Solidarity Across Multiple MSI Designations

In this episode we get in (racial) formation with Dra. Kristine Jan Cruz Espinoza, an assistant professor of Counseling and College Student Personnel at California Lutheran University. Dra. Espinoza’s research revolves around racial and organizational classifications, focusing on MSIs; particularly dual and multiple designated MSIs. She lays out the landscape of these institutions drawing on her dissertation titled, “Let’s get in (racial) formation: A three-paper exploration of dual- and multiple-designated Minority-Serving Institutions.” We talk about the complications, but also call on educators in these institutions to work in relation and solidarity across racialized lines. The call to action is to acknowledge that the number of dual and multiple designations is on the rise and we must do servingness work in relation and with responsibility. We also invent new words like, “AANAPI-Rizzies,” nodding to the University of California and other research institutions that are embracing multiple designations while remaining focused on their historic mission. This episode is a must listen for all HSI, AANAPISI, HBCU, and Black Serving Institution (BSI) educators and leaders. Let’s work in solidarity! 

Kristine Jan Cruz Espinoza (she/her/siya)

Assistant Professor of Counseling and College Student Personnel, California Lutheran University

X/Instagram: @kageceratops

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinejan 

https://linktr.ee/kristinejan

APA Citation: 

Garcia, G.A. (Host). (2025, May 4). Racialized Solidarity Across Multiple MSI Designations. (No.508) [Audio podcast episode]. In ¿Qué pasa, HSIs?. https://www.ginaanngarcia.com/podcast/

Show Notes: 

• Espinoza, K.J.C. (2024). Overview of Minority-Serving Institutions in the United States. State Higher Education Executive Officers Association. https://sheeo.org/project/sheeo-publications/
• Espinoza, K. J. C. & Watson, R. T. (2022) In the hands of students: The charge of a Minority-Serving Institution student council at a dual-designated Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution and Hispanic-Serving Institution. AAPI Nexus: Policy, Practice and Community, 19(1-2), 35-56. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1pk403dm 
• Nguyen, M. H., Espinoza, K. L., Gogue, D. T.-L., & Dinh, D. M. (2020). Looking to the next decade: Strengthening Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions through policy and practice. National Council of Asian Pacific Americans. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED608022.pdf  
• Alcantar, C. M., Rincón, B. E., & Espinoza, K. J. (2020). In a state of becoming: How institutions communicate Asian American and Pacific Islander- and Latinx-servingness through campus artifacts. Association of Mexican American Educators Journal, 14(3), 104-119. https://doi.org/10.24974/amae.14.3.405
• Espinoza, K. J. C., Rincón, B. E., Drake, B. M., Harbin, J. J., & Ethelbah, K. K. (2024). Oceania in the desert: A QuantCrit analysis of the (under)counting of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students at an AANAPISI-HSI. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/19345747.2024.2349671
• Ngo, F. J., Espinoza, K. J. C., Lee, D. E., & Teranishi, R. T. (2024), “We will come to you”: Serving newcomer immigrants and English learners at an AANAPISI community college. Innovative Higher Education. Online first https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-024-09763-z