“Your Agenda Item, Our Experience”: Two Administrators’ Insights on Campus Unrest at Mizzou

Abstract:For this study, we use duoethnography in conducting an analysis of recorded pláticas, which is understood as a collaborative process of dialogue to explain our experiences as previous administrators at the University of Missouri during times of racial unrest. Through this article, we provide an understanding of the events leading up to the fall of 2015 and reflect on our experiences as administrators working directly with students and doing inclusion and diversity work. Utilizing critical race theory and critical race feminism we analyze our roles in the movement, the feelings that arose because of institutional dynamics, as well as the oppressive conditions we experienced. In turn, this article sheds light on how the lack of institutional support for inclusion and diversity efforts led to increased campus turmoil and a challenging experience for us as professionals.