Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Doctor of Education

Major

Educational Practice

Date of Defense

5-16-2023

Graduate Advisor

Thomasina Hassler

Committee

Kenton Mershon

Keith Miller

Abstract

This autoethnographic narrative examines the importance of conceiving and sharing liberating stories, and participating in independent communal training processes that advance young African American males' psychosocial and mental development. To bring my analyses to light, I applied the foundational frameworks of African Worldview and Critical Race Theory to my research to uncover many of the influences that helped me evolve from boyhood (nescient) to manhood (laborer) and later to Godhood (master who is in union with all).

Employing the autoethnographic methodology enabled me to share key points in my educational journey, which propelled my transformation. This contemplative engagement was a moving meditation that revealed both my miseducation in America’s racial caste system and the process that was critical to my liberation from a path of self-destruction to the road of excellence.

My findings highlight the guidance, social connections, mentorship, and actions I needed to not only survive, but more importantly, thrive. This journey involves reconnecting with the cultural and spiritual best practices from my great African past to create healthy communities in the present that positively transforms the future. Learning, in this context, created healthy spaces that helped me to develop a productive life story, and ultimately a personal trajectory of love, peace, and happiness.

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