Narrative Experiences of Emerging Women Scholars of Color in the Academy: Mentoring Relationships to Support Preparation, Socialization, and Acclimation

• In Event: Women Scholars of Color in the United States and World: Transcending International Borders in Academia

Abstract

In higher education, one of the more vexing problems remains the underrepresentation of African-American female doctoral students’ advancement into tenure track faculty positions, despite some recent increases in faculty hires for African- American females in predominantly white Institutions (PWIs) (Journal of Blacks in Higher Education 2007; Ryu, 2010). Similarly, American Indian scholars not only are underrepresented but face substantial barriers to success in academe as members of socially, politically, and culturally marginalized groups (Aleman, Salizar, Rorrer, & Parker, 2011; Calhoun, 2003; Erickson & Rodriguez, 1999). These include the mental and emotional discomfort of being a numerical minority, being treated as symbolically representing their race, misunderstandings about the political citizenry designation of tribal members, and social isolation (Fenelon, 2003; Washington, 2009). For both groups, exclusion from faculty and administrative positions has limited their access to influential academic positions (Collins, 2002; Mackey & Jean-Marie, 2016). Moreover, women faculty of color at PWIs, in particular, African American and American India women, often experience the lack of institutional support, which affects hiring, retention, peer relationships, and advancement (Erickson & Rodriguez, 1999; Gibson, 2006; Grant, 2012; Grant & Simmons, 2008; Mackey, 2014). Such environments are isolating and hostile for these women and tend to interfere with their academic productivity and sense of well-being (Antonio, 2002; Turner, 2002).
Several researchers offer mentoring as an effective strategy to thwart these problems (Simmons 2007; Tillman 2001). Mentoring is an operational stratagem to support their preparation, socialization, and acclimation to the academy. However, there is a lack of a unifying conceptual framework to guide completion success or measure effective mentoring outcomes for women of color in educational leadership at PWIs (Grant, 2012; Mackey, 2014). The traditional nature of mentoring relationships suggests that faculty members are more inclined to mentor junior faculty who are like themselves (Tillman, 2001). Mentors are more likely to select mentees who share the same ethnic, religious, academic, gender, and/or social backgrounds. Given this, African American and Indian American female faculty in PWIs are not likely to be mentored because they reside in departments with few, if any other women faculty of color(Tillman, 2001; Turner, 2002).

In this paper, Grant and Mackey illustrate the connection between mentoring and their transitioning experiences as an African-American and Indian American females from doctoral students to tenure-track faculty positions in educational leadership at two predominantly White institutions (PWI). They challenge traditional perspectives on mentoring – role modeling, psychosocial support and professional development (Grant & Simmons, 2008; Jacobi, 1991), and argues the efficacy of cross-race and cross-gender mentor relationships as equally beneficial to women of color faculty in PWIs as same-sex and same race mentoring (Grant & Simmons, 2008; Jean-Marie & Brooks, 2011). Since mentoring is becoming more integrated into educational leadership programs, this study is vital, hence adds to the scant literature on the experiences of African-American and American Indian women scholars, and other women of color in the academy.

Authors

• Cosette M. Grant

• Hollie Mackey, The University of Oklahoma