Teaching While Black: Breaking Fallow Ground at a Historically White University

• In Event: Our Truths: Interrogating Black Male Teaching and Teacher Education Experiences for Consequential Changes

Abstract

As we challenge students on the issues of equity and accountability in society, the very same dynamics are often being endorsed on the college/university campus. The present issues of race and racism in society exist in Predominantly White institutions across America (Henry, 1993). More importantly, faculty of color continue to remain underrepresented on university campuses (Wolfe and Freeman, 2013). This presentation stems from a paper on the experience of a Black instructor at Predominantly White institution. Jones (2021) described the constant intersections of racism and microaggressions that impacted his daily experiences as a graduate instructor at an Historically and Predominantly White institution (HWI). The purpose of this inquiry was to explore the racial experiences of a Black faculty member at an HWI and understand the lasting effects of racism in academia.

To better understand how Black faculty manage racial conflict in the higher education context, it is critical their stories are amplified to substantiate their experiences. For this scholarship, Critical Race Theory is used as a tool to analyze the lived experiences of Black faculty in the academy (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995). I apply CRT as a way to contextualize the stories of a Black faculty member in higher education to better understand the consequences of race and racism on my experiences.

This autoethnographic presentation re-stories my teaching experiences as a graduate student, who taught multicultural education to preservice teachers and as a junior faculty member at a university. I describe how my first semester teaching evolved into a conundrum where I truly questioned my competency as an educator, my ability as a professor, and my frame of reference as a Black man in academia. In generating this research perspective, my hope was to emphasize distinguishing moments within the broader context of higher education as a gesture towards creating questions for researchers, as well as Black male professors and those who are associated with them.

This research depicts my own perspective as an instructor in a multicultural education course and university professor, considering my personal challenges, journeys and multiple realities to form my own experience. The author concluded that there is much to learn about how to handle applying his research to a multicultural course. As I continue to succeed and encounter racism in higher education, I have determined to stay the course and strive for positive interactions with my students who are teachable. I assert that while I attempted to utilize different instructional approaches, none of those approaches reflected challenging belief systems. Therefore, I challenge learning institutions to develop equitable work environments that support all faculty members.

This study provides insights into the experiences of a Black male professor at a Historically and Predominantly White Institution. More specifically, it addresses how Black male instructors are exposed in the classroom when challenging belief systems and challenges learning institutions to develop equitable work environments. CRT framed this paper’s exploration of my experiences in higher education. Also, CRT reminds us of the difficulties experienced when integrating Black faculty members into HWIs.

Author

• Kevin L. Jones, Stephen F. Austin State University
  Presenting Author