This dissertation is accessible only to the Illinois State University community.
- Off-Campus ISU Users: To download this item, click the "Off-Campus Download" button below. You will be prompted to log in with your ISU ULID and password.
- Non-ISU Users: Contact your library to request this item through interlibrary loan.
Date of Award
8-22-2018
Document Type
Dissertation-ISU Access Only
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Department of Educational Administration and Foundations: Educational Administration
First Advisor
Venus Evans-Winters
Abstract
The purpose of this narrative inquiry is to explore how mentoring helps us to understand the educational experiences of African American women enrolled in doctoral programs at predominately White institutions (PWIs) in the continental United States. The educational experiences of African American women in this country are unique (Gildersleeve, Croom, & Vasquez, 2011; Holloway, 2016; Patton, 2009). African American women have used their educational pursuits to fight for social justice, equity and the survival of the race since being permitted access to higher education (Perkins, 2009). Furthermore, Black women entering doctoral programs at PWIs often met with challenges that span across multiplicative forms of oppression that intersect across race, class, and gender (Crenshaw, 1994; Harris & González, 2012; Holley & Caldwell, 2012). This study seeks to explore how mentoring, through the conceptual framework of Black feminist thought, helps us understand Black women’s experiences in academe while in pursuit of their doctorate. Twenty Black women in doctoral programs at PWIs across the United States were interviewed about their experiences in their doctoral programs and their experiences with their mentors. It is clear from their narratives that mentoring relationships helped alleviate some of the challenges they encountered. Findings regarding Black women’s experiences in their doctoral programs and mentoring relationships highlight the importance for higher education to recruit more faculty of color, provide culturally responsive training to faculty to work for and on behalf of Black women doctoral students and create institutionalized mentoring programs.
Recommended Citation
Wingfield, Tuwana T., "“Still I Rise ”: an Exploration of Mentoring Relationships on Degree Attainment for Black Women in Doctoral Programs" (2018). Theses and Dissertations. 1005.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/1005
DOI
http://doi.org/10.30707/ETD2019.Wingfield.T
Page Count
241
Comments
Imported from ProQuest Wingfield_ilstu_0092E_11311.pdf