Dr. Mack T. Hines, III - National FORUM Journals

NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNALVOLUME 26, NUMBER 3, 2009-2010

HAVING THEIR SAY:BLACK WOMEN’S LIVED EXPERIENCES

IN PREDOMINANTLY WHITE DOCTORAL PROGRAMS OF

EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP

Mack T. Hines IIISam Houston State University

ABSTRACT

This phenomenological study investigated six African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. Using a phenomenological research design, I interviewed the African American women regarding their lived experiences as doctoral students in White doctoral programs of educational leadership. I used Giorgi’s (1985) methods of phenomenological analysis to analyze the outcomes from the interviews.

The findings showed that being an African American woman in a predominantly White doctoral program of educational leadership consists of dealing with the White experience and thriving on the Black experience. Dealing with the white experience consisted of support and assistance from white professors, discrimination from white professors, the white privilege/entitlement attitude of white students, and proving white students wrong through success and achievement. thriving on the black experience was defined by mentoring from black professors and bonding with black students.

Based on these findings, one implication is for university policy makers to develop strategies to reduce African American women’s feelings of dealing with White faculty and students. The most prominent implication is for African American women to continually share their feelings about matriculating predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. These testimonies could be used to address any marginalized aspects of African American women’s doctoral experiences in these programs. Equally significant, more African American women may be able to thrive on instead of deal with their interactions with Caucasian American faculty and doctoral students.

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Introduction

ince the granting of the first Ph.D degree in 1861, the doctoral degree has remained the prized possession of American higher education (Gonzalez, Firuerora, Marin, & Moreno, 2001).

However, a wide gap exists between the number of African American and Caucasian American doctoral degree holders (Perry, 1998). In addition, a history of limited representation reflects the enrollment of African American doctoral students, especially female students.

S

African American women are underrepresented in doctoral programs. Specifically, African American women constitute only 1.7% of the doctoral students and recipients in this country (Manigault, 1999). In spite of these statistics, more African American women are achieving their doctorate degrees. Consequently, a few studies have investigated their doctoral program experiences (hooks, 1989, 1990, 1994; Moses, 1989; Noble, 1993). Research has also focused on African American women’s doctoral experiences in predominantly White universities (Alfred, 2001; Ellis, 2001; Manigault, 1999). However, the latter investigations are inconclusive because of mainly providing only statistical interpretations of their doctoral experiences. Because of the traditional marginalization of African American female experiences in higher education, research needs to provide a personal perspective of these women’s experiences in graduate education. Drawing upon this notion, this phenomenological study explores African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership.

The research question for this study was:

1. What are African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership?

Mack T. Hines III 92

Significance of Study

The significance of this research is threefold. First, African American women are twice as likely to enroll in doctoral programs of educational leadership as doctoral programs from other disciplines (Barnett, 2003). Like most doctoral programs, many of the educational leadership programs are housed in predominantly White colleges and universities. Yet, no research has determined if these program’s faculty members discuss the program experiences of African American women. Therefore, this research provides university faculty with unique insight into their lived experiences in their doctoral programs of educational leadership.

Similarly, as more African American women enter predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership, they can use this and similar research as baseline data for completing their course of study. In particular, they can develop ways to respond to potential doctoral level issues that may relate to their race and gender. Finally, this study empowers African American women to provide a first-person perspective on their experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. Carter, Pearson, and Shavlik (1998) stated, “Historically, Black women and their voices have been one of the most isolated, understudied, and demoralized segments of the academic community” (p.98). Hooks (1989) and Wilkerson (1987) argued that this marginalization is indicative of the traditional lumping of African American women with African American men. As a result, researchers shortchange the richness that emanates from separate reviews of Black women’s doctoral experiences.

Thus, by encouraging African American women to tell their stories, their voices become a meaningful part of the doctoral communities of educational leadership. Overall, the benefits of this


study are the potential for better integrating African American women into predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership.

Theoretical Framework

This study is grounded in the Black Feminist Theory and Critical Race Theory. The Black Feminist Theory purports that race and gender have been used to discriminate against African American women (Hill-Collins, 1996). Crenshaw (1996) specified that African American women reflect the intersection of racial and gendered oppression. That is, they have been marginalized in terms of the boundaries of Black and male and White and female. As such, they have had to battle the racism that plagues Black men and sexism that derails White women.

The Critical Race Theory denotes that racism and White privilege/superiority are normal, pervasive aspects of society (Delgado & Stefancic, 2001). Both factors create inequitable educational and political systems. Accordingly, the main implication of critical race theory is to confront these systems of racial oppression. African Americans are urged to address these systems by acknowledging micro-aggressions, developing counter stories, and creating safe spaces.

