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1	Exploring the Embeddedness of Young Black Professionals in Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources Careers Stephen Mark McBride (10573067) 13 December 2023 (has links) <p dir="ltr">In recent years, the agricultural industry has been working to improve the retention of their newly hired Black employees. In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, millennial employees across the United States have been voluntarily leaving their jobs in favor of hybrid or remote work, better benefits, or an improved work environment. Today, the median tenure of millennials is only 2.8 years on the job, and research has shown that Black employees are 30% more likely to leave their positions. The agriculture, food, and natural resources (AFNR) sector is more heavily represented in rural America, where the Black population makes up just 7.8% and the White population comprises 78.2%. Therefore, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the workplace and community embeddedness experiences of young Black professionals early in their AFNR careers. Specifically, the lived experiences of young Black professionals in their positions for five years or less were investigated through interviews with participants to examine the contributors of their embeddedness. Job Embeddedness Theory informed the study and seven young Black AFNR professionals participated in virtual Zoom interviews lasting an average of 75 minutes. Initial, structural, and pattern coding techniques were used to analyze the data, and three major conclusions emerged. First, many young Black professionals have chosen a career in the AFNR sector because they desire to engage with meaningful work related to the agricultural industry. Second, my participants had to overcome many obstacles related to their age or race that impacted their abilities to become more embedded in their workplaces or communities. Finally, an extensive network of linkages to other Black professionals at work or in the community provides young Black professionals with more substantial support and visibility. Implications for theory and practice were provided, along with recommendations for future research.</p> Employment equity and diversity Industrial and employee relations job embeddedness theory young black professionals agriculture, food, and natural resources industrial-organizational psychology workforce retention
2	Black Food Trucks Matter: A Qualitative Study Examining The (Mis)Representation, Underestimation, and Contribution of Black Entrepreneurs In The Food Truck Industry Ariel D Smith (14223191) 11 August 2023 (has links) <p>Food trucks have become increasingly popular over the last decade following the Great Recession of 2008. Scholars have begun to study the food truck phenomenon, its future projected trajectory, and even positioning it within social justice discourse along cultural lines; however, scholarship has yet to address the participation of Black entrepreneurs in the food truck industry.</p> <p><br></p> <p>The objective of this dissertation is to expand the perception of Black food entrepreneurs within the food truck industry by interrogating how Black food truck owners are misrepresented, under analyzed, and underestimated. Using a series of interdisciplinary qualitative methods including introspective analysis, thematic coding analysis, and case studies, I approach this objective by addressing three questions. First, I analyze movies and television to understand where Black-owned food trucks are represented in popular culture and how they are depicted. In doing so, we come to understand that Black business representation, specifically Black food truck representation consistently falls victim to negative stereotypes. These stereotypes can influence the extent to which Black food truck owners are taken seriously and seen as legitimate business leaders in their community. Second, I interview 16 Black food truck entrepreneurs to understand why the mobile food industry appealed to them and how it has become a platform for them to explore other opportunities. Finally, I review eight cities that have launched Black food truck festivals and parks within the last 6 years to gain an understanding of the collective power wielded by Black food truck owners and its impact Black communities. Moreover, this dissertation challenges the myth that collectivism does not exist among Black entrepreneurs and the Black community broadly.</p> Business systems in context Food and hospitality services Business and labour history Entrepreneurship Cinema studies Screen media Digital heritage Heritage and cultural conservation Heritage collections and interpretations Social and cultural anthropology Urban community development Sociology of inequalities Urban sociology and community studies Media studies Consumption and everyday life Cultural and creative industries Cultural studies of nation and region Culture, representation and identity Screen and media culture Food Truck food trucks Black owned Black owned food truck mobile food street food street food vending street food entrepreneurship Black food Black food truck studies food truck studies African American Studies African American foodways Black foodways Black food entrepreneurship Black movies Black television The Food Truck Scholar The Food Truck Scholar Podcast Black business Black businesses Barbershop 3 The Last OG The Chi Think Like a Man food truck festivals food truck park foodtruck Roi Choi The Great Food Truck Race Chef Chef movie Black representation Black men Black women Black men representation Black women representation critical race theory case study introspective analysis Black entrepreneurs African American entrepreneurs food truck industry mobile food vending Black food truck owner Black food truck entrepreneur food truck owner food truck operator food trucker Black food trucker African American food truck owner African American food trucker food truck podcast food truck show storytelling African American storytelling Black studies africana studies entrepreneurial storytelling food studies Black food studies African American food studies enterprise food truck enterprise Black food trucks matter Black businesses matter Buy Black Black dollars Black economics Black dollar soul food southern studies Black diaspora \

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Exploring the Embeddedness of Young Black Professionals in Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources Careers

Black Food Trucks Matter: A Qualitative Study Examining The (Mis)Representation, Underestimation, and Contribution of Black Entrepreneurs In The Food Truck Industry