ABSTRACT Dissertation Title: HIDDEN FIGURES: AN EXAMINATION OF THE CAREER TRAJECTORIES OF BLACK WOMEN IN SENIOR ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS Candice L. Staples, Doctor of Philosophy, 2020 Dissertation directed by: Associate Professor Kimberly A. Griffin, Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education The purpose of this qualitative study was to analyze and examine the career development of Black women in senior academic administrative positions. Although not every senior administrator aspires to become a college president, there is a traditional pathway for those who reach the presidency. Women are underrepresented in college presidencies, but Black women in particular are underrepresented as presidents of predominately White research institutions. The theoretical frameworks guiding this study are Black Feminist Thought and Community Cultural Wealth, which both provide a better understanding of the diversity within Black female experiences and the unique capital they cultivate to proceed through the academy. Narrative inquiry was the methodology selected to conduct this nationwide study of 15 Black women who had the career titles of chair, dean, or provost. Each participant agreed to one semi-structured interview, approximately 90 minutes. The transcribed interviews were hand coded to highlight the emerging themes: participants entered administration via recruitment, the significance of faculty rank and the department chair position, support was largely found outside of the participants? institution. Participants acquired capital through their parents, partners, and sister circles (friends). The women were able to leverage their capital to help mitigate some of the obstacles and to influence their career decisions. HIDDEN FIGURES: AN EXAMINATION OF THE CAREER TRAJECTORIES OF BLACK WOMEN IN SENIOR ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS by Candice L. Staples Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2020 Advisory Committee: Dr. Kimberly A. Griffin, Associate Professor, Chair Dr. Tara Brown, Assistant Professor Dr. Noah Drezner, Associate Professor Dr. Sharon L. Fries-Britt, Professor Dr. Kris Marsh, Associate Professor ? Copyright by Candice L. Staples 2020 Dedication To my grandparents. You always told and showed me that I was special. To my mother. You have provided the blueprint for me to follow. You are my biggest cheerleader and yet, you have always kept me humble. I aspire to live my life as gracefully as you do. To my partner. Your patience and unwavering support is admirable. Thank you for your ever-optimistic outlook. To my daughter. Your pure joy and inquisitive nature inspires me to become a better mother every day. You are my purpose, my heart, my legacy. I am already proud of the person you continue to become. To my sidekick, Piper. We have been inseparable since the day we met. I hope you realize how grateful I am to you for sitting by my side through this entire endeavor. ii Acknowledgements I ordered a new iPad the day I gained acceptance to the University of Maryland ? College Park. I had Philippians 4:13: ?I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me? engraved on the back. I chose that scripture because I knew this would be one of the most challenging adventures of my life and that I would need a constant reminder that my steps were guided by the most High. For that, I am grateful to God that He saw fit for me to finish even when I did not think it was possible. To my family. It is a blessing to come from a very large family, even more so when one is considered to be the ?baby.? In every activity, accolade, and award, my family was there. When I moved from city to city, my mother and aunts were often my first visitors. I am eternally grateful every relationship I have with all of my aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, nieces, and nephews. It is evident to me that my family is special because my friends often feel adopted by us. To my mama, I hope you know how much I cherish our relationship. You are my best friend. Your encouragement, tough love, protection, guidance, honesty, sacrifices, and prayers sustain me. Some people are born to become mothers and some of us become mothers, like me. Your spirit and sense of nurturing let me know that you were born to be a mother. I am positive many of my friends keep me around as a way to get closer to you, their second mother. To Thelma, thank you for always believing in me and displaying such a genuine curiosity for everything I do. I love the way our relationship has evolved over the years, and you are one of the few people I know will be there for me at every turn. To Leola, I am not sure iii there is a superlative to appropriate enough to describe you other than simply ?the best.? Even when I am not at my best, you find a way to make me laugh and let me know all will be fine. To Celestine, you taught me to hold my head high and to protect my spirit. To my uncles: Daniel, John, Eddie, Edward, Ellis, Joe, Rasheed, and in particular, Uncle Lester Jr, you surrounded me with fatherly love and stood in the gap without question. I have too many cousins to thank individually, and I love you all for spoiling and teasing me. To Evin, you are my way more than my baby cousin. You are my brother, my friend, one of my favorite people on the planet. Thank you for listening to me whine. To Shari, you are a force. I am grateful that you even entertain me knowing that I simply stare at you in awe. To Moya, you are one of the most loyal and energetic people I have ever met. I appreciate you for asking the tough questions. To the Henrys: Fred, Freda, and Brittany, you have cared for me, fed me, housed me, and loved on me in so many ways. I hope to return the favor and make you proud. To Carolyn for being the first Ph.D. in the family and letting me know that this process is difficult, yet doable. To Eve, thank you for teaching me more professional, academic, and personal lessons than I can count. To my sister, Natalie, though we did not grow up together our bond is irreplaceable. You push me as much as you say that I push you. When a person grows up as an only child, they define friends differently than most. My friends are my siblings and I am fiercely protective of them. James, from the first day we met and you told me we would become friends we have been inseparable. You understand me, make me laugh, and indulge me in a way few others can. I hope you realize how special you are. You add value to everything you touch and bring light to iv every person you meet. Sheila, since the first grade you have taught me that we were far too cool to follow the crowd. Britney, I hope you realize that you are already the ?Big wig? you aspire to be. My Hampton sisters: Rhea, Shannon, Mia, and Kim. I met you through Mia, who was my roommate and taught me that I had not learned to share yet. I