Micro-aggressions are subtle forms of racism to disparage minorities (Delgado & Stefancic, 2001). An example of a micro-aggression is “You are not like other Blacks.” Counter stories are minority testimonies that challenge myths about African American culture (Howard-Hamilton, 1997). These stories specifically counter beliefs that portray African Americans as being inferior to White people. Safe spaces are venues for expressing counter stories (Delgado & Stefancic). Examples of safe spaces are books, forums, and music. These venues reflect the strong African American tradition of storytelling. Through storytelling, African Americans develop their voices for expressing their own lived experiences.


Both the Black Feminist Theory and Critical Race Theory relate to factors that are indicative of African American women’s lived experiences. In due regard, they provide a conceptual framework for understanding African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. Overall, as a safe space, this research presents African American women with another venue for expressing their personal graduate education experiences.

Literature Review

In the late 1980s, Howard-Vital (1989) asked, “Why is there such a small amount of research that addresses Black women in graduate school?” (p.46). In response, much research has chronicled Black women’s overall graduate education experiences (hooks, 1989, 1990, 1994; Noble, 1993) and doctoral education experiences (Alfred, 2001; Clark, 1999; Ellis, 2001; Manigault, 1999). The latter research inquiries have focused on determinants and barriers of African American women’s experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs from various disciplines.

First, many African American women receive internal and external support to complete their doctoral degree programs (Manigault, 1999; Hill, 2005). Internal factors include but are not limited to faith, determination, resilience, and persistence. In addition to family, departmental support has also played a pivotal role in motivating African American women to achieve their doctoral degrees. Departmental support is developed through academic advising, quasi-apprentice relationships, academic mentoring relationships, and career mentoring relationships. Several researchers have denoted that African American women do not usually receive this level of support in predominantly White doctoral programs (Ellis, 2001; Essed, 1993; hooks, 1994; Landry, 2003). They further


indicated that many African American female doctoral students receive advising and mentoring from African Americans in other departments or outside of the campus. Along those same lines, many of African American women’s doctoral experiences are defined by relationships with other African American doctoral students.

One of the most significant barriers for African American female doctoral candidates is a lack of support from professors in their departments (Essed, 1990; hooks, 1994; Moses, 1992; Phillip-Evans, 1999; Willie, Grady, & Hope, 1991; King, 2004). Given the few minority faculty members on college campuses (Trower, 2002), many African American doctoral students are forced to form mentoring relationships with White professors. In many instances, this relationship has been more harmful than helpful to African American women (Grady, 1995; Williams, 2002). Evidence to this effect can be seen in the high rates of isolation among African American female doctoral students. Overall, if their major advisors fail to encourage or advise them, they may become discouraged about their doctoral experiences.

Essed (1990) and St. Jean and Feagin (1998) have argued that African American women are more likely to experience racism and sexism than any other group of doctoral students. They are often viewed as “tokens” admitted to doctoral programs to add diversity to their departments (Essed; St. Jean & Feagin). In addition, they are stereotyped and stigmatized by White doctoral students (Essed; St. Jean & Feagin).

Empirical Literature

Two significant studies have examined African American women’s in doctoral programs. Manigualt (1999) explored 86 African American women’s doctoral experiences in k-12 educational leadership programs in Southeastern Atlantic states. The women, who


received their degrees between 1992 and 1997, attributed their success to faith in God and perseverance. They also experienced feelings of isolation, racism, and lack of mentoring.

Ellis (1997) compared African American women’s doctoral experiences with the doctoral experiences of Black men and White men and women at a predominantly White university. The women and other students rated their satisfaction with the doctoral programs of their respective disciplines. The findings overwhelmingly showed that race was more influential of African American women’s doctoral experiences than the other group’s experiences. Unlike the other students, the African American women did not form meaningful relationships with White faculty. Because of significant cultural differences, the women struggled to with forming meaningful relationships with their White peers. They were also more likely to experience racial tension with White students and faculty than Black male doctoral students.

The commonalty of these studies is African American women’s marginalized experiences in these doctoral programs. Unlike Manigualt’s (1999) research, my study is not limited to one section of this country. In addition, my study examines African American women who only graduated from predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. My study extends Ellis’ (1997) research by describing these experiences on several predominantly White universities. Unlike Manigault’s and Ellis’ research, my study provides a phenomenological analysis of the women’s experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs. Therefore, readers will receive an insightful description of how these women make meaning of graduate experiences in predominantly White graduate settings.


Methodology

Research Design

A phenomenological approach was chosen to investigate the lived experiences of being an African American woman in a predominantly White doctoral program of educational leadership. Phenomenology is useful when searching for a development of knowledge to broaden the understanding of lived experiences. In short, the aim of using phenomenology was to transform lived experiences into textual expression of its essence (Moustakas, 1994).

