Sisters of the Academy: Emergent Black Women Scholars in Higher Education

232 Pages·2001·3.48 MB·English

by  Reitumetse Mabokela

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SISTERS OF THE ACADEMY
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SISTERS OF THE
ACADEMY
Emergent Black Women Scholars
in Higher Education
Reitumetse Obakeng Mabokela
and Anna L. Green, Editors
STERLING, VIRGINIA
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Published in 2001 by
Stylus Publishing, LLC
22883 Quicksilver Drive
Sterling, Virginia 20166
Copyright © 2001 by Stylus Publishing, LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced in any form or
by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying, recording and information storage and retrieval, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sisters of the academy : emergent Black women scholars in higher education / edited by
Reitumetse Obakeng Mabokela and Anna L. Green.—1st. ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index
ISBN 1-57922-038-X (alk. paper)—ISBN 1-57922-039-8 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Afro-American women college teachers—Social conditions—20th century. 2.
Discrimination in higher education—United States. 3. Sex discrimination in higher
education—United States. I. Mabokela, Reitumetse Obakeng. II. Green, Anna L. (Anna
Lucille), 1970–
LC2781.5 .S57 2001
378'.0082—dc21
00-066131
First edition, 2001
ISBN: hardcover 1-57922-038-X
ISBN: paperback 1-57922-039-8
Printed in the United States of America
All first editions printed on acid-free paper
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CONTENTS
PREFACE viii
Lee Jones
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi
INTRODUCTION: SOARING BEYOND BOUNDARIES xiii
Reitumetse Obakeng Mabokela
Michigan State University
1
FEAR OF MISCEGENATION: BLACK WOMEN EDUCATORS
IN COLUMBUS OHIO, (1898–1909) 3
Adah Ward Randolph
Ohio University
2
BLACK WOMEN IN THE ACADEMY: AN HISTORICAL
OVERVIEW 29
Alicia C. Collins
University of Pittsburgh
3 IN SEARCH OF A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 43
Jennifer E. Obidah
University of California–Los Angeles
4
SUCCESS IN THE IVORY TOWER: LESSONS FROM BLACK
TENURED FEMALE FACULTY AT A MAJOR RESEARCH
UNIVERSITY 57
Mary V. Alfred
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
v
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CONTENTS
5
THE DUAL ROLE OF SCHOLAR AND SOCIAL CHANGE
AGENT: REFLECTIONS FROM TENURED AFRICAN
AMERICAN AND LATINA FACULTY 81
Gloria D. Thomas
University of Michigan
6
COMING TO TERMS WITH BEING A YOUNG, BLACK
FEMALE ACADEMIC IN U.S. HIGHER EDUCATION 93
Lisa D. Williams
University of Massachusetts–Amherst
7
INVISIBLE WOMEN: THE EXPERIENCES OF BLACK
FEMALE DOCTORAL STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY
OF MICHIGAN 105
Rochelle L. Woods
University of Michigan
8
BREAKING THE SILENCE: RACIAL IDENTITY
DEVELOPMENT OF POST-BACCALAUREATE AFRICAN
AMERICAN WOMEN 117
Dionne A. Blue
The Ohio State University
9
FROM THE CLASSROOM TO THE FIELD: TEACHER,
RESEARCHER, ACTIVIST 139
Cynthia A. Tyson
The Ohio State University
10
RACE, JACKS, AND JUMP ROPE: THEORIZING SCHOOL
THROUGH PERSONAL NARRATIVES 151
Melanie Carter
Clark Atlanta University
11
SUFFICIENTLY CHALLENGED: A FAMILY’S PURSUIT
OF A PH.D. 161
Lesa M. Covington Clarkson
University of Minnesota & Concordia University,
St.Paul
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CONTENTS
12 UNWRITTEN RULES OF THE GAME 175
Brenda “BJ” Jarmon
Florida State University
13
NOT AN HONORARY WHITE:CONDUCTING RESEARCH
DURING THE DAYS OF APARTHEID 183
Thandeka Joyce F. Kirk
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
EPILOGUE: LEAVING A LASTING IMPRESSION 207
Anna L. Green
Florida A&M University
INDEX 209
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PREFACE
Lee Jones
As I read through the pages of this long awaited book, I was reminded of the
paradox of our time. Africans in America have made significant accomplish-
ments through turbulent times but yet have so far to go. As the editor of
Brothers of the Academy(a volume that chronicles the experiences of African
American men in the academy), I have received hundreds of inquiries from
scholars around the country who ask, “What about the sisters of the acad-
emy?” This is a critical question. While African American men and women
scholars share similar concerns in the academy, there are issues that speak
directly to the experience of sisters. Sisters of the Academy is both a response
to these inquiries and a reflection of a particular experience within the acad-
emy as seen through the eyes of African American scholars.
In the pages that follow, scholarship, research, and personal testimonies
take us on a journey through the lives of fifteen African American women
whose stories may otherwise not be told. The substance of the chapters
shared by these women is timely and extremely relevant for all scholars of
higher education.
It has been an honor to serve as the consulting editor of this book because
I saw firsthand the hard work and dedication of the co-editors, Reitumetse
Obakeng Mabokela and Anna L. Green. This exciting and substantive book
holds special meaning for me as an African American man and scholar for a
number of reasons: First, it reflects the hopes and visions of African America
women, such as Mary McLeod Bethune, Toni Morrison, and Johnetta Betsch
Cole, who preceded us. Second, while it highlights the scholarship of a few
African American women, it speaks volumes about the broader experience of
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PREFACE
other women in the academy. Finally, it is written by and about African Amer-
ican women.
Stories of African American women scholars have often been written and
told by those who have never experienced what I believe to be the tri-
consciousness of African American women’s experiences. The first level of
consciousness emerges from being an African woman in America. Given the
racialized history of this country, women of African descent have not been
provided with the comfort of living their dreams and aspirations based on
their own concepts of reality. For the most part, their lives have been defined
by other people’s perception of reality. History has shown us that those
women who dared to live and guide their lives using their own perspectives
have become misplaced, marginalized, and dispossessed.
The second level of consciousness relats to being a woman in a male-
dominated society, including the higher education sector. Despite the fact that
there are more female college students than there are males, there is still a dis-
proportionately high number of men who occupy major leadership positions
in higher education. Women continue to be critically under-represented in the
upper echelons of the higher education hierarchy. For African American
women, the numbers are more dismal.
The third level of consciousness, so real to many African American
women with whom I have communicated, is almost too taboo to discuss, that
is, inequities withinthe African American community of scholars. Despite the
fact that the struggles of African American men and women are inextricably
intertwined, there are continuing disparities that compromise the accomplish-
ments of African American women. As an African American male scholar, this
is a reality that must be acknowledged and addressed.
As I read through the pages of this book, I found myself, quietly and some-
times very loudly, crying. Crying because the narratives in this volume took me
on an emotional roller coaster. On one hand, I was intellectually stimulated by
the thought-provoking discussions; while on the other hand, I was moved by
the painful truth of some of the experiences shared. The chapters left me
drained because, in many ways, they reflect how far we still have to go to truly
humanize the academy. Many of the chapters re-educated me about the strug-
gles African American women face in higher education. As scholars, under-
standing the content of this book places a tremendous responsibility on our
shoulders to do our part to make the academy more accountable to African
American women and others who choose higher education as a viable career
option.