am forever grateful for all of you adopting me as your stray friend. Looking forward to us resuming our girls trips because we deserve it. My Penn family, you have held me down through so many changes, moves, and even a destination wedding! Dr. Keon McGuire, brother, you are so wise beyond your years and have served as my advisor, teacher, comedian, and you push my thinking in ways that both impress and annoy me?. Pharen, you could make millions based on your editing skills alone. You have a hustler?s spirit, a heart of gold, an infectious laugh, and I am lucky enough to call you family. Brandi, Megan, and Betsy?the three of you hang tough effortlessly with my family and I love you for it! My Maryland family had the difficult job of doing the heavy lifting of support during this journey. You watched me leave, get married, have a child, and still made sure I crossed the finish line. Dr. Steve D. Mobley, Jr., AKA ?Mr. Five Letters, One Syllable,? you taught me to cackle, told me I was a good Judy, and helped me remember that every problem could be solved through brunch. Dr. Jennifer Johnson, you were the group?s big sister and steady hand. My sister scholars Dr. Jeanette Snider, Dr. Shelvia English, Dr. Jessica Bennett, Dr. Cinthya Salazar, Dr. Molly Morin, Dr. Rebecca Villarreal, Dr. Chrystal George-Mwangi, Dr. Casey Maliszewski Lukszo, Dr. Elizabeth Kurban, Dr. Alicia Peralta, Nana Brantuo, and Moya Malcolm. All of you were a text, call, or GroupMe away. You provided me with inspirational words, funny memes, and gentle v pushes. To my brother scholars Dr. Wendell Hall and Dr. Amilcar Guzman, I am inspired by your abilities to take huge problems and distill them down to bite-sized pieces. Soon- to-be Dr. Donte McGuire and Terri McGuire, you are the epitome of a power couple. You push each other, respect each other, and still have time to nurture your individualities. You make me step my game up every time we connect. Lastly, my thirds! My cohort sisters: Dr. Nina Daoud and Dr. Tykeia Robinson. The three of us are like gumbo in that we bring very different ingredients to one glorious stew. Nina, I can honestly say that I have never met anyone like you. You changed every year! But at the core, your heart and caring nature remained the same. I hope you never allow grass to grow under your feet. Tykeia, my person. To watch you evolve over the years has given me such joy. You went from ?no new friends? to galvanizing thousands of Black women who see you as their best friend. In less than five years, you have mastered what many scholars try to achieve throughout their careers. You use your voice to bring your academic work to the public sphere in your own way and look good doing it. I hope you realize how significant your contributions are. To my dissertation committee: Drs. Kimberly Griffin, Sharon Fries-Britt, Tara Brown, Noah Drezner, and Kris Marsh, I thank you for making my dream of a rockstar committee come true. I always thought that no one could push me more than I pushed myself, until I met my chair and advisor, Dr. Griffin. You graciously watched my journey like a ?Choose Your Own Adventure? book. You never told me not to do something, but your gentle line of questioning let me know if I was about to run into quicksand. Thank you for allowing me to grow. Dr. Fries-Britt, I appreciate our talks, your candor, and your vi brilliance. Dr. Brown, I thank you for asking the tough questions and stretching me as a scholar. Dr. Drezner, I appreciate how you care for your students and for being a man of your word. Dr. Marsh, I thank you for your encouragement and understanding. I would also like to thank the A. James Clark School of Engineering, Women in Engineering Program for providing me with one of the best Graduate Assistantships on campus! Dr. Paige Smith and the students of Flexus have provided me with fond memories. Thank you to ADVANCE for the opportunity to meet brilliant minoritized faculty across the entire campus. A special thank you to Carol Scott for taking care of me and making sure I submitted all of my paperwork. Moreover, thank you to the College of Education for its financial support of my dissertation through the Support Program for Advancing Research and Collaboration (SPARC grant). In addition to my 15 participants, thank you for your honesty, openness, and trusting me to share your stories with integrity. I hope you realize that the work you do is hidden no more. vii Table of Contents Dedication .............................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements .............................................................................................. iii Table of Contents ............................................................................................... viii List of Tables ...................................................................................................... xiii List of Figures ..................................................................................................... xiv Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................1 Statement of the Problem............................................................................................. 4 Statement of Purpose and Research Questions ...............................................7 Research Design .................................................................................................7 Key Terms and Definitions ...............................................................................9 Significance .......................................................................................................10 Dissertation Overview .....................................................................................14 Chapter 2: Literature Review .............................................................................15 Black Female Faculty ..........................................................................................17 Campus Climate ......................................................................................................... 18 Interactions with Students ......................................................................................... 21 Interactions with Colleagues...................................................................................... 25 Marginalization and Invisibility ................................................................................ 29 Workload ..................................................................................................................... 30 Mentorship .................................................................................................................. 34 How mentors can be helpful..................................................................................... 34 Identity matching in mentoring relationships. .......................................................... 