Participants

Using Patton’s (1990) purposive sampling procedures, I conducted the study on four African American women with doctor of education (Ed.D) degrees in educational leadership from predominantly White Universities. To protect their identity, I assigned them with the following pseudonyms: Linda, Leslie, Lena, and Louise. At their request, I also withheld the names of their institutions. Table 1 provides a holistic overview of each participant.

Table 1—Demographic Profiles of Participants

Name Age

Location of

University

YearDoctorate

Degree Earned

Years inEducatio

n

Current Position

Linda 40 Maryland 2003 17 Principal

Leslie 36 Louisiana 2004 12 Assistant Professor

Lena 39 Florida 2000 09 Educational Consultant

Louise

52 California 1998 25 Superintendent


Data Collection and Interview Process

I used Van Kaam’s (1966) descriptive approach to collect data from the participants. Following this approach, I e-mailed the following protocol to the participants:

Please describe what it was like to be an African American woman in a predominantly White Doctoral Program of Educational Leadership. Be sure that your response is inclusive of capture the essence of your experience in the program. In responding to each question, use words and expressions in a way that lets readers know exactly what the experience was like for you. In addition, please do not stop writing until you feel that the description truly captures the essence of your experience. After receiving the protocols from the participants, I read the

descriptions two times. During the second reading, I inserted follow-up questions into the protocols. The follow-up questions were used to clarify, expand, and enrich the participants’ interpretations of their lived experiences. Because of the differences in participants’ experiences, the follow-up questions varied for each protocol. But all of the follow-up questions were inclusive of data gathering inquiries such as: “What was that experience like?”; “Tell me more about that.”; “Describe your experience at this point”; “What were you feeling here?”; “What, if any, meaning did this hold for you?” and “Can you tell me again when that happened?”

Afterwards, I used a modified version of Seidman’s (2006) interview process to conduct phone interview with the participants. I began each interview by reading the written protocol to the participants. Upon reaching the follow-up questions, I paused and posed the questions to the participants. I also allowed the teachers to interrupt me to share any additional thoughts to clarify previously


discussed information. After conducting and transcribing the interviews, I resent the protocols to the teachers. I then called and asked the women to offer any additional perspectives on the transcribed interviews.

Data Analysis

I followed Giorgi’s (1989) model to analyze the data. First, I bracketed my assumptions about African American women’s experiences in predominantly White programs of educational leadership. This process would allow me to objectively analyze a subjective experience. Afterwards, I read and reread the transcripts to get a sense of the whole experience. I then divided the interview data into natural meaning units. Natural meaning units are descriptions of raw data that describe the actual experience. I then transformed the natural meaning units into central themes. I then transformed the themes into abstract discipline-driven categories. I then used imaginative variation to identify the essential nature of the category’s relevance to the lived experience. Specifically, I asked, “What, if any, aspect of this category describes the essence of the African American woman’s lived experiences in a predominantly White doctoral program of educational leadership?” In addition, I asked “Is every theme of this category needed to convey the essence of the African American woman’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral program of educational leadership?” I discarded any theme that did describe the essence of the participants’ lived experiences.

I then transformed the categories into redescribed statements

and then situated structure description for each participant. The situated structural descriptions described the actual experience for each woman. These descriptions are comprised of the central themes of the categories. I then transformed the similar themes from each interview data into the essence of the lived experience of being an African American woman in a predominantly White program of educational leadership. Essences are abstract concepts that capture the interrelation of common categories. For example, one of the essences


of this study is “Dealing with the White Experience.” This essence is made of the following thematic categories: Assistance from White Professors, Discrimination from White Professors, and Feeling the White Privilege/Entitlement Factor of White Students. After completing this step, I then developed a general structural description of being an African American woman in a predominantly White Doctoral program of Educational Leadership. This description is a consist statement that describes the interrelation of all the essences of the research findings.

Trustworthiness

Following Lincoln and Guba’s (1985) recommendations, I used three methods to establish the trustworthiness of data. The methods were credibility, transferability, and dependability. I established credibility through peer debriefing and member checks. I achieved transferability by presenting rich, thick descriptions of the participants and their lived experiences. Strauss & Corbin (1998) posited that the reviewers will use these descriptions to determine experiences are indicative of the participants or biased researcher interpretation. I achieved dependability by creating an audit trail of raw data, data reduction methods, and synthesis products. According to Strauss and Corbin, conformability is achieved when reviewers determine that the findings are reflective of participants’ experiences instead of biased researcher interpretation.

