Structures of opportunity for historically underrepresented, immigrant, and international students moving into and through higher education; mobility, migration, and the internationalization of higher education; African and African Diaspora populations in higher education; race, diversity, and equity in higher education
Chrystal A. George Mwangi, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Higher Education Program at George Mason University. Her scholarship centers on (1) structures of opportunity and inequity impacting the trajectories of racially minoritized students into and through college; (2) (in)equity in higher education internationalization and the use of higher education as a tool for international mobility/migration; (3) African and African Diaspora populations in higher education, emphasizing the impact of race, racism and coloniality. Some of her recent research projects examine the educational experiences of Black immigrant collegians; the role of family and local community in college access and success; the racialization of international students; and diversity, equity, and inclusion goals within global higher education.
Dr. George Mwangi is a recipient of NAFSA’s Innovative Research in International Education Award and has also received a Comparative & International Education Society (CIES) Study Abroad and International Student SIG Best Article Award. Her work has been published in journals including Harvard Educational Review, Higher Education, Research in Higher Education, Review of Higher Education, and Teachers College Record.
Dr. George Mwangi is an Associate Editor for the Journal for Diversity in Higher Education and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of College Student Development and Review of Higher Education. She has served in leadership and service positions with the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE), American Educational Research Association (AERA), and Comparative & International Education Society (CIES). Prior to becoming a faculty member, she worked for a number of years as a college administrator including positions in undergraduate admissions, multicultural affairs, student conduct, and academic advising.
Bettencourt, G. M., George Mwangi, C. A., Green, K. & Morales, D. (2022). But do I need a college degree?: College-going perceptions of students enrolled in a career and technical high school. Innovative Higher Education, 47, 453-470.
Friedensen, R., Lauterbach, A., Kimball, E., & George Mwangi, C. A. (2022) Examining the role of family in the development of pre-college STEM aspirations among students with disabilities. Journal of Postsecondary Student Success, 1(3), 13-31.
George Mwangi, C. A., Mansour, K., & Hedayet, M. (2021). Immigrant identity and experiences in U.S. higher education research: A systematic review. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 23(2), 45-69.
George Mwangi, C. A., Chen, J. H., Chinkondenji, P. (2021). Exploring geopolitics in U.S. campus internationalization plans. In J. J. Lee (Ed.) U.S. power in international higher education. Rutgers University Press.
George Mwangi, C. A. & Yao, C. W. (2021). U.S. higher education internationalization through an equity driven lens: An analysis of concepts, history, and research. In L. W. Perna (Ed.) Higher education: Handbook of theory and research (vol. 36, pp. 549-609). Springer.
Thelamour, B. & George Mwangi, C. A. (2021). “I disagreed with a lot of values:” Exploring Black immigrant agency in ethnic-racial socialization. International Journal of Interculutral Relations, 85, 26-36.
George Mwangi, C. A., (2020). Black international student lives matter. International Higher Education, 104,6-8.
Yao, C., George Mwangi, C. A., & Malaney Brown, V. (2020). Exploring the intersections of transnationalism and critical race theory: A critical race analysis of international student experiences in the United States [Invited Reprint]. In L. M. Berger (Ed.) Social justice and international education: Research, practice, and perspectives (pp. 245-266). NAFSA.
Griffin, K. A. & George Mwangi, C. A. (2020). Similar, but not the same: Considering the intersections of race, ethnicity, and nativity in the lives of Black students. In R. T. Teranishi, B. M. D. Nguyen, C. M. Alcantar, & E. R. Curammeng (Eds.) Measuring race: Why disaggregating data matters for addressing educational inequality (pp. 103-118). Teachers College Press.
2021-2022, Co-Principal Investigator - From ‘Cash Cows’ to ‘Yellow Peril’: Examining the Positioning of Asian International Students in the United States in Contentious Times. Spencer Foundation ($44,293)
2019-2020, Principal Investigator - Researching diversity, inclusion, and student success: Towards a global campus climate framework. Worldwide Universities Network (£24,048)
2018-2021, Co-Principal Investigator - Examining collective impact in a community-university partnership to broaden girls’ participation in science from middle school to high school graduation. National Science Foundation ($299,267)
2014-2015, Principal Investigator - Foreign-born Black collegians learning race in a U.S. context. NASPA Foundation ($2,500)
HE 610: Research Design in Higher Education
HE 710: Leadership in Higher Education
HE 711: Policy Analysis in Higher Education
Ph.D., Higher Education, University of Maryland College Park
M.S., Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration, Florida State University
B.A., International Business, Rollins College
Research quoted by Fischer, K. (2022, March 21). The administrators who feel erased by COVID. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-administrators-who-feel-erased-by-covid
Research quoted by Sawahel, W. (2022, January 8). U.S. international HE ‘reinforces racism,’ study finds. University World News. https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=2022010810042948
Quoted by West, C. (2021, November 2). Social justice pedagogy: A conceptual framework for all international educators. International Educator. https://www.nafsa.org/ie-magazine/2021/11/2/social-justice-pedagogy-conceptual-framework-all-international-educators
Interviewed by Walker, N. (2020, November 4). Dialogue on International Programs. Dignity and Respect in Action: The Podcast. https://anchor.fm/umass-equity-inclusion/episodes/The-UMass-International-Programs-Office-featuring-Kalpen-Trivedi-and-Chrystal-George-Mwangi-em9v14
Interviewed in Leal, F. (2020, September 8). Para além do discurso acadêmico dominante sobre internacionalização da educação superior: Extratos de entrevista com Chrystal George Mwangi, Professora Associada da University of Massachusetts Amherst, Estados Unidos. Iberoamerica Social. https://iberoamericasocial.com/
Quoted in Loo, B. (2019, March 26). International students and experiences with race in the United States. World Education News + Reviews (WENR). https://wenr.wes.org/2019/03/international-students-and-experiences-with-race-in-the-united-states
George Mwangi, C. A. (2019, February 21). Seeing a theme come to life. NAFSA Blog. http://network.nafsa.org/blogs/shanna-saubert/2019/02/21/guest-blog-post-george-mwangi-seeing-a-theme
Interviewed in West, C. (2018, November/December). Research spotlight: Chrystal George Mwangi recipient of the 2018 NAFSA Innovative Research in International Education Award. International Educator, https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nafsa/ie_20181112/index.php?pg=36&nxtview=text.
Onyenekwu, I. & George Mwangi, C. A. (2017, November 27). “Who counts as a Black student” is not a new debate. Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/admissions/views/2017/11/27/debate-about-who-counts-black-student-not-new-essay