Faculty Directory
Raquel Muñiz
Assistant Professor
Assistant Professor (by courtesy), School of Law
Raquel Muñiz
J.D., Ph.D.
Contact
Campion Hall Room 226
Telephone: 617-552-2401
Email: raquel.munizcastro@bc.edu
Education
- B.A., Texas A&M International University
- J.D., Penn State University, Dickinson School of Law
- Ph.D., Penn State University
Courses
Education Law and Public Policy
Research Interests
Law and Education; Education Law and Policy; Civil and Children’s Rights
Expertise
- Educational Leadership & Policy
- Equity and Social Justice
- Higher Education
Department
Profile
Dr. Muñiz’s research is grounded in examining oppressive power structures and the strategies to disrupt them in education. Specifically, she examines the ways in which racialization shows up at the intersection of law, policy, politics, and the culture of resistance. Through this racial equity-centered work, she seeks to inform educational equity discourse and scholarship. To do this, she employs a systems thinking lens that counters deficit narratives and centers the onto-epistemological perspectives of students of color as they experience and respond to oppressive power structures.
GLOBAL SPOTLIGHT
American Branch of the International Law Association, Taskforce on Immigrant Human Rights, 2019-present
Publications
Muñiz, R. (forthcoming). The need for educational research engagement with courts, public policy, and practice in a post-Dobbs era. Educational Researcher.
Muñiz, R. (forthcoming). A theory of racialized judicial decision-making. Michigan Journal of Race & Law, 28(2). https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4369753
Muñiz, R., Lewis, M. M., Tumer, T., & Kane, E. (2023). The story of DACA as told by “friends of the court”: The role of racialization, citizenship, and interest convergence in policy discourse. American Journal of Education, 129(3), 297-324. https://doi.org/10.1086/724305
Muñiz, R., Lewis, M. M., Cavanagh, G., & Woolsey, M. (2022). The social context of the law: A critical analysis of reliance interests in the Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California. Southern California Law Review, 95(4), 857-952. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4380738
Muñiz, R., & Barragán, S. (2022). Disrupting the racialized status quo in public exam schools?: Racial equity and white backlash in Boston Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence v. School Committee. Fordham Urban Law Journal, 49(5), 1043-1090. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4380729
Muñiz, R., & Hutcherson, N. (2022). The power of research evidence use in times of crisis: How the Klaassen v. Indiana University Court used extra-legal sources to ground litigants in social realities. West’s Education Law Reporter, 399, 435-461. https://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4151084
Muñiz, R. (2021). Education law and policy in the time of COVID-19: Using a legal framework to expose educational inequity. AERA Open, 7(1), 1-18. https://doi.org:10.1177/23328584211054107.
Muñiz, R. (2020). Muddy sensemaking: Making sense of socio-emotional skills amidst a vague policy context. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 28(114), 1-38. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.28.5235
Muñiz, R. (2020). Rethinking social justice: Promoting SEL opportunities to achieve a more just society. Journal of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, 3(3), 1-24. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1252028
Muñiz, R. (2020). DACA through the critical system thinking (CST) lens: Unpacking racialization in administrative law. Yale Journal on Regulation: Notice & Comment, https://www.yalejreg.com/nc/daca-through-the-critical-systems-thinking-cst-lens-unpacking-racialization-in-administrative-law-by-raquel-muniz/
Grants
The Spencer Foundation ($49,958). What’s the worth of a legal education today? Using normative case studies to examine Latinx students’ articulations of the value proposition of law schools across differently-institutions, Co-PI (w/Co-PI Andrés Castro Samayoa), 2019-2021.
AccessLex Institute & American Institutional Research ($49,978). What’s it all for? Exploring how Latinx students and university officials at differently-ranked law schools articulate legal education’s value through normative case studies, Co-PI (w/Co-PIs Andrés Castro Samayoa, & Emily Gates, 2019-2020.
Research Incentive Grant (RIG), Boston College ($15,000), Equitable system change: Learning from cases in education and health, Co-PI (w/Co-PI Emily Gates), 2019.
