An Autoethnographic Reflection of My Academic Privileges While Working with High School Interns

Abstract

In this article, I explore my academic privileges through using the autoethnographic method while working in an alternative school and with interns hired for an agricultural internship. Academic privilege is contextualized as those factors in an education setting that benefit some and not all; with consideration of various personal and social factors including, but not limited to, skin color, aspects of identity, economic disparity, resource availability, social relationships, social settings, etcetera. Data collection involved observations within the school and when working with the interns. There were also informal conversations. The observations and informal conversations were documented as field notes to use for personal audio recordings. The personal audio recordings were transcribed and thematically coded. The three themes were: (1) At the Alternative School, (2) Criminalization and Prejudice, and (3) Future Opportunities for The Interns. This article allows the reader to journey with me to a place of introspection, reflexivity, and contemplation.