Results

General Structural Description

The phenomenon of being an African American woman in a predominantly White doctoral program of educational leadership is defined by dealing with the White experience and thriving on the Black experience. Dealing with the White experience consists of experiences with White Professors and White students. The African American women reported either positive or negative experiences in


working with Caucasian American professors. They reported only feelings of negative experiences in dealing with White students.

On the other hand, the African American women indicated that they only had positive experiences with Black Professors and students. They defined these experiences in terms of mentoring. They formed meaningful relationships with other African American students. Overall, the women indicated they experienced growth and development with White professors and students and Black professors and students. As a result, they would relive these experiences.

Essence 1: Dealing with the White Experience

The essence of dealing with the White experience consists of positive and negative experiences with White professors. This experience also consists of negative views of White students. Four interrelated themes reflect the essence of experiences: Support and Assistance from White Professors, Discrimination from White Professors, The White Privilege/Entitlement Attitude of White Students, and Proving White Students Wrong Through Success and Achievement.

Support and Assistance from White Professors Two women indicated that they received support and

assistance from White professors. The professors mostly assisted them with matters related to academia. For example, Leslie wrote and talked about her White professors’ roles in developing her writing skills. “I am proud to say that I had a wealth of support in the Educational Leadership program at ABCD University, and a few of the supporters were White professors. For example, as an ambitious African American woman, I strongly believed that the dissertation process could be accomplished within a short amount of time. However, I realized that the dissertation is a mechanism that is used to refine the research and writing skills of doctoral graduates. During this process, I learned that I needed to develop my writing skills. Through working


with Dr. Avian (Pseudonym-White Professor) and Dr. Kavaian (Pseudonym-White Professor), I gained a wealth of knowledge about dissertation writing and developed my writing skills. This experience has helped me to publish a few articles about my dissertation.”

Similarly, Lena discussed a White professor’s role as the advisor of her dissertation. Although the professor didn’t serve as a mentor, the professor continually assisted her with developing a good dissertation. “I remember when I did my dissertation proposal. I had a lot of corrections. My dissertation Chair (White Professor) was extremely helpful. She gave me all of her time because she sincerely wanted me to be successful.”

Lena also wrote:“When I had questions about things such as APA style and table formatting, she would also take time to help me. She also showed me how to organize my chapters.”

Discrimination from White Professors

Linda and Louise specifically spoke about experiences of discrimination with their White professors. Linda framed discrimination in the context of two terms: Educational Hazing and Unprofessionalism. Linda indicated that because of these experiences, she is “Still recovering after obtaining my Ed.D five years ago.”“I entered the doctoral program cognizant of the challenges and barriers that could and would occur (rigor in curriculum and instruction). But I was not prepared for the unprofessionalism that was displayed in discriminating practices by majority of the White teaching staff. The good old boy-and girl-policy of White favoritism permeated the hallways of the institution.”

When probed for further discussion, Linda explained:“Educational discrimination and hazing was prevalent in my cohort, especially in the grading of assignments that were so subjective with White students and so objective with Black students. One example that


I can remember very vividly is the dissertation. For White students, the dissertation process was like just write it up and you will graduate. But that was not the deal for Black students. For me, my doctoral committee members, mostly the White members, just kept asking for changes in the research document. They would then keep changing their mind. Redo this. Redo that. Retype this. Retype that. I can honestly say that because of the White committee members, there was uncertainty in if I would graduate, as completing the dissertation loomed over my head daily. I had to constantly remind myself of my personal goal and not to abandon the program.”

Similarly, Louise indicated that White professors were extremely discriminatory towards her and other African American students. From a cohort perspective, she wrote:“It was like the White professors took pleasure in teaching White students while subtly taunting Black students. They called on White students way more than Black students. I also noticed that they would spend more time talking to Whites than Blacks before and after class sessions.”

From a personal perspective, she stated:“I remember when I was working on my dissertation. I had a committee of one Asian American professor, two Black professors, and two White professors. During my proposal defense, one of the White professors kept asking crazy questions about my paper. He also kept trying to convince me that I was working on a useless topic. Because of his rank and tenure, no one challenged him. And then after I defended and worked began to work on the dissertation, he would call me into his office and tell me about two of other Black females who failed the dissertation defense. He did this from the time I defended my proposal until the time I defended my dissertation. But when I talked with White students whose committee he was on, they said he was extremely helpful to them.”

