The purpose of this study was to understand Clark University student engagement with Choices, an on-campus peer-led sexual health organization. Undergraduate and graduate students were asked about their perceptions of Choices in a digital anonymous survey. Analysis of the survey data, in conjunction with archival research and participant observation, illuminated that Choices exists as a figured world within a larger institutional context (Holland et al., 1998). This defines what Choices’ values are, who belongs in the figured world, and who remains on the margins. This also encompasses Clark students’ critiques of the organization, exposing the separation between Choices as a club, vs. Choices as a resource, vs. Choices as a community. Acknowledgement of this disconnect prompts reimagining of Choices, so a group of Clark students co-constructed an expanded figured world through a dialogic reflection process. This resulted in a set of recommendations for organizational improvement that will be shared with the Choices 2025-2026 Executive Board.
Here is the link to my Praxis Thesis Defense Presentation: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/13exWPt8EH6HJConoxB-N2y9D84SEaKUEufNrJKWR4K4/edit?usp=sharing