Attending to Sexuality in Servingness: A Phenomenological Exploration of the Experiences of Latina Lesbians at a Hispanic-Serving Institution

• Published in: Journal of diversity in higher education Vol. 17; no. 4; pp. 493 - 503
• Main Authors: Vega, Gisela P., Duran, Antonio, McGill, Craig M., Rocco, Tonette S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Educational Publishing Foundation 01-08-2024
• Subjects: College Students; Communities; Female; Higher Education; Human; Latinos/Latinas; Lesbianism; Phenomenology; Sexuality; Social Norms; Latina; Hispanic-Serving Institution; lesbian; sexuality; servingness
• ISSN: 1938-8926; 1938-8934
• DOI: 10.1037/dhe0000434

As the number of Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) continues to rise in the United States, higher education scholars and practitioners have increasingly wondered how HSIs fulfill their charge to serve Latinx/a/o communities. However, Latinx/a/o sexually minoritized students often go unrecognized in conversations on servingness at HSIs. This phenomenological study addresses this gap by exploring the experiences of 15 Latina lesbians navigating their race/ethnicity, sexuality, and gender at an HSI. Informed by scholarship on how intersecting systems of power affect Latinx/a/o communities differentially, findings revealed how encountering isolation and alienation from peers, living within and against traditional gender norms and expectations, together with articulating the importance of affirming environments and individuals characterized the experiences of Latina lesbians at the institution. From the participants' stories, we used literature on servingness to explore how their experiences reflected organizational commitments to sexually minoritized students at the HSI. We then offer implications for research and practice.