The White Privilege/Entitlement Attitude of White Students


All of the women spoke of how their White colleagues expressed a sense of entitlement and privilege about the doctoral program. They women believed that this entitlement caused the White students to demonstrate elitist attitudes. Leslie, Linda, Louise, and Lena indicated that the entitlement was a major part of the doctoral experience. For example, Lena indicated that the entitlement influenced the scheduling of a class. She explained:

“One summer we were sitting with our professor deciding on what night we wanted to come to class. The African American students looked at each other and the professor as to say, ‘Whenever you say class is.’ Our White counterparts began telling the professors about their vacations they had already scheduled, etc. As a result, we ended up having class on line and the same people I sat in the room with on the first night that I thought was on board, showed out.”

Leslie described an incident of experiencing White Entitlement during a classroom discussion. She stated: “In one of the sessions of my multiculturalism class, we were discussing race, class, and student achievement. True to form, the White students talked about the White children like they were supposed to have the highest test scores in their subjects. They also indicated that the Black students were expected to perform poorly in school. Two of them even had the nerve to say that the expectations for Black students were poor in college and graduate students.”

Linda and Louise spoke about the entitlement in terms being admitted to the doctoral program.Linda indicated: “I found that my “Anglo” cohorts had a sense of entitlement about the program. Philosophically, they thought that the professors were there to serve them. I remember several conversations where I expressed the importance of insuring that I/we exceeded the professor’s expectations and was told by the White students ‘Without us, they wouldn’t have a job. So they needed to exceed our expectations.’”


Along those same lines, Louise wrote:“Most of the White students that I came into contact with were straight up elitist. They also spoke about how class discussions should focus on what they were experiencing. They would turn around and shut down when the topic was on issues related to Black students. They never could really see the true meaning of multiculturalism, and give little respect to the diversity that was in our cohort.”

Proving White Privilege Wrong Through Success

The women reported that an underlying premise of the White privilege was the questioning of African American students’ admittance into the program. As a result, the women were driven to prove that they belonged in the doctoral program. They specifically spoke of the need to establish their belongingness through success and achievement.

Leslie and Linda focused on establishing their belongingness through academic achievement. Leslie stated:“From the time I entered the program until the time I graduated from the program, I just felt that I needed to show White students that I belonged here. I think that this motivation came from them always making it seem as though I added diversity instead of leadership and talent to the program. So I just removed this thought from the discussion by making sure that I always made excellent grades. I also spoke up in class on the issues. Lastly, I always dressed in a manner to let them know that I was a serious sista (Black Woman) who would be taken seriously. By the middle of the program, I saw where the White students began to respect me based on the content of my character and not tolerate me because of the color of my skin.

Linda stated:“Just listening to some of the White students, It was so clear that they thought they were better than me and other Black students. So I just proved them wrong by letting my pen and pencil do the talking. I was always recognized for my work and writing skills. I also received a


dissertation award from a prestigious Educational organization. These experiences forced White students to recognize that I had just as much talent and skills as them.”

Louise indicated that because of the White privilege/entitlement factor, she was motivated to quickly and independently complete the program. She said: “It was important to me to complete the process as quickly as possible. I did not want to develop long term relationships with my cohort members and so I remained focused on the goal of achieving the doctorate. I tried very hard to engage myself in activities that did not require group work and sought assistance outside my cohort members-from people of all ethnic groups. It was important to me to prove that I was not a member of the cohort for diversity’s sake only. As a result, I managed to complete the entire process in 2 years.”

Lena achieved the same goal through confronting racial issues with her White counterparts. Consider the following example:“I think this is perhaps the biggest struggle for any African American in a predominantly White program, the pressure to always have to go above and beyond their White counterparts. I definitely felt this in dealing my White Colleagues. I constantly felt like I had to stand up for myself and my African American counterparts and prove that we did belong in the programs. So I proved myself by making them respect me. For example, the white students were very comfortable with saying things about race on the blackboard, but not in the classroom. Of course being the outspoken person that I am, the next time we had class together, I addressed it. The room was silent and once again, my professors took notice.”

She also said:“Another instance was that when I did not understand something in class, I constantly raised my hand and by doing so, I somewhat forced my professors to provide me with the education for which I was paying. By doing this, my professors took notice of me as well did my colleagues.”


Of all the women, Lena spoke of these experiences in terms of specific rules for navigating predominantly White doctoral programs. She said: “The question always comes up about being an African American woman in a predominantly White program and my response is also to follow some rules and hopefully you will be okay: Make them take notice of you in a positive way before they take notice of you in a negative way. In other words, always be on top of your game. Always be prepared. Do not turn in late work and do not turn in incomplete or “sloppy” work. Always ask questions and present yourself well. These are rules that African America females, as well as other African American doctoral students, must follow to be successful in predominantly White doctoral programs and universities. Unfortunately, one our African American colleagues, an African American female, was dismissed from the program after the second semester. She did not follow the rules.”

