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About Charles H.F. Davis III

Charles H.F. Davis III is an assistant professor in the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education and the director of the Campus Abolition Research Lab at the University of Michigan. Dr. Davis has more than a decade of professional experience and expertise on issues of racial equity, diversity, and inclusion in higher education as well as the private sector. As an award-winning faculty member, Dr. Davis has taught undergraduate and graduate courses, advised graduate students, and supervised graduate research. Dr. Davis is engaged in an active ethnographic research program concerned with deeply understanding contemporary student activism, political engagement, and social movements at the intersections of campus and community. Dr. Davis is co-editor of Student Activism, Politics, and Campus Climates in Higher Education (Routledge, Taylor & Francis) and has published nearly three dozen scholarly publications, which have been cited in amicus curiae brief to the Supreme Court of the United States and included in expert testimony before the California State Assembly Select Committee on Campus Climate. In addition to research and teaching, Dr. Davis has served various universities and professional associations through committee chairpersonship, (sub)committee participation, proposal and manuscript review, and board membership. Additionally, Dr. Davis’ work has been featured by or quoted in the United States and Internationally in the Los Angeles Times, Chronicle of Higher Education, Diverse Issues in Higher Education, EdWeek, Inside Higher Ed, Academe, Change Magazine, Colorlines, and various other national and local media outlets.

Positions

July 2020 - Present Assistant Professor of Higher Education, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor ‐ Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education
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July 2017 - June 2020 Assistant Professor of Clinical Education, University of Southern California
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July 2017 - December 2019 Chief Strategy Officer, University of Southern California ‐ USC Race and Equity Center
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2014 - 2017 Lecturer, University of Pennsylvania ‐ Graduate School of Education
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Curriculum Vitae



Research Interests

Student Activism and Social Movements in College, Digital Media and Social Change in Higher Education, Race and Racism, and Systemic Oppression

Grants

2018 - 2019 NCID Pop-Up Grant
University of Michigan National Center for Institutional Diversity
Protest Policy Project
Role: Principal Investigator
$2,000
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Professional Service and Affiliations

2015 - Present Dean of Curriculum, Kappa Alpha Psi Undergraduate Leadership Insitute
2011 - Present Member, Association for the Study of Higher Education
2010 - Present Member, American Educational Research Association
2018 - 2020 Member, University of Southern California Strategic Plan, Transformation Subcomittee
2017 - 2020 Member, USC Rossier Diversity Curriculum Development Committee
2017 - 2020 Member, USC Rossier Postsecondary Administration and Student Affairs Curriculum Committee
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Honors and Awards

  • Diverse Issues in Higher Education, Emerging Scholar
  • NASPA Melvene D. Hardee Dissertation Award, Runner-up
  • Ford Dissertation Fellowship, Honorable Mention
  • Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society
  • Golden Key Honor Society
  • Omicron Delta Kappa National Honorary
  • USC Rossier Student Organization, Outstanding Faculty Member
  • USC Rossier Postsecondary Administration and Student Affairs, Faculty Member of the Year

Courses

  • Advanced Qualitative Research Methods
  • Research Methods and Data Analysis
  • Education and Social Change
  • Power, Equity, and Diversity
  • Administration in Higher Education
  • The Politics of Difference
  • Gender in College
  • Activism and Social Movements in Higher Education
  • Critical Perspectives on Student Identity Development in College
  • Higher Education in the United States
  • Student Affairs and the Black College Experience
  • Media, Fashion, and Black Feminist Thought

Education

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2011 - 2015 PhD, Doctoral Student, University of Arizona ‐ Education Policy Studies and Practice
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Recent Works (6)

Published in 2022-2024.

Articles (11)

Peer-reviewed journal articles.