Gary P Duran

Gary P. Duran is a first-year Ph. D. student in the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California. His research focuses on access, student success, belonging, racial campus climate, and the carceral implications of educational technology. He has over a decade of professional experience in postsecondary education admissions, government relations, and research roles. As a civically engaged scholar, Gary has published opinion editorials, provided public comment in opposition to anti-DEI legislation, organized community efforts to oppose anti-DEI legislation, presented his cutting-edge research at the Association for the Study of Higher Education Annual Conference, and devoted over four hundred hours to volunteering and service research efforts in his local communities. In collaboration with the National Assessment of Collegiate Campus Climate team at the USC Race & Equity Center, Gary’s latest publication, “Under Siege: Campus Racial Climates in Texas Higher Education Amid Anti-DEI Legislation,” examines the potentially far-reaching implications of Senate Bill 17. Gary serves as a Research Associate at the USC Race and Equity Center and a Research Assistant at the Pullias Center for Higher Education while receiving guidance from his primary advisor, Dr. Royel M. Johnson, and secondary advisor, Dr. Shaun Harper.

Select Awards & Recognitions

2016    Criminal Justice Departmental Honors

2016    Ogden City Police Department Exceptional Volunteer Award & Challenge Coin

2016    Excellence in Community Engagement

2015    Weber State Man of the Year Nominee

2006    Hope of America Award

Select Fellowships & Scholarships

2022    Richards J&M Scholarship

2016    Criminal Justice Department Scholarship

2016    J.W. Marriott Scholarship

2012    Admissions Ambassador Scholarship Program

• Johnson, R.M., Nuñez, R.A., Kwon, J., & Duran, G.P. (2024). Under siege: Campus racial climates in Texas amid anti-DEI legislation. Los Angeles, CA: University of Southern California, USC Race and Equity Center.
• Duran, G. P. (2024, January 4). Opinion: DEI is the Utah way. Salt Lake Tribune. https://www.sltrib.com/opinion/commentary/2024/01/04/opinion-utah-should-increase/
• Duran, G.P. & Grote, D., (2023, November). Oppression perpetrated by the most rejective institutions. Scholarly paper presented at the Association for the Study of Higher Education annual meeting.
• Duran, G. P. (2022, April 29). Access to college for Latinx students begins with access to information. Salt Lake Tribune. https://www.sltrib.com/opinion/commentary/2022/04/29/gary-p-duran-access