Being a Black STEM Student in Predominantly White Institutions: Intersectionality, Identity, and Representation

• In Event: Friday Roundtable Session 9:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: Never a Level Playing Field: Higher Learning and the Black Student (Table 11)

Abstract

This study was an exploration of Black students' experiences, intersectional identities, and positionalities as science-technology-engineering-mathematics (STEM) learners within the context of a predominately white institution (PWI). The findings of this study may inform the ways in which PWIs attract and retain Black students in STEM disciplines. Our research drew on data from a review of relevant research, focus group interview, and survey responses from a mixed-method inquiry for Black STEM learners at a PWI in the United States. Overall, study participants suggested Black and African American students may experience higher rates of adverse societal outcomes, compared to other racial groups, due to racial inequities such as stereotyping and biases, income disparities, and poor representation of themselves in educational institutions.

Authors

• Sophie Filibert, University of North Florida

• Dilek Kayaalp, University of North Florida