Flexible Learning Environments: Minoritized College Students’ Experiences in HyFlex

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(Kate, Vasiliki, Isabel) but were accepted as participants because of their gender. Lorena was 
another graduate participant who identified as Hispanic cisgender woman, and James was a 
graduate student who identifies as a cisgender White man. James was recruited to provide a 
balance and comparison to the stories of the other students, but as the interviews went on, it 
became evident James had extensive knowledge of HyFlex learning, and as an instructional 
designer, he had valuable insights for this study. Additionally, although James was not 
minoritized per the criteria of this study, he had been otherized and discriminated for his 
Jewishness. A reasonable argument can be made that he was indeed minoritized by ethnicity. 
One of the participants, Isabel, explained she had an immune disease that put her at high 
risk during the COVID-19 global pandemic. She explained HyFlex made it possible to continue 
to participate in her master’s program because she could attend from her home and avoid putting 
herself at risk of contracting COVID-19. Although her immune disease has presented her with 
some debilitating conditions, she never identified as disabled during our interviews. She was a 
productive person, even if confined to her home. I debated whether she met the criteria for 
disability in this study. I consulted with disability and accessibility professionals, and after much 
thought and consideration, I decided because she never referred to herself as disabled, even 
though she would likely qualify for services at her school if she chose to apply, I should honor 
her choice and avoid labeling her something as she did not consider part of her intersectionalities 
of identity. 
Except for James, who had already graduated and was no longer a student, participants 
discussed the vicissitudes of being a college student during the COVID-19 global pandemic and 
how HyFlex learning allowed them to participate and engage in their courses. Each participant 

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talked about their academic goals, personal identities, preferred modes of participation in 
HyFlex, and experiences in other modes of participation, such as online and hybrid, in 
comparison to their experiences in HyFlex learning. 
Table 2 shows the participant characteristics. Five participants are graduate students, and 
five are undergraduates. In terms of gender, seven participants are cisgender women, two are 
cisgender man, and one participant identifies a trans man. Two participants are English language 
learners, and eight are native English speakers. Five participants identified as first-generation 
college students, and the other five are not first-generation. Only one participant identified as 
having disabilities, both learning and physical, and another participant reported having an 
immune disease that creates debilitating conditions for her, but she did not identify as disabled. 

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