documented the conditions facing grassroots leaders at the institution as well as
the tactics and strategies employed by grassroots leaders, their motivation for engaging in LGBT
work, and sources of resilience. The campus climate was found to be generally positive, but
participants pointed to areas where oppression persisted and continual education was needed.
Participants also navigated a set of power dynamics, which were shaped by the university’s
Catholic identity, but they encountered these dynamics less frequently than in earlier socio-
historical eras on campus. Participants demonstrated a strong commitment to the university’s
Jesuit mission, and for many, their involvement in LGBT issues was motivated by their religious
beliefs. Tactics employed ranged from storytelling and allyship to more organized tactics like
partnering with influential allies such as Jesuit priests. Finally, participants identified intrinsic
and extrinsic sources of resilience. This study contributes to research on organizational change,
campus climate, and shatters myths regarding LGBT members at religiously-affiliated
institutions.

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The dissertation of Bryce Edward Hughes is approved.
Robert A. Rhoads
Patricia M. McDonough
Adrianna J. Kezar
Sylvia Hurtado, Committee Chair

University of California, Los Angeles
2015

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Dedication

To Wade
For all your sacrifices and support – I love you.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... xi
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 1
Problem Statement .......................................................................................................................... 1
American Catholic Higher Education ......................................................................................... 3
Jesuit Higher Education .............................................................................................................. 6
Purpose of the Study ....................................................................................................................... 8
Scope of the Study....................................................................................................................... 9
Contribution of the Study .......................................................................................................... 11
Significance of the Study .......................................................................................................... 13
CHAPTER 2 FRAMING THE STUDY ....................................................................................... 16
Conceptual Framework ................................................................................................................. 18
Organizational Change .............................................................................................................. 18
Social Movements within Organizations .................................................................................. 19
Tempered Radicalism ................................................................................................................ 24
Grassroots Leadership in Higher Education.............................................................................. 30
Individual level phemonena ................................................................................................... 31
Group level phenomena ......................................................................................................... 32
Organizational level phenomena ........................................................................................... 34
Campus Climate: Multicontextual Model for Diverse Learning Environments ....................... 36
Literature Review ......................................................................................................................... 40
Campus Climate ........................................................................................................................ 40
Heterosexual students ............................................................................................................ 45
LGBT Students .......................................................................................................................... 49
Historical context ................................................................................................................... 49
Contemporary activism.......................................................................................................... 52
LGBT versus queer ................................................................................................................ 54
Intersections of oppression .................................................................................................... 55
Heterosexual students ............................................................................................................ 57
LGBT Faculty ........................................................................................................................... 61
Faculty disclosure .................................................................................................................. 61
Consequences of disclosure for faculty ................................................................................. 64
Faculty activism and grassroots leadership ........................................................................... 66
LGBT topics in the classroom ............................................................................................... 69
LGBT Staff ................................................................................................................................ 73
Experiences of LGBT student affairs staff ............................................................................ 73
Grassroots strategies available to student affairs and administrative staff ............................ 76
Workplace activism ............................................................................................................... 79
Mentoring: Connecting Faculty and Staff Grassroots Leadership to the Student Experience .. 81
Culture and Climate of Catholic Colleges and Universities ..................................................... 84

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Student attitudes at Catholic colleges and universities .......................................................... 87
Ways Catholic colleges and universities are addressing LGBT issues ................................. 88
Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 92
CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................. 95
Paradigmatic Assumptions ........................................................................................................... 95
Research Purpose and Questions............................................................................................... 96
Study Design and Methods ....................................................................................................... 97
A case study approach ........................................................................................................... 97
Site selection .......................................................................................................................... 98
Unit of analysis .................................................................................................................... 101
Data Sources and Sample ........................................................................................................ 102
Sample and Interviews ......................................................................................................... 102
Document review ................................................................................................................. 110
Participant-observations ...................................................................................................... 111
Positionality of the researcher ............................................................................................. 112
Data Analysis .......................................................................................................................... 113
Coding ................................................................................................................................. 114
Analysis. .............................................................................................................................. 115
Trustworthiness ....................................................................................................................... 118
Credibility ............................................................................................................................ 119
Consistency .......................................................................................................................... 120
Transferability ..................................................................................................................... 121
Limitations .............................................................................................................................. 121
CHAPTER 4 THE CAMPUS ENVIRONMENT ....................................................................... 123
The Setting .................................................................................................................................. 123
Campus Climate: Varying Perceptions ....................................................................................... 126
Preconceptions about the Climate ........................................................................................... 126
External Influences on the Climate ......................................................................................... 129
Pope Francis ........................................................................................................................ 129
Sociohistoric context ........................................................................................................... 131
“The type of student who attends Chardin.” ........................................................................ 132
Climate for LGBT Students .................................................................................................... 133
Compositional diversity ....................................................................................................... 134
Perceptions........................................................................................................................... 136
Interactions .......................................................................................................................... 140
Microaggressions ................................................................................................................. 142
Overt aggressions ................................................................................................................ 144
Student-faculty interactions ................................................................................................. 145
LGBQ Faculty ......................................................................................................................... 147
Heterosexual Participants ........................................................................................................ 149
Staff members ...................................................................................................................... 150

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Faculty members.................................................................................................................. 151
Students ............................................................................................................................... 152
Heterosexuals can also be anti-LGBT targets ..................................................................... 152
Power Dynamics ......................................................................................................................... 154
Overt Oppression..................................................................................................................... 155
“Catholic Police” ..................................................................................................................... 157
Student incivility.................................................................................................................. 157
Faculty intimidation ............................................................................................................. 160
Silencing .................................................................................................................................. 162
Silenced individuals ............................................................................................................. 163
External resistance ............................................................................................................... 164
Controlling Behaviors ............................................................................................................. 166
Staff ..................................................................................................................................... 166
Faculty ................................................................................................................................. 167
Students ............................................................................................................................... 172
Administrators ..................................................................................................................... 173
Stalling Tactics ........................................................................................................................ 175
Faculty ................................................................................................................................. 175
Students ............................................................................................................................... 176
The “other side” of stalling tactics ...................................................................................... 178
Microaggressions and Other Subtle Slights ............................................................................ 179
CHAPTER 5 GRASSROOTS LEADERS ................................................................................. 182
Motivation ................................................................................................................................... 182
Reasons for Coming to Chardin .............................................................................................. 182
Religious affiliation ............................................................................................................. 183
Familiarity with Catholic education .................................................................................... 185
University mission ............................................................................................................... 185
Teaching mission ................................................................................................................. 186
Previous connections to Chardin ......................................................................................... 187
Location ............................................................................................................................... 187
Sense of community ............................................................................................................ 189
Pragmatic reasons ................................................................................................................ 190
Motivation for Addressing LGBT Issues ................................................................................ 191
LGBQ Students.................................................................................................................... 191
LGBQ Staff and Faculty ...................................................................................................... 193
Heterosexual Participants .................................................................................................... 196
Tactics ......................................................................................................................................... 200
Self-Expression ....................................................................................................................... 201
LGBQ students .................................................................................................................... 201
LGBQ faculty and staff ....................................................................................................... 205
Heterosexual participants .................................................................................................... 206
Grassroots Leadership Tactics ................................................................................................ 209
Promoting intellectual discourse ......................................................................................... 210

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