Chris Linder, PhD

Linder is currently a professor of higher education at the University of Utah.

Tell us a bit about your background: What is your area of research? What is your most recent journal-editing experience?

Broadly, my research interests concern issues of equity in higher education. My current focus is on addressing sexual violence among college students through a power-conscious lens with the goal of interrupting harm before it happens. My previous scholarship focused on identity-based student activism and anti-racist feminist identity development.

I have served in various editorial roles for higher education journals over the years, serving on many editorial boards, including the Journal of Diversity in Higher Education (JDHE), the Journal of College Student Development, the Journal of Women and Gender in Higher Education, and The Review of Higher Education. I also served as an associate editor for JDHE, The Journal of Higher Education, and the College Student Affairs Journal.

Briefly, what are your main priorities? For example, how will you grow readership, what type of scholarship would you like to see in the journal, and what kind of content are you hoping to attract?

The JDHE has an exceptionally strong reputation in higher education as a journal that provides developmental feedback to authors. My intention is to maintain the journal’s reputation for consistently providing thoughtful feedback to authors by offering the editorial board and ad hoc reviewers professional development opportunities—for example, quarterly webinars and workshops.

Why is this journal important for the field? What is its relevance to society? What are the hot issues in your area right now?

In recent years, issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion in higher education have consumed the attention of many stakeholders, albeit for different reasons. Today’s political climate, in which many state legislatures are attempting to legislate away strides made toward equity and inclusion in higher education, makes the work of the authors published in the journal more relevant than ever. The JDHE provides a space for scholars in higher education to converse with each other about strategies for engaging with the larger public regarding equity issues and to ensure that all interested readers stay on the cutting edge of scholarship around equity, diversity, and inclusion. In particular, to solve the world’s most pressing problems, everyone must be present at the table and able to make their voices heard; this requires institutions of higher education to intentionally amplify voices that have historically been ignored. For example, the challenges associated with climate change and artificial intelligence, to name just two pressing issues, will never be effectively addressed if the same perspectives and the same sets of questions from the past several decades are the only ones considered. Ensuring that people with a variety of perspectives are at the table and able to be heard will enable the exchange of a wide range of insights and ideas that should be taken into consideration when addressing the problems all humans face.

Do you have plans for a special issue or changes to the editorial process? Have you introduced or are you planning to introduce any changes?

Nope! The processes established by Kimberly A. Griffin, Roger L. Worthington, and other leaders continue to serve the journal well. My focus will be on the continued development and engagement of reviewers to ensure that the journal’s editorial and publishing processes remain developmental and on the cutting edge of some of the most promising methodologies available.