Getting to Know You: Katherine Rodela
#FacultyFriday with Katherine Rodela — October 08, 2021
Faculty role: Associate professor of Educational Leadership
Why did you choose to do what you do?
I’ve been passionate about making our world a more just and inclusive place since I was little, and teaching was a natural extension of this interest. When I first entered my doctoral program, I was unsure of how educational research would fit into my own personal vision of social change. However, I soon came to realize that research can and should be a critical part of enacting justice across all levels of education. I love that in my role at WSU, I am able to continue teaching while simultaneously conducting research focused on BIPOC students and their literacy experiences.
What has been your favorite thing about WSU, as well as the College of Education?
I love that we truly are one university, geographically dispersed. We truly serve the whole state of Washington and collaborate together. It isn’t easy to build relationships across the distance, but we have been doing virtual meetings for years, even before the pandemic, and had that shared commitment to serve across the College.
What responsibility comes with working for a land-grant university? Why is being a land-grant special?
Being a land-grant means we serve the people of Washington state and that our research, teaching, and service is focused on meeting critical community and regional needs. At the same time, being a land-grant also means we have a historical legacy of “land-grab” that is part of our institution and the systemic taking of Indigenous lands. To me, this means we need to do more to strengthen our service to Indigenous communities and nations in Washington state and re-evaluate both our university’s ownership of land and how to make this injustice right.
If you could improve one thing about WSU, what would it be?
I think all faculty and staff should work on different campuses during their time, to truly see the reach we have and understand what it is like across the campuses. I would especially recommend this for Pullman faculty who haven’t visited other campuses like Tri-Cities, Vancouver, Spokane, or Everett campuses. When we do that we get a better sense of the work we are doing across the state and the reach we truly could have as a collective.
What makes you an Agent of Change?
I want everything I do in my work to advance equity and justice for underserved and historically marginalized communities. I try to live this in my research, teaching, and service work. I especially believe this in my teaching in Educational Leadership. I teach school and district leaders (e.g. principals), district administrators, and higher education leaders–all people with formal positions to make a difference and change systems, practices, and policies. Sometimes when we learn about inequities in class it can feel overwhelming to them, but I try to remind them that they have an extraordinary ability to make life and education better for students in their care. I don’t mind uncomfortable conversations about racism, homophobia, transphobia, classism, or ableism in my classes or work in districts, because our adult comfort is not as important as doing what’s right and making sure all children and young people can thrive in our schools and educational systems. I try to be an agent of change for them and I hope I live up to that title.
Sept. 15 – Oct. 15 is Latinx Heritage Month. Why is your heritage so important to you and how do you work, in the United States, to ensure not only celebration, but equity and inclusion?
Being a Latina, and specifically a third-generation Mexican American mestiza (mixed Indigenous and Spanish) woman is deeply connected to my equity work. My family has been in the U.S. for generations. In a very real sense, the border crossed us, as part of my father’s family (the Rodela side) were in Tejas before it became a U.S. state. Latinx Heritage Month to me is about recognizing the varied histories, cultures, languages, and identities that make up the diverse Latinx community. It also is a call for those of us who are U.S. citizens, speak English, and have other privileges to stand in solidarity with diverse Latinx immigrants, particularly undocumented ones, who face racism, xenophobia, and a completely different set of immigration rules and policies that my family did. I also recognize that I am often the only person of color and Latina some of my students have ever had as a teacher or professor. I’ve had several students in graduate programs who have teared up or shared what it means to me. It’s both a responsibility to serve the Latinx community, but also be there for my students–particularly all my students of color or who are marginalized in some way.
Favorites:
Food: Chicken mole with my mom’s homemade flour tortillas
Restaurants near WSU Vancouver: a Cena Ristorante (in Portland), Mercado Latino (the BEST Mexican grocery store in Vancouver)
Book: Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
Song: Too many to name, but in honor of Latinx Heritage Month…I love Bomba Estereo’s Soy Yo, Diego Torres’ Color Esperanza, Chicano Batman’s Freedom, and anything Selena
Hobby: Golf with my husband Ben and son Rudy
Vacation spot (you’ve been to): Cusco, Peru
Dream vacation spot (somewhere you’d like to go): Prague