Steel Magnolias in Higher Ed: How Perceptions of American Southern Culture Affected the Higher Education Experiences of Rural Southern Women Master’s Graduates
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (Ed.D)
Department
Higher Edu and Learning Technology
Date of Award
Fall 2024
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore how perceptions of American Southern culture affected the higher education experiences of rural Southern women master’s graduates. Despite the expanding opportunities of higher education in a post-2020 world, students originating from rural communities often face unique challenges, with women from the Southern region confronting a distinctive set of obstacles than their counterparts from different parts of the country. Drawing upon a mixed-methods approach using surveys, interviews, and journals, this study explored the experiences and outcomes of rural women graduate students who pursued advanced degrees. The findings suggested that certain aspects of Southern culture posed significant challenges for female students from the region, specifically entrenched gender norms, the South’s unhealthy obsession with nostalgia, restrictive doctrine influence of Evangelical Christianity and the oppressive influence of far-right political ideologies. By shedding light on these multifaceted challenges, this research augmented the existing literature and underscored the urgent need to address these issues, particularly in the backdrop of an increasingly polarized climate enveloping the United States.
Advisor
Dimitra Smith
Subject Categories
Education | Educational Psychology
Recommended Citation
Bausinger, Tina Machelle, "Steel Magnolias in Higher Ed: How Perceptions of American Southern Culture Affected the Higher Education Experiences of Rural Southern Women Master’s Graduates" (2024). Electronic Theses & Dissertations. 1228.
https://digitalcommons.tamuc.edu/etd/1228