Faculty Mentoring Promotes Sense of Belonging for Black Students at White Colleges: Key Insights From Those Who Really Know

• In Event: Mentoring While White: Culturally Responsive Practices for Sustaining the Lives of Black College Students

Abstract

There are over 2 million Black students enrolled in the 4,300 colleges and universities that comprise the American higher education system. Although they do enroll, many Black college students at predominantly white institutions (PWIs) experience difficulties adjusting to the campus environment; report hostile, unwelcoming climates; and feel insignificant or invisible to campus personnel, which prevents them from feeling a sense of belonging. Even at historically Black colleges, some Black students can feel marginalized, lonely, or struggle to access the support services they need due to lack of campus resources, diminishing their sense of belonging too.
Research is clear that strong, supportive mentoring relationships with faculty and staff matter for belonging and college student success, especially for Black college students (Strayhorn & Terrell, 2011; Strayhorn, 2019). As noted elsewhere, mentoring is one term with many definitions. For instance, mentoring generally refers to “a process of intellectual, psychological, and affective development…[where] mentors accept personal responsibility as competent and trustworthy non-parental figures for the significant growth of other individuals” (Galbraith & Maslin-Ostrowski, 2000, p. 136-137). And while peers certainly play a role in the growth of each other, empirical evidence underscores the important role that faculty/staff mentors play in the recruitment, retention, and success of Black college students. This presentation addresses this topic and highlights what white faculty need to know to help Black students thrive.

Author

• Terrell Lamont Strayhorn, Virginia Union University
  Presenting Author