Mapping the Postcolonial Across Urban and Suburban College Access Geographies

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn US cities, a domino effect of concentrating poverty and suburbanizing wealth shapes discourses of local higher education access for residents of color. How the racialization of space mirrors colonial binaries of Good/Evil, Black/White and Civilized/Uncivilized is part and parcel to understanding city and county geographies surrounding college campuses. Although the college access and choice literature addresses racial and ethnic issues related to the likelihood of students of color attending college, the literature excludes how external campus racial climates are part of postcolonial geographies that contribute to racial and ethnic diversity on local college campuses. Situated in the City of Rochester, New York, I employ Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to collect and analyze data from the US Census and Integrated Post-Secondary Education Data Systems (IPEDS). This article finds that there are postcolonial relationships in the racial composition of urban and suburban areas, local colleges, urban economic underdevelopment, and transportation.