by Grace Chavez
These Showcase Spotlights feature writing from 2023 Fall Showcase Award recipients. To read more about Fall Showcase and see all the students honored, head over to our blog post here.
Grace Chavez received an award for Exemplary Writing in an Academic Genre for her piece “Diné Nizhóní (Navajo Beauty): Native Presence and Belonging in Higher Education,” a research project on Indigenous students’ experiences at predominantly white institutions.
About this project, Grace writes: “This project deeply matters to me as an Indigenous scholar and writer. It is a crucial amalgamation of native experience and belonging centered knowledge that serves as a reminder of presence and survivance of indigenous peoples. Results of my research displayed that Native students on campus experience low perceptions of belonging fostered by the University of Denver. It is time universities critically examine their campuses and “diversity” initiatives beyond land acknowledgements and mascot (but not moniker) retirement. By investigating Native student experience at a PWI, we can best highlight student’s voices, by hearing their struggles, and emphasizing their strength, resilience, and presence. This will help us understand how present day implications of colonization and white supremacy affect Natives pursuing a higher education today. Results demonstrate that Native students at DU experience low-mid levels of belonging fostered by the university.”
View an excerpt from the project, capturing some of Grace’s research findings below:
Grace Chavez is a 3rd year undergrad at DU, pursuing a B.S. in psychology and triple minoring in biology, critical race & ethnic studies and leadership. She is passionate about completing her studies to become an adolescent psychologist, while integrating her indigeneity and love of animals into all aspects of career and life to create balance. And they have also discovered a great interest in working to advocate for student voices.