Essence 2: Thriving on The Black Experience

The essence of dealing thriving on the Black experience consists of positive experiences with Black professors and Black Students. Specifically, the students discussed their experiences in working with Black professors and students to negotiate White doctoral programs of Educational Leadership.

Two interrelated themes reflect the essence of experiences: Mentoring from Black Professors and Bonding with Black Students.

Mentoring from Black Professors

Mentoring from Black Professors is one of the well-described themes of this research. According to the women, Black professors used some form of mentoring to assist them with navigating their doctoral programs. For Leslie and LENA, Black professors played significant roles in mentoring them through the dissertation process.


Leslie explained:“I was extremely thankful for having a Black professor on my doctoral dissertation committee. The reason is that the professor always gave me words of encouragement, especially when times were hard. This professor would continuously show me how to prepare for a dissertation defense. A few weeks before my defense, she even sat with me and required me to conduct a mock dissertation defense. Although I was extremely nervous, I was thankful for how she critiqued my presentation. She also modeled ways to get main ideas across to the committee. This experience really served me well, as the committee unanimously approved of my defense.”

Linda indicated:“My dissertation process was a living hell. But the one bright spot on my committee was my Black committee member. She knew that the White professors on my committee were giving me a hard time. At the same time, she knew that if she confronted them, it would make it hard for me. So she scheduled some time with me away from campus and worked with and motivated me on how to complete the dissertation.”

Louise and Lena spoke of how Black professors mentored them throughout the overall doctoral experience. Louise defined her mentoring experiences through a Black professor’s encourage to complete the program.

She explained:“At so many points in the program, I was extremely disillusioned in the program that I started to rethink my decision to enter the program.”

After further probing, she admitted: “I was just so tired of the blatant dominance of the White power structure that dominant every aspect of the doctoral experience. But like a Godsend, Dr. A (Black Professor) just began to talk with me about the importance of completing the program. She would pull me into her office and say, ‘Look here, you are a young, gifted, and black


sista. And you must complete this program. Don’t you let the White privilege and White discrimination derail you.’ We began to talk so much that she became a mixture of a mentor, angel, and second mom to me.”

Lena attributed her completion of the doctoral program to two Black professors in her department. She indicated that one of the professors provided her with a global, ethnic perspective on the need for completing the program. The other professor showed her how to navigate the political structure of her doctoral program.

She said: “Professor X (Black Professor) was a very accomplished professor. I mean he wrote numerous books on the Black experience and even marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. And he seemed to use these experiences to mentor me through the program. I vividly remember one instance of how he gave me a copy of Dr. Benjamin Mays’ speech on “Low Aims.” He would then quote Dr. Mays and Say, ‘Not failure, but low aim, is a sin.’ He would then tell me to aim high and get all that you can get from the doctoral experience.”

In reference to the other professor, she stated:“Dr. Y (Black Professor) was very savvy. She knew and taught me how to deal with the political structure of a White doctoral program of educational leadership. She would tell me-and other Black students (Which were few and far in between) things like “Always do your best in class,” and “Recognized that you are a representation of yourselves, your families, and every Black professor in this department and at this university. She would show us how to find resources or any thing needed to stay abreast of the doctoral experience. As a result, I would always go to her for advice on dealing with any matter related to my doctoral experience.”


Bonding with Black Students

With the exception of Louise, All of the women formed meaningful relationships with other Black students. Leslie and Lena formed these relationships at the beginning of the program. As she progressed through the program, Linda formed relationships with other Black Students. Overall, the relationships represented bonding that helped them to complete the program. What follows is a description of each woman’s experience.

Leslie said:“At first, I was the only African American female and at 21, the youngest member of my doctoral cohort. After the first semester another African American female joined the cohort and we began out journey of “African American Accountability.” This level of accountability involved helping each other persist through the class and the comprehensive exams.”

Lena said:“On the first night of class, I was pleasantly surprised that I was not the only African American student admitted. There were three other females and two males. We immediately bonded. It was though we knew we were going to need each other through this experience, and we did. Unlike the White students, we did not know each other or anyone else in the cohorts. So, initially we formed a group. However, as we progressed through the program, we did change up our group from time to time.”

LL said:“The most positive aspect of the doctoral program for me was other African American students. One on level, most of the teaching of instruction was very effective, yet little was given to cultural diversity. I got that from working with other African American student. Over time, I found that African American students were like a bond or shall I say an ethnic and psychological safety net for me. We would often


meet after class and dialogue on class other program related experiences.”

Discussion

The findings from this study are comparable to research on African American female doctoral students. Surprisingly, the women of this study did not define their doctoral experiences in terms of the Black Feminist Theory (Hill-Collins, 1996). Their experiences were largely defined by the intersection of previous research and the Critical Race theory (Delgado & Stefancic, 2001).

