ABSTRACT
LeMelle wrote, “It is only through establishing Black as another legitimate point of reference that the Black American can attain rst-class citizenship and the curse of racism can be neutralized” (2002, pp. 132-133). He proposed that historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) had a unique role in helping America make good on its promise of dream ful llment for all of its citizens. We argue that this may be true of all minority serving institutions (MSIs), those institutions with a mission toward serving and including racially/ethnically underrepresented students. MSIs have o en been leaders in empowering students to earn higher education while also valuing students’ histories, cultures, traditions, and languages. An exploration of MSIs can reveal important insights as to how to better enact diversity-and-inclusion in other postsecondary institutions.
