New Report Examines Safe Spaces in Higher Education

New Report Examines Safe Spaces in Higher Education

Understanding the Narratives of Safe Space to Inform Higher Education Policy is one of five reports generated from research funded by the inaugural Pullias Center Equity Alumni Awards created to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Pullias Center.

Cecile Sam (‘12), the publication’s author and former Pullias Center member, received her PhD in Urban Education from the University of Southern California and is currently an Assistant Professor at Rowan University. Her report is designed to give policymakers a broader perspective on safe spaces and the different ways that people have used the term in a higher education context.

“In recent years there have been scandals and controversies around the idea of safe spaces, and related policies, in higher education,” explains Sam in the report. “The volatility of the concept within higher education lies in the idea that a campus is a contested space, where various stakeholder groups vy for power and access to resources.”

The report provides a broad overview of the history and recent controversies surrounding safe space, and explains the variation of how safe space is defined or enacted at campus, division, and classroom levels within institutions. The report also includes a list of resources to further inform policymakers on the topic.

Visit the Pullias Center website for more information on other Pullias Center Equity Alumni Award-funded projects or the center’s other projects related to racial equity in higher education.


Understanding the Narratives of Safe Space to Inform Higher Education Policy

Understanding the Narratives of Safe Space to Inform Higher Education Policy


Cecile Sam

Pullias Center for Higher Education (2021)

The report provides a broad overview of the history and recent controversies surrounding safe space, and explains the variation of how safe space is defined or enacted at campus, division, and classroom levels within institutions. The report also includes a list of resources to further inform policymakers on the topic.

This is one of five reports generated from research funded by the inaugural Pullias Center Equity Alumni Awards created to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Pullias Center.

Categories: Racial Equity, Alumni Equity Award, Policymaking


  equity alumni award     racial equity  
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