Blackmaleness at a Public Regional University

Abstract

The three exploratory case studies discussed in this article were drawn from a Civic Corps project at a public regional university and reveal challenges and obstacles that can disrupt the academic careers of Black male collegians. These barriers include the following: (1) University structures and disciplinary hegemony can suppress the needs of first-generation Black students, preventing the university community, and higher education institutions in general, from “hearing” how we might support them and enable their success; (2) first-generation Black students might require legal services to address conditions off campus that could undermine their persistence and success; and (3) university structures can fail to recognize the dramatic achievements and abilities of Black students. This article highlights how these structural obstacles, which are compounded by cultural, racial, and economic conditions, can be remediated through civic engagement and service-learning, organized by mentors sensitive to the financial, legal, and social needs of young Black men. Building on the minor success of the Civic Corps project, this article hopes to seed more research and to improve institutions’ ability to acknowledge the persistence of inequity and to provide Black students resources and access to programs that include civic engagement and service-learning.