Navigating the Academic Minefield Armored With a TRY-Consciousness

Abstract

This article examines how existing legislative pressures, particularly anti-DEI mandates reshape doctoral education in rural United States. Using an autoethnography of an African American assistant professor at a public university in rural southeast Texas, the article explores the dynamic consciousness an academic scholar must possess to withstand the cognitive social, physical and behavioral challenges permeating in an environment absent of fundamental protections. The article incorporates ideals of academic freedom, equity-mindedness, and structural-functionalism frameworks while drawing parallels to historical racial struggles and evolving identity constructs. The narrative highlights how underrepresented faculty remain in a constant state of innovation despite normalized constraints, calling for altruistic policy reforms and institutional courage in doctoral programs and tenure track service mandates.