Research on Grief Leadership & Trauma-Informed Practices in Higher Education
Grief Leadership Research Project
The COVID-19 pandemic has systemically peeled back the layers of our ways of life and exposed the most delicate parts of our society. With the immense loss experienced of loved ones, jobs, and daily activities, there is an increased importance to understand the ways in which faculty, staff, and students are navigating the various dimensions of grief and loss. More specifically, there is a need to not only understand their stories of navigating loss, but to also gain more insight into how or to what extent higher education leaders can step to the forefront to address emerging issues around mental health, grief, and loss. The goal of this project is to expand the literature on grief leadership in higher education and provide a framework that can be useful for higher education leaders who are looking to expand their capacity to lead others moving through loss and grief in their institutional contexts.
Research Lead:
Dr. Chinasa Elue
Unpacking Resiliency Expectations in Educational Development Work in Higher Education
The purpose of this project is to gain a better understanding of the resilience expectations and narratives communicated to educational development programs and personnel over the course of the pandemic. The goal of this project is to explore how framing the narrative of education development work around resilience impacts individuals in higher education and to determine how or to what extent these expectations may impact the programming offered by educational development units on campus. This study will highlight implications for policy and practice as well as areas for future research.
Research Team:
Drs. Chinasa Elue, Esther Jordan, & Laura Howard