“I Wasn’t Given These Experiences for Just Myself”: Black Undergraduate Women’s Purpose Development as Resistance and Self-Preservation at a Predominantly White Institution

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  In Roundtable Session: Roundtable Session 3: Student Learning and Development in College and Beyond

Abstract

This phenomenological study explores how Black undergraduate women at a predominantly White institution develop purpose in the context of racialized and gendered experiences. Drawing on semi-structured interviews and journaling activities, this study’s findings suggest that purpose is both central to identity development and operates as a form of self-preservation and resistance. By highlighting how purpose, when cultivated, serves as a compass for BUW navigating harmful educational environments, this paper interrogates an often-overlooked aspect of BUW’s educational journeys, offering recommendations for postsecondary research and practice that honor the full humanity of BUW in an anti-DEI landscape.

Author

• Jayla Moody Marshall, North Carolina State University