Building a Culture of Care: The Development of an Ethnic Studies Faculty Learning Community
by Arlene Daus-Magbual, Maharaj Desai, Kira Donnell, Jee Soo Kang, and Grace J. Yoo
ABSTRACT: There has been growing interest in Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) as a tool to build community and increase teaching effectiveness for faculty in institutions of higher education. This paper seeks to understand qualitatively the impact of an Ethnic Studies FLC on increasing faculty capacity to improve pedagogy and better serve undergraduates who are first-generation, low-income, or come from underrepresented Asian American and Pacific Islander groups. Qualitative approaches were used including open-ended comments from surveys (n=50), focus group (n=8), and in-depth interviews (n=10) collected between 2018-22. Results from these interviews include the following themes: expanding faculty capacity to support students holistically, developing pedagogies of care in the classroom, and creating spaces for faculty to thrive and cultivate community.
Article Citation: Arlene Daus-Magbual, Maharaj Desai, Kira Donnell, Jee Soo Kang, and Grace J. Yoo (2024) Building a Culture of Care: The Development of an Ethnic Studies Faculty Learning Community. AAPI Nexus: Policy, Practice and Community: 2024, Vol. 21, No. 1 & 2.