Voices of Black Women in Postsecondary Science Classes

• In Event: Equity in Science Within Higher Education

Abstract

This study explores experiences of five Black women in post-secondary science classes. The women were enrolled at a community college, pursing non-science degrees. Through a series of interviews, the women tell their stories and describe interactions with science professors. Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality, and Black Feminist Thought illustrate ways Black women in the U.S. have created a collective, specialized knowledge based on their unique backgrounds, cultural traditions, perspectives and experiences that result specifically from the intersection of their Blackness and womanness. Their stories depict race-based differential treatment, gatekeeping, and the perpetuation of science as White, male, and privileged.

Authors

• Renee S. Schwartz, Georgia State University

• Melissa P. Schoene, Georgia Perimeter College