For example, consider Linda’s summarization of her experience: “I entered the doctoral program cognizant of the challenges and barriers that could and would occur (rigor in curriculum and instruction). But I was not prepared for the unprofessionalism that was displayed in discriminating practices by majority of the White teaching staff. The gold old boy-and girl-policy of White favoritism permeated the hallways of the institution.”

This experience is consistent with Manigault’s (1999) and Ellis’ (2001) indication of African American female doctoral students’ negative experiences with White faculty members. Their findings showed that most of the women were not supported by White faculty members in their departments. Consistent with previous research, the women of this study sought meaningful mentoring and advising from African American professors (Ellis, 2001; Essed, 1993; hooks, 1994; Landry, 2003).

This research has also shown that the African American professors are from other departments or outside of the university (Ellis, 2001; Essed, 1993; hooks, 1994; Landry, 2003). My research, however, showed that the females’ African American mentors worked in their departments. This finding has significance, given the small percentage of African American faculty members on university campuses (Trower, 2002).


Based on the women’s descriptions of their mentors, the African American mentoring made a significant difference in their doctoral program experiences. In particular, some of the mentors reminded the African American female doctoral students of the importance of fulfilling African American ideals of academic achievement. In this capacity, the mentoring provided the women with the motivation and confidence to achieve their doctorate degrees.

Conversely, their motivation can not be defined in the context of interacting with White students. In effect, all of the women reported that they did not establish meaningful relationships with their White peers. Instead, they observed their White peers exude White privilege regarding their admittance to the program. Another significant finding is the women’s descriptions of how they were treated by white students. The women perceived that race influenced both the White faculty’s and students’ respect for and views of them. This finding is consistent with the critical race notion (Delgado & Stefancic, 2001) and research on racially marginalized doctoral experiences of African American women (Essed, 1990; St. Jean & Feagin, 1998).

As an example, Leslie indicated that many of her White peers tried to define her program experiences as an indication of the need for multicultural diversity. From a micro-aggression perspective, the White students’ attempt to marginalize Leslie’s doctoral experience reflects a subtle reminder of how they are not expected to be in the doctoral program. She, as well as other African American doctoral students, was not necessarily expected to have the academic astuteness to matriculate a doctoral program of educational leadership. Consequently, the White students subtly conveyed their beliefs in the need for special provisions to facilitate African American students’ entry into doctoral programs. In response, many of the women from this study used a counter story approach to prove that they belonged in doctoral programs of educational leadership.


The outcomes of this research also suggest that the African American women benefited from their relationships with other African American doctoral students. As indicated in their comments, these relationships developed into bonds that help the women to navigate their doctoral experiences. This finding suggests that doctoral students do have the potential to serve as a source of informal and formal support for each other. With regard to the participants of this study, the authenticity of the support is viewed through the lens of ethnicity.

In sum, the findings of this study can be defined in terms of dealing with and thriving on. In this study, Dealing with described the relationship between the African American female doctoral students and White faculty members and White students. Most of the participants sensed some level of injustice in dealing with White faculty. They also observed unmarked and unchecked elitist behavior through their dealings with White students.

Thriving on denoted their growth from relationships with

African American faculty members and African American students. They thrived on the formal and informal mentoring relationships with African American faculty. They also thrived on the academic and social bonding with other African American doctoral students. Thus, for African American women, race may be a factor when entering predominantly White programs to complete doctoral programs of educational leadership. Unlike theoretical underpinnings of Black Feminist thought, the experiences of African American women’s entry into these programs may not intersect across race and gender.

Implications

Due to the small sample size of this study, I am presenting the findings of this study as implications for the participants’ universities. I am presenting the findings as suggestions for other predominantly White universities with doctoral programs in educational leadership. First, university policy makers should develop ways for reducing


African American women’s feelings of dealing with White faculty and students. The participants of this study were able to form meaningful relationships with African American faculty in their departments. However, most African American females may matriculate doctoral programs of educational leadership that consists of few of virtually no African American faculty. The reason is that most university departments consist of a significantly higher number of White faculty members than African American faculty members (Trower, 2002). Notwithstanding, African American female doctoral students should not be apprehensive about forming relationships with White faculty members of doctoral programs in educational leadership.

With regards to doctoral programs in educational leadership, administrators could facilitate this relationship by training faculty members on how to effectively advise and mentor African American women. They should be trained on how to develop an authentic understanding of African American females’ concerns about their doctoral coursework and dissertations. They should also be provided with insight on the significance of offering advice, encouragement, and support to these students. Another suggestion is to demonstrate ways for involving African American women in research activities that are not apart of typical class assignments or projects. Caucasian American faculty members should be given tips for showing African American females how to incorporate their doctoral work into their employment experiences. Finally, Caucasian American faculty could also show interest in African American females’ research interests.

