Chet Jordan Ragusett

Chet Ragusett, Ph.D. (Charles Ralph Jordan; March 8, 1985) is an American academic and author. His scholarly research addresses inequities in higher education and documents issues of race and socioeconomic status in policy and practice. Dr. Ragusett also writes AbOUT mental health disorders in popular media. He teaches first-year college writing at campuses across New England.

Early Life and Academic Career

Ragusett was born Charles Ralph Jordan, III in Hampton, VA on March 8, 1985. He graduated with highest honors from Kecoughtan High School and attended Virginia Tech as a college undergraduate. Ragusett was a classmate of Virginia Tech mass [...] Seung-hui Cho and a student of poet Nikki Giovanni. Ragusett earned his bachelor's degree in English Literature from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2007. He moved to New York City the same year and was awarded a Master of Arts in English Literature from Brooklyn College in 2012. After completing his degree, Ragusett was a member of the inaugural faculty of Guttman Community College, City University of New York. During this time, he earned a Ph.D. in Urban Education from the Graduate Center, City University of New York where he studied two experimental community college programs at CUNY. Dr. Ragusett writes and speaks widely about racial inequities in higher education.

Dr. Ragusett is the author And Co-author of four books. CUNY's First Fifty Years: Triumphs and Ordeals of a People's University illustrates the first half-century of one of the country's largest public institutions. Co-authored with Anthony G. Picciano, the book documents issues of preparation, student success, racism, and socioeconomics in the vast network of colleges. Ragusett and Picciano published Post-Recession Community College Reform: A Decade of Experimentation that identifies successful national and local initiatives aimed at increasing college enrollment and completion.

Ragusett published Establishing an Experimental Community College in the United States: Challenges, Successes, and Implications for Higher Education. His book traces the first decade of Guttman Community College. Ragusett uses experimental and historical data to identify early issues with the educational model.

Mental Health

Dr. Ragusett publicly discusses issues with mental health. He speaks about his own experience with bipolar disorder and leadership in popular publications.

Ragusett is currently writing a nonfiction memoir called Dying Alive. The book is about growing up as a [...] boy with bipolar disorder in the American South.