Rate My Professor Alex Lange

Alex C. Lange is an assistant professor of higher education leadership, associate director, and coordinator of the higher education degree programs in the School of Education within Colorado State University's College of Health and Human Sciences. Lange earned a B.A. in law and American society from Florida Atlantic University, an M.Ed. in college student affairs administration from the University of Georgia, and a Ph.D. in educational policy and leadership studies from the University of Iowa. Before joining Colorado State University in 2021, Lange gained over ten years of full-time experience as an educator in college and community settings, supporting LGBTQ+ students and young adults navigating educational systems.

Lange's research focuses on college student learning and development, qualitative research methods, and the postsecondary experiences of LGBTQ+ students, with particular attention to transgender and queer undergraduates' thriving, activism, and persistence amid marginalizing forces. They lead initiatives to inform evidence-based practices for inclusive campuses, including a longitudinal study of transgender students' college trajectories and a landmark national project funded by a $500,000 Spencer Foundation grant awarded in 2023. This collaborative effort with Jodi Linley of the University of Iowa and Cindy Ann Kilgo of Indiana University tracks strengths, kinship networks, and success strategies across institution types. Key publications encompass 'How LGBTQ+ Students Thrive in College' (Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 2021, with R.L. Hill et al., 89 citations), contributions to Identity-Based Student Activism: Power and Oppression on College Campuses (Routledge, 2019, with C. Linder et al.), '"You hired me to do this": Power, identity, and student activist support' (Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 2022, with T.J. Stewart et al.), and 'Relationships Between Institutional Agents and Student Persistence for Low-Income, First-Generation Students' (Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 2022). Lange's impact extends to co-hosting the 'Round About Campus' podcast, delivering public webinars, and editorial contributions. Awards include the College of Health and Human Sciences Tenure-Track Faculty Teaching Excellence Award (2024-2025), 2025 ACPA-College Student Educators International Emerging Scholar, and an honorable mention from the American Educational Research Association Queer Studies Special Interest Group (2022).