Presentations
Muñiz, R., & Lewis, M. (expected 2021, April). The story of DACA as told by “friends of the court”: A critical policy analysis [conference session]. Paper session at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association (AERA).
Muñiz, R., Borg, N., & Barone, N. (expected 2021, April). Equitable systems change (ESC) in higher education [conference session]. Roundtable paper presentation at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association (AERA).
Alvarado, R. E., Muñiz, R., Wright, D. K. (expected 2021, April). Class action lawsuits for refunds after COVID-19 closures [conference session]. Roundtable paper presentation at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association (AERA).
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2020, Nov. 20). Inclusivity in higher education for marginalized student populations: A typology [conference session]. Paper session at the annual conference of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE).
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2020, Nov. 19). Inclusivity of DACAmented students at flagship HEIs [conference session]. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA).
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2020, Nov. 5). Civil rights law in the time of COVID-19: Examining compliance and educational equity in higher education [conference session]. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the Education Law Association (ELA).
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2020, Nov. 2). Special education and accommodations in the COVID-19 Context: A national survey [conference session]. Asynchronous: research/inquiry presentation at the annual conference of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA).
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2020, May 20). How can we strive for equity? Lessons from Higher Education regarding equitable systems change [conference session]. Presentation at the Boston College Diversity and Inclusion Summit, Chestnut Hill, MA.
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2020, April 17-21). How inclusive are higher education institutional policies of DACAmented students?: A policy analysis at 50 flagship institutions [conference session]. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Francisco, CA (Conference canceled).
Castro Samayoa, A., Muñiz, R., & Gates, E. (2020, April 17-21). Latinidad and legal education: How Latinx law students articulate the value of their degree [conference session]. Roundtable paper presentation at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Francisco, CA (Conference canceled).
Muñiz, R., & Dodge, H. (2019, Nov. 21-24). Leadership outside the school system for the subaltern: Reimagining the policy space to promote SEL [conference session]. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA), New Orleans, LA.
Muñiz, R., Wright, D., Alvarado, A., & Miller, V. (2019, Nov. 13-16). Joint identities? A qualitative case study of the professional identity development for minoritized JD/PhD professionals [conference session]. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the Educational Law Association (ELA), Norfolk, VA.
Muñiz, R., (2019, May 16-17). Amending the unwritten constitutional broad use of prosecutorial discretion in immigration law, toward a hyper-narrow concept: An analysis of the DACA program [conference session]. Paper presentation at Amending America’s Unwritten Constitution Conference, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA.
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2019, May 22). Supporting DACAmented students as we pursue inclusive excellence: Engaging in transformational dialogue regarding institutional policies [conference session]. Presentation at the Boston College Diversity and Inclusion Summit, Chestnut Hill, MA.
Muñiz, R., & Borg, N. (2019, March). How inclusive are higher education institutional policies of DACAmented students? A policy analysis of 50 flagship institutions. Presentation for the Faculty Works in Progress at the Lynch School, Chestnut Hill, MA.
Muñiz, R., Wright, D., Alvarado, A., & Miller, V. (Nov. 2018). A qualitative case study of the professional identity development for minoritized JD/PhD professionals. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the Educational Law Association (ELA), Cleveland, OH.
Muñiz, R. (2013). Exploring the Riemann Zeta function [conference session]. Presentation at the Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics Fall Conference at Texas A&M International University, Laredo, TX. -Conference First Place Recipient
Muñiz, R. (2013). Differential Equations: Population Dynamics. Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics Fall Conference, Texas A&M International University, Laredo, TX.
Muñiz, R. (2013). Exploring the Riemann Zeta Function. Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics Fall Conference, Texas A&M International University, Laredo, TX.
Muñiz, R. (2013). Guest Speaker, United High School-Longhorns for Change, Laredo, TX.
Muñiz, R. (2012). Fractals. Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics Fall Conference, Texas A&M International University, Laredo, TX.