Administrators and faculty members could address African American female doctoral students’ experiences with White students by facilitating serious discussions about race. In particular, the discussions should provide the women with the safe space to express their views of differences between their and their White counterparts’ doctoral experiences. The women must be allowed and encouraged to discuss the micro-aggressions that are apart of their doctoral experiences. With regard to this study, the women should discuss their feelings about being viewed as token representatives of their doctoral


program’s memberships. For African American women, these discussions could represent the counter stories needed to help them experience a sense of belongingness into their doctoral programs of educational leadership. The reason is that they counter beliefs that portray African American women as being academically inferior doctoral students to White people.

To sustain the significance of this African American

empowerment, I suggest that administrators and faculty members continuously consider the following questions:

What are White doctoral students’ perceptions of the academic intellect of their African American female counterparts?

How do these perceptions impact White doctoral students’ level of respect for and interaction with African American female doctoral students?

How do prior racial experiences shape African American female doctoral students’ trust in and respect for White doctoral students?

Do African American female doctoral students and White doctoral students really value each other’s potential to elevate their doctoral experiences?

Based on the findings from this research, the main implication is to allow African American females to tell their own stories about their experiences in doctoral programs of educational leadership. By following and extending the focus of this research, administrators and faculty can develop a cultural awareness of the issues, feelings, and thoughts that may be apart of African American women’s doctoral experiences. They could then use their testimonies to eliminate micro-aggressions that are used to marginalize African American women’s doctoral experiences in educational leadership programs. Equally significant, they could become more sensitive of and committed to the need to develop authentic relationships with African American female doctoral students. Overall, African American women may be able to


thrive on instead of deal with their interactions with Caucasian American faculty and doctoral students.

Limitations

This study consists of several limitations. First, this study is based solely on my personal interpretation of the data. Another researcher may interpret the same results from a different perspective. Second, another limitation is the small sample size of African American women from four states. As such, these findings should not be perceived as universal experiences of African American women in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. In addition, this study does not speak to the lived of experiences of African American women in predominantly White doctoral programs in other disciplines. Van Manen (1990) indicated that the phenomenological research design supports the need for limited generalizability of a study. According to him, “The tendency to generalize may prevent us from developing understandings that remain focused on the uniqueness of human experiences” (p.22). However, because of connecting the data to the wider theoretical underpinnings of African American experiences in American, I have positioned this research to be somewhat relevant to other African American women. The remaining limitations of this study are the cross sectional research design and time between participants’ graduation and participation in the interview process.

Future Research Recommendations

This study provides a conceptual framework for interpreting African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. Because of the inconclusiveness of these outcomes, more research needs to explore different African American experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs. These studies hold the potential to progress our


understanding of their lived doctoral experiences. As such, I am making the following recommendations for future research:

Research needs to examine African American women’s lived experiences as the only African American in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership.

Research should focus on African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of other advanced disciplines (Curriculum and Instruction, Social Work, Higher Education).

Research should focus on African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of other advanced degrees (e.g. Ph.D, J.D, M.D, Th.D, Psy.D).

A researcher should replicate this study by focusing on African American women’s lived experiences in completing the dissertation process in predominantly White programs of educational leadership and other disciplines.

A study that investigates the lived experiences of White women and White students in predominantly Black doctoral programs of educational leadership and other disciplines would provide an interesting contrast to this study.

Conclusion

My primary goal for this study was to identify African American women’s lived experiences in predominantly White doctoral programs of educational leadership. By allowing the women to use their voices, they were able to narrate a personal story on the experience of being Black, female, and a doctoral student in a culture that doesn’t reflect their cultural beliefs.

Surprisingly, I found that their narratives were more indicative of the Critical Race Theory than the Black Feminist Theory. Although race and gender made the women visible to their doctoral programs, their race caused them to experience feelings of invisibility.


Notwithstanding, the women were able to achieve their doctoral degrees in educational leadership. One reason is that they were able to successfully navigate the “dealing with” aspects of the White privilege structure of their doctoral programs. In addition, they were able to appreciate the “thriving on” aspects of the Black empowerment structure of their doctoral programs. These findings highlight the need for policy makers to facilitate authentic and meaningful interactions between African American women and predominantly White doctoral programs’ Caucasian American professors and doctoral students. Through careful analysis of micro-aggressions and counter stories, these programs may be able to develop program experiences that are inclusive and appreciative of the lived experiences of African American female doctoral students.


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Dr. Mack T. Hines, III - National FORUM Journals