Curating the Self and Embracing the Community

Luis Javier Pentón Herrera is Full Professor at the Akademia Ekonomiczno-Humanistyczna w Warszawie, Poland, the Coordinator of the Graduate TESOL Certificate at The George Washington University, United States, and Co-Editor of Tapestry: A Multimedia Journal for Teachers and English Learners.Ethan Trinh is a Vietnamese, queer, non-binary, immigrant, researcher, and critical language teacher educator and earned their doctorate at Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA. Their works focus on emotions and well-being in language education that embraces queerness as a healing teaching and research practice.Bedrettin Yazan is Associate Professor in the Department of Bicultural-Bilingual Studies at the University of Texas at San Antonio. His research focuses on language teacher identity, language policy and planning, and World Englishes. Methodologically he is interested in critical autoethnography, narrative inquiry, and qualitative case study.

• List of FiguresNotes on ContributorsIntroductionLuis Javier Pentón Herrera, Ethan Trinh and Bedrettin YazanPART 1: Curating the Self1 Navigating Queer and Latinx Identities throughout My Doctoral Program JourneyGabriel T. Acevedo Velázquez2 I’m Going Back to School: A Fortysomething-Year-Old Urban Appalachian and the AcademyRebecca L. Thacker3 Two Birds, One Queer Body, All Negotiation: An Autoethnography on the Pursuit of Dual Terminal DegreesErin H. York4 Asset, Not Deficit: The Growth Mindset of a First-Generation Doctoral CandidateMelinda Harrison5 Digging up Bones: A Duoethnography about Marriage, Parenting, and Doctoral StudyNick Bardo and Joanelle MoralesPART 2: Embracing the Community6 Sailing out of the Drift: A Duoethnographic Study of an Empowered PartnershipLisa D. Wood and Nara Yun7 The Balancing Act: A Duoethnographic Study of How Two Strangers Helped Each Other Hold It Together through the Doctoral ProcessAfiya Armstrong and Christel Young8 Tensions in Transition: Visual Collaborative Autoethnography as Analysis of and Healing from the Academic Job MarketLinda Helmick, Rebecca Borowski and Alexis Saba9 Between Writing and Tutoring: A Duoethnographic PerspectiveAhmad A. Alharthi and Caitlin Beare10 Resisting Neoliberal Norms through a Pedagogy of Care: A Collaborative Autoethnography of Three Doctoral Students’ Comprehensive Exams ExperienceKimberly Sterin, Katrina Struloeff and Christopher Fornaro11 Channeling the Inner Astronaut: Exploring Peer Relationships in Online Doctoral ProgramsOlya Perevalova and Anya EzhevskayaFinal Thoughts Luis Javier Pentón Herrera, Ethan Trinh and Bedrettin Yazan

"Bravo to all the contributors of this edited collection. The editors, in particular, worked tirelessly to cull a diverse body of experiences, voices, and identities in exploring the (auto) (duo) (collaborative) ethnographies of doctoral journeys. This is a timely collection as the need for doctoral curricula continues to shift with the sociocultural and political demands of the world." – Gloria Park, Professor, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, USA“Curating the Self and Embracing the Community: Autoethnographic Evocations of U.S. Doctoral Students in the Fields of Social Sciences and Humanities is a unique collection of autoethnographic narratives that offers profound insights into the trials and triumphs of pursuing a doctoral degree. The book beautifully weaves together personal accounts from U.S. doctoral students, providing a captivating exploration of the intersection between the personal and the communal in their doctoral journeys. With its carefully curated stories, the book captures the challenges, transformations, and empowering communities that shape personal growth and discovery. This thought-provoking and inspiring volume is a must-read for anyone exploring, or currently engaged in, a doctoral journey in the humanities and social sciences.” – Silvia Vaccino-Salvadore, Assistant Professor, American University of Sharjah, UAE“Curating the Self and Embracing the Community: Autoethnographic Evocations of U.S. Doctoral Students in the Fields of Social Sciences and Humanities offers present and aspiring doctoral students a unique perspective often overlooked in academic discourse. Many embarking on the doctoral journey remain unaware of the profound impact that critical self-examination, repositioning, and personal and professional transformation can have. Through engaging autoethnographic narratives, this work beckons scholars to find camaraderie within an environment marked by both excellence and isolation, all while honing new skills. The captivating, authentic, and insightful accounts presented in this groundbreaking volume make it an indispensable read for anyone venturing into the fields of humanities and social sciences.” – Katie Archer Olson, Associate Professor/Co-Director of Education, Alaska Pacific University