ABSTRACT
Leila stood at the top of the stairs that led to the administration building’s courtyard. She oft en passed through the building and courtyard on her way back to her residence hall aft er class; most students passed through this part of campus sometime during their day. Today, as Leila was watching students walk by, it occurred to her that they all seemed to look alike and that she didn’t really look like any of them. Coming from the outskirts of Chicago, she’d always been surrounded by all kinds of people. Her friends represented a spectrum of races and cultures. When Leila decided to attend Bowden College, she knew she was going to a predominantly White, small college and that she would look diff erent from most of the other students, but she was unprepared for how diff erent she would feel. One semester into her fi rst year, Leila was realizing that college meant more than getting good grades and making new friends; it was also challenging her to fi gure out who she was-especially when she didn’t necessarily see a space for the person she was envisioning.
