Axe ’Em, Jacks!
The Research Advancing Identities and Student Experiences Center was founded in spring 2022 as a strategic initiative to revitalize research and outreach focused on the evolving identities and experiences of college students. Recognizing that identity development begins well before students enter higher education and continues long after graduation, the center seeks to understand how personal, social and academic identities are shaped through formative experiences during and surrounding the college years.
The RAISE Center aims to explore the full spectrum of student experiences that define the contemporary student body, using research and critical praxis to highlight the intersections of identity that influence students’ academic trajectories and personal growth. By examining students' lived experiences prior to entering college, as they transition through college and beyond graduation, the center supports scholarship addressing key developmental moments, challenges and institutional supports that contribute to their persistence and success.
Through programming, research and outreach, the RAISE Center facilitates discussions on emerging student trends, identity development and systemic challenges within higher education. It serves as a platform to amplify often overlooked voices, analyze the efficacy of institutional support structures and advance research on how various student identities shape and are shaped by the college experience. By fostering collaboration among scholars, educators and student support professionals, the center aims to inform policies and practices that enhance student success from pre-college preparation through post-college transitions.
Register Now for the Third Annual RAISE Conference - March 20, 2026
The RAISE Center’s third annual conference is scheduled for March 20, 2026, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center. Be on the lookout for next year’s conference theme and information on how to submit presentations and registration. The RAISE conference is always free to attend.
See the conference schedule from last year’s conferences below to learn what you can expect for the 2026 conference.
2025 RAISE Conference Schedule
Conference Proposal Submissions
Please note: A submission to the RAISE Center Journal is a submission to the RAISE Conference. The journal submission is required to submit to the conference.
For questions or additional information, email raise@sfasu.edu.
RAISE Center Journal
The RAISE Center is excited to continue to host the RAISE Center Journal with its second issue set for publication in March 2025. The first issue of the RAISE Center Journal included the proceedings of the inaugural RAISE Conference held on February 22, 2024. Themed “The Research Odyssey: Charting New Waters in Identities, Experiences, and Community Engagement”, this conference welcomed diverse and insightful submissions from the university community. The journal showcased top presentations, epitomizing the breadth and depth of research aligned with the journal's mission.
In line with the RAISE Center mission, the journal aims to reshape the discourse around the diversity of college student identities, understanding of inclusive and transformative experiences on college student development and the transition beyond college. This peer-reviewed publication will encompass a wide range of research, reflective of the center’s core objectives.
The RAISE Center Journal will serve as a platform for original research, promoting collaboration among SFA researchers, graduate students, administrators and practitioners. It aims to enhance research capacity in higher education and form a network of scholars dedicated to this vital field.
Journal and Conference Timeline
- Nov. 15, 2024 - Call for Proposals open
- Jan. 26, 2025 - Call for Proposals closes
- Feb. 3, 2025 - Notification of acceptance
- Feb. 21, 2025 - RAISE Conference
- Mar. 31, 2025 - RAISE Center Journal Conference Proceedings published
RAISE Center Mission
The mission of the RAISE Center will be to support research activities and outreach about higher education specifically related to the identity development and experiences of college students.
The center’s activities are organized around centering student experiences through three A’s: amplifying voice, affirming identity and advancing belonging.
- Amplifying voice will foreground marginalized social identities across student populations to explore how the college student experience expands their developmental narrative despite systemic barriers and personal challenges.
- Affirming identity will center specific identities across gender, racial and cultural identities to discuss how institutions or their individual lived experiences influence their identity salience and may facilitate learning across differences.
- Advancing belonging will highlight the potential ways in which the college experience can involve student populations the research notes as “invisible identities,” which are often pushed to the far boundaries of the cocurricular experience.
Research Activities and Opportunities
- Enhance research capacity about higher education related to college student identities and promote research collaboration among SFA researchers, graduate students, administrators and practitioners
- Build capacity to be competitive in obtaining grant funding and sustainable external funding
- Author and collaborate on original research by forming an extended network of higher education researchers and scholars who examine college student identities and their experiences
- Promote the study of college student identity research related to undergraduate student experiences through the creation of an academic journal
- Disseminate knowledge and scholarship through public service, which will include continuing education and training workshops
Contact the RAISE Center
For research projects and to connect with the RAISE Center, please email RAISE@sfasu.edu, or you may contact either of the co-directors for more information.
Dr. Gina Fe Causin
Co-Director of the RAISE Center
School of Human Sciences
936.468.1411
Dr. Michael Walker
Co-Director of the RAISE Center
Department of Psychology
936.468.6334
RAISE Center
Human Sciences North, Room 104-B
P.O. Box 13014