36 Where problems arise in mentoring relationships. ................................................... 37 Faculty Transition to Administration ................................................................38 viii Women in Higher Education Administration ...................................................42 Pipeline ........................................................................................................................ 43 Work/life Balance ....................................................................................................... 44 Patriarchal Workplace ............................................................................................... 45 Improving Retention of Administrators ................................................................... 46 Theoretical Frameworks .....................................................................................47 Black Feminist Thought ............................................................................................. 48 Community Cultural Wealth ..................................................................................... 52 Summary ...............................................................................................................58 Chapter 3: Methodology......................................................................................60 Rationale for Qualitative Strategies ...............................................................61 Methodological Approach: Narrative Inquiry ..............................................64 Pilot Study.........................................................................................................66 Setting................................................................................................................68 Participant Recruitment ..................................................................................68 Data Collection .................................................................................................69 Data Analysis ....................................................................................................71 Validity and Trustworthiness .........................................................................73 Positionality Statement ...................................................................................74 Scope and Limitations .....................................................................................78 Chapter 4: Participant Profiles...........................................................................81 Table 4.1 ...................................................................................................................... 81 Description of Participants ...................................................................................81 Caitlin .......................................................................................................................... 83 Cora ............................................................................................................................. 85 Courtney ...................................................................................................................... 87 Danielle ........................................................................................................................ 88 Daphne ......................................................................................................................... 90 ix Darlene ........................................................................................................................ 92 Diana ............................................................................................................................ 94 Felicity ......................................................................................................................... 96 Kate .............................................................................................................................. 97 Lynn ............................................................................................................................. 99 Madison ..................................................................................................................... 100 Megan ........................................................................................................................ 102 Sabrina ...................................................................................................................... 103 Tamara ...................................................................................................................... 105 Tracy .......................................................................................................................... 106 Chapter 5: Findings ...........................................................................................108 Career Path.........................................................................................................108 Table 5.1 .................................................................................................................... 108 Paths to Administration ......................................................................................108 Recruited to Administration from Faculty............................................................. 109 Choosing Administration ......................................................................................... 115 The Role of Faculty Rank in Transitioning and Department Chair .................... 116 Black Women as Administrators ......................................................................121 Moving Forward ................................................................................................127 Table 5.2 .................................................................................................................... 127 Future Plans ........................................................................................................127 The Role of Children in Career Decision-making and Progression ..............134 Transitioning from Faculty to Administration ...............................................137 Squeeze Position ........................................................................................................ 137 Limited Training for Administrative Responsibilities .......................................... 139 Meetings..................................................................................................................... 139 x Management and Relationships .............................................................................. 140 Training and Mentoring .......................................................................................... 143 Isolation and Identity ............................................................................................... 146 Service ........................................................................................................................ 148 Support Systems .................................................................................................151 Partners ..................................................................................................................... 152 Parents ....................................................................................................................... 157 Sister Circles ............................................................................................................. 161 Self-Care .................................................................................................................... 168 Mentorship and Preparing Future Leaders ....................................................172 Summary .............................................................................................................175 Chapter 6: Conclusion .......................................................................................179 Overview of the Study .......................................................................................179 Summary of the Literature Review ..................................................................182 Theoretical Frameworks ...................................................................................184 Summary of the Methods ..................................................................................186 Key Findings .......................................................................................................188 Recruitment into Administration ............................................................................ 188 The Importance of Rank .......................................................................................... 190 Engagement in Service ............................................................................................. 193 Career Aspirations and Trajectory ......................................................................... 195 Supporting the Journey ........................................................................................... 199 Parents. .................................................................................................................. 201 Partners. ................................................................................................................. 203 Sister Circles. ......................................................................................................... 204 Mentors. ................................................................................................................. 206 xi Implications and Future Directions .................................................................208 Practice ...................................................................................................................... 208 Research .................................................................................................................... 210 Conclusion ..........................................................................................................214 APPENDICES ....................................................................................................219 Recruitment Email .........................................................................................219 Demographic Questionnaire .........................................................................221 Interview Questions .......................................................................................222 References ...........................................................................................................225 xii List of Tables Table 2.1: Four Dimensions of Black Feminist Thought 59 Table 2.2: Types of Cultural Capital Wealth 63 Table 4.1: Description of Participants 86 Table 5.1: Paths to Administration 110 Table 5.2: Future Plans 127 xiii List of Figures Figure 1.1: Traditional Presidential Pipeline 18 xiv 1 Chapter 1: Introduction Everyone has noticed that I?m the first woman and first African American woman. Half the time I?m sitting in the room, I pinch myself because I can?t believe I?m a president. ?Joanne Berger-Sweeney, President, Trinity College ?The days of the college presidency as a job for men are quickly becoming outdated as more and more women step into the role? (Anderson & Weber, 2014, para 1). Superficially, this assertion denotes a major shift in the appearance of individuals in the most senior leadership position on American college campuses. In 1986, 9.5% of presidents were women (Cook, 2012). By 2012, 26.4% of all college presidents were women (ACE, 2012). While the increase of women is significant, it is important to further examine the data to determine which women generally, and whether Black women specifically, are experiencing greater access to presidential roles. For example, while the representation of women has increased, the representation of racial and ethnic minorities in the presidency has decreased (Cook, 2012). In 2006, 13.6% of presidents were people of color and in 2011 that number decreased to 12.6% (ACE, 2012). Once schools that target specific populations (such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities) are removed, people of color represent 9% of presidents at predominantly White institutions. (ACE, 2011; Cook, 2012). According to ACE (2012), 6% of all college presidents are Black, and Black women represent 2% of all college presidents (C. Nellum, personal communication, September 16, 2015). Women and Black women in particular were more likely to head community colleges or special focus institutions, such 2 as women?s colleges and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) (Cook, 2012). In 2009, eight Black women led predominately White, 4-year institutions and 26 were presidents of HBCUs (Bower & Wolverton, 2009). This means the most elite, doctoral degree granting, and well-resourced private universities are the least likely to have a Black woman in the top position (Williams, 2015). Given the number of Black women receiving terminal degrees, one might expect their representation in the presidential pipeline, including senior administrative positions, to be more significant. Black women, like women in general, outnumber men on college campuses, have higher rates of degree attainment, and also pursue graduate degrees at a higher rate (NCES, 2012). With the exception of business and engineering, women earn the majority of degrees among Black Americans at every educational level (AAUW, 2013). Black women earn more degrees than Black men yet remain underrepresented among faculty. Seventy percent of all Black presidents are male, and 30% are Black women (NCES, 2012). Black women earn 68.3% of associate?s, 65.9% of bachelor?s, 71.1% of master?s, and 65.2% of doctoral degrees (NCES, 2012). To understand why Black women are not better represented in presidential appointments, we must first understand the path to the presidency. Although becoming a college president is not the goal for every senior administrator, there is a clear career trajectory towards the presidency for those who do pursue that path. Women are more likely than men to ascend to the highest positions through the traditional path (represented below in Figure 1.1) of moving from faculty member, to administrator, and then to president (Cook, 2012). The Chief Academic Officer (CAO) position or Provost 3 is often considered a stepping-stone to the presidency. Approximately 45% of all presidents stated they were Chief Academic Officers or in other senior administrative positions prior to their appointments (ACE, 2013). Further, faculty who transition to academic administrative leadership positions, such as dean and provost, are more likely to desire and attain the role of president at some point (Jackson, 2004). The potential to diversify the presidency is limited by the fact that Black women continue to be underrepresented in senior administrative roles (Bower & Wolverton, 2009). Although all women are underrepresented in the pipeline, there is a smaller pool of Black women primed to secure presidential posts in the future. Forty-one percent of CAOs, 28% of deans of academic colleges, and 36% of executive vice presidents are women (ACE, 2012). Blacks comprise 2.3% of all Chief Academic Officers (ACE, 2012). Information on the number of Black women CAOs was not available, however considering the data provided above it is probable that Black women represent a small proportion of that figure. 4 Chief Academic Faculty Chair Dean President/Chancellor Officer/Provost Figure 1.1. Traditional Presidential Pipeline. This figure illustrates the traditional positions faculty hold prior to reaching the presidency. Statement of the Problem Scholars (e.g., Jayakumar, Howard, Allen, & Han, 2009; Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Sol?rzano, Ceja, & Yosso, 2002; Turner, 2002) have highlighted three factors which have a negative influence on the career trajectories of Black women in the academy: a hostile campus climate, lack of mentoring, and limited opportunities for professional development. Campus climate includes encounters with racism and sexism (Hinton, 2009; Hurtado, Clayton-Peterson, Allen, Milem, 1998; Maranto & Griffin, 2010; Turner et al., 1999). Mentoring literature postulates that formal and informal mentors are ?gatekeepers? and guides for personal and professional success (Jones & Osborne- Lampkin, 2013; Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Lastly, it has been 5 suggested that professional development can provide access to networks, programs, and initiatives designed to groom faculty for administrative positions. This literature largely points to environmental factors that can affect Black female faculty; however, little inquiry has specifically examined whether these patterns are similar or distinct for those who seek positions in senior administration. This study is informed by research on Black administrators (e.g., Jackson, 2004), Black female faculty (e.g., Jones & Osborne-Lampkin, 2013; Gregory, 2001; Turner, 2002), and women faculty and administrators (e.g., Christman & McClellan, 2008; Harris, Ravenswood, & Myers, 2013; Maranto & Griffin, 2010). However, very little research specifically addresses how Black female higher education administrators experience the intersection of their racial and gendered identities and how they navigate their careers. Black men share race with Black women and White women share gender with Black women; however, institutional leaders need to discern how the experiences of Black women are unique. Literature on women in academic and administrative roles disproportionately highlights the experiences of White women, who experience sexism, but are distinct from Black women because they are beneficiaries of White privilege (Harley, 2007). Literature about Blacks in faculty and/or administrative roles often does not separate the experiences of Black men and women (Hughes & Howard-Hamilton, 2003). Black women live at the intersection of two marginalized identities and experience a unique form of gendered racism (Harley, 2008). Broadly, there is literature on the intersection of race and gender, Black women, and their experiences as faculty. Literature on how Black women faculty perform in the classroom, interact with colleagues, and 6 engage with college campuses provide background for one aspect of this study (Bailey, 2010; Edwards, Beverly & Alexander-Snow, 2011; Grant, 2002; Jean-Marie, 2006; Turner, 2002). However, there is less literature on Black female senior administrators and how they navigate their intersectional identities on campus (Collins, 2001; Gregory, 1999; Harley, 2007). Contemporary literature on Black women faculty and administrators provides significant background on the presence of racism and sexism in the workplace, in the promotion process, and interactions with students (Grant & Simmons, 2008; Hinton, 2012; Jackson, Thoits, & Taylor, 1995; Ponjuan, Conley & Trower, 2011; Stanley, 2006). The literature is also replete with studies on the value of mentoring, state of Blacks in faculty and administration, the importance of inclusive campus policies, and why Blacks leave higher education (e.g., Bailey, 2010; Dowdy & Hamilton, 2012; Gregory, 2001; Jackson, 2004; Menges & Exum, 1983). However, the extant literature on Black women in senior administrative positions is limited in several ways. First, it has not been updated in over a decade, and very little incorporates their transition from faculty to administrative roles. This work also has methodological limitations. Several of the articles are quantitative and descriptive, speaking to the total number of Black women in administrative roles. Quantitative studies can prohibit the researcher from exposing and defining systems of oppression that might affect the access Black women have to and the experiences they have within these positions (Parker & Lynn, 2012). Qualitative studies have the potential to allow Black women to share their narratives holistically, and in their own voices, by including the personal and professional dimensions of their experiences. 7 Statement of Purpose and Research Questions The purpose of this qualitative study is to analyze the career development and trajectories of Black women in administrative positions. This dissertation examines how Black women persist in academic environments as administrators at predominantly White research institutions. My questions are designed to query Black women about their personal and professional lives, how the two lives influence each other