2025 Theses Doctoral

In Search of Renewal: Women of Color as Leaders and Change Agents in Higher Music Education

Rodriguez, Adrian Omar

Rooted in long-standing histories of racial, class, and gender exclusion, Higher Music Education Institutions continue to grapple with acknowledging diversity as a pillar of decolonization. This multiple-bound case study centers the testimonios of three professional Latina singers regarding their experiences in music schooling and four female leaders of color and their work in a highly competitive music conservatory.

Foregrounding institutional change, this study explored how these women of color disrupt narrowly defined processes of knowledge production in higher music education by enacting grassroots, bottom-up policy practice and the oppositional consciousness of Third World Feminism.

More specifically, it examined how these women (1) navigate institutional policy structures, (2) understand the power dynamics shaping legitimacy discourse, and (3) enact agentive strategies. The collaborative data production process revealed that Latina singers resisted cultural erasure and Eurocentric biases by building community, advocating for Latin American music, and challenging exclusionary standards.

The female leaders of color confronted White, male-dominated leadership norms that perpetuated tokenistic diversity and silencing. Their strategies include code-switching, data-driven advocacy, and community-based leadership models to foster meaningful inclusion and disrupt hierarchical power structures. Together, the women in the study advocate for institutional policies that (1) promote meaningful inclusion, (2) redefine success and excellence, (3) prioritize well-being, (4) foster supportive communities, and (5) embrace art as civic engagement.