Recently, Clarkson University Training and Development Coordinator Bria Cole ’16 along with Dr. Paryn Wallance, the Undergraduate Student and Diversity Outreach Administrator at Princeton University, presented “This Is How We Do It: African American Women’s Retention at HBCUs and PWIs” at the 2022 National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education Conference. Cole and Wallace examined the retention and persistence experiences of African American women at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) compared to their peers at Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs), highlighting how these students used co-curricular programs to successfully navigate the campus to create their own social and cultural networks in the larger college community. The focus was on equitable access to resources and the effectiveness of programming and co-curricular activities to ensure their successful matriculation.
Cole graduated from Georgia Southern University in 2020 with a Masters of Education degree in Higher Education Administration where her research focused on the experiences of African American women in higher education. Cole says her academic research was inspired by “the lack of representation of African American women in higher education…it is a theme seen among students and leadership. African American women not being as represented in the curriculum, classrooms, or co-curricular activities has a lasting effect on student success, this can be reflected in retention and persistence rates.” Cole goes on to say that, “as educators and student affairs personnel, it is our purpose to enhance the educational experience for the historically underrepresented students who are coming through the higher education system in higher numbers, but not receiving the support needed to succeed. Despite appearing diverse on the surface, many Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs) encounter impediments in retaining and graduating students of color.”
Cole is the Training and Professional Development Coordinator for Clarkson University’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Office. Focusing on inclusion and equity across university departments with staff and faculty, and among student groups. She serves as an advisor for various multicultural student organizations and serves as a member of the Black staff caucus at Clarkson University. She will be pursuing her doctorate this upcoming Fall to study Higher Education Leadership & Policy Studies, her continued research will include an inquiry to improve college retention and persistence for African American women, focusing on policy, access to resources, and effectiveness of programming. Even further studying recognized qualities in African American Women advancing into faculty and senior-level positions in higher education. She received her Bachelors of Science in Communications from Clarkson University (‘16) and received her Master’s of Education in Higher Education Administration (‘20) from Georgia Southern University.
Paryn A. Wallace, Ed.D. has been the Undergraduate Student and Diversity Outreach Administrator in the Princeton Neuroscience Institute since 2016. She has been at Princeton since 2013 and has over 20 years of experience working with specialized student populations providing developmentally appropriate academic and socio-personal advising to students at diverse institutions. Paryn is an adjunct professor at Rider University teaching student assessment, leadership, and change management in the Master of Arts Organizational Leadership program. While working at Princeton, she received a Doctor of Educational Leadership degree from Rider University. Her doctoral dissertation was entitled Understanding How First-Generation African American Undergraduate Women Navigate Their Collegiate Experience Through Cocurricular Experiences at One Ivy Institution. Paryn graduated with distinction.
https://www.clarkson.edu/news/clarkson-alumnae-bria-cole-16-presents-research-2022-naspa-conference
