I study college student development, learning, and success. I tend to think through ecological systems and I do most of my work in ways that consider students’ social identities in their experiences and outcomes: mixed-race college students, LGBTQ students, students at women’s colleges and universities around the world. Recently I have begun to work on institutional ecologies that promote student success and thriving, and I am starting to think about critical ecological approaches to this work. My CV includes a detailed list of publications and funding support for these projects. Here are some highlights.
Books about College Students and Student Development
Patton, L. D., Renn, K. A., Guido, F. M., & Quaye, S. J. (2016). Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice, Third Edition. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
Renn, K. A., & Reason, R. D. (2021). College students in the United States: Characteristics, experiences, and outcomes, Second Edition. Sterling, VA: Stylus.
Publications about…
LGBTQ Students
Co-authors are members of the research team of the National Study of LGBTQ College Student Success and additional collaborators.
Nguyen, D. J., Copeland, O., & Renn, K. A. (2022). LGBQ+ students’ college search processes: Implications for college transitions. Journal of the First-Year Experience & Students in Transition, 34 (1), 43-60. Link to article.
Noble, C. E., & Renn, K. A. (2021). Whiteness and the rainbow: White LGBTQ+ students’ racial identity development. Journal of Critical Studies of Race and Ethnicity, 7 (2), 103-135. https://doi.org/10.15763/issn.2642-2387.2021.7.2.103-135
Miller, R., Dika, S., Nguyen, D. J., Woodford, M. R., & Renn, K. A. (2021). LGBTQ+ college students with disabilities: Demographics and risk and protective factors. Journal of LGBT Youth, 18 (1), 60-77. https://doi.org/10.1080/19361653.2019.1706686.
Hill, R. L., Kilgo, C. A., Shea, H. D., Nguyen, D. J., Lange, A. C., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2021). How LGBTQ+ students thrive in college. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 58 (3), 267-281. https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2020.1738241
Mollet, A. L., Holmes, J., Linley, J. L., & Renn, K. A. (2021). Queer in residence: Exploring the on-campus housing experiences of queer college students. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 58 (1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2020.1717962
Nguyen, D. J., Linley, J. L., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2020). Exploring LGBTQ+ students’ awareness of housing and anti-discrimination policies across institution type for special issue of Journal of College and University Student Housing, 46 (3), 28-44. https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/acuho/journal_vol46no3/index.php#/28
Kilgo, C. A., Linley, J. L., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2019). High impact for whom? The influence of environment and identity on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer college students’ participation in high-impact activities. Journal of College Student Development, 60(4), 421-436.
Mathies, N., Coleman, T., McKie, R. M., Woodford, M. R., Courtice, E. L., Travers, R., & Renn, K. A. (2019). The effects of hearing “That’s so gay” and “No homo” on academic outcomes for LGB college students. Journal of LGBT Youth, 16(3), 255-277.
Linley, J. L., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2018). Examining the academic microsystems of LGBTQ STEM majors. Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering, 24 (1), 1-16.
Woodford, M. R., Joslin, J. Y., Pitcher, E. N., & Renn, K. A. (2017). A mixed-methods inquiry into trans* environmental microaggressions on college campuses: Experiences and outcomes. Journal of Ethnic & Cultural Diversity in Social Work, 26 (1-2), 95-111. doi: 10.1080/15313204.2016.1263817
Ecologies that Promote College Student Success
Renn, K. A., Smith, B. R. G., & Noble, C. E. (Eds). New ecological systems approaches to understanding higher education. New Directions for Higher Education, 204. Wiley. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/15360741/2023/2023/204
Torres, V., & Renn, K. A. (2021) Does metric-centered leadership generate more silos? An organizational model for student success integration. Change, 53 (2), 49-56 https://doi.org/10.1080/00091383.2021.1883982
Renn, K. A. (2020). Student success mindset: How residential peer staff understand and enact their role in student success. Journal of College and University Student Housing, 46 (2), 10-27. https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/acuho/journal_vol46no2/index.php#/10
Pitcher, E. N., Camacho, T., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2018). Affirming policies, programs, and supportive services: Understanding organizational supports promoting LGBTQ+ college student success. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 11 (2), 117-132. doi: 10.1037/dhe0000048
Nguyen, D. J., Brazelton, G. B., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2018). Exploring the influence of LGBTQ+ student services resources on student success at community colleges: A mixed methods analysis. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 42 (11), 783-796. doi: 10.1080/10668926.2018.1444522
Nicolazzo, Z. D., Pitcher, E. N., Renn, K. A., & Woodford, M. R. (2017). An exploration of trans* kinship as a strategy for student success. Qualitative Studies in Education, 30 (3), 305-319.
Stewart, D. L., Brazelton, G. B., & Renn, K. A. (Eds.). (2015). LGBTQ college student success. New Directions for Student Services, 152. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Women’s Colleges and Universities Worldwide
Renn, K. A. (2021). Leading against the tide: Women leaders at women’s colleges and universities. International Briefs for Higher Education Leaders, Boston College Center for International Higher Education and the American Council on Education. Download PDF.
Renn, K. A. (2017). The role of women’s colleges and universities in providing access to postsecondary education. Review of Higher Education, 41(1), pp. 91-112.
Renn, K. A. (2014). Women’s colleges and universities in a global context. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Updated August 2022