Chapter 17: A Good Mentor is Hard To Find: Learning From the Legacy of Dr. Melvin C. Terrell

We are grateful for the invitation to participate in this project. Dr. Melvin C. Terrell not only provided support for our careers, but also has assisted in the development of many scholars and practitioners uniquely positioned to influence higher education and student affairs. We can specifically thank him for publishing our article on college student athletes in the NASAP Journal. Throughout his professional life, Dr. Terrell intentionally supported a significant number of scholars of color in this field, which historically has been dominated by White faculty and administrators. NASAP and its journal represented a professional home for many scholars of color engaged in the highly competitive publishing process, which is closely tied to who you know, and who knows you, and not simply how well you think or write. We knew that, through the support of Dr. Terrell, NASAP would provide a space for continued and diverse engagement in critical discourse, multiple perspectives, and culturally relevant topics. Most importantly, under his leadership the organization and journal functioned with the highest standards of equity, integrity, and concern about the voices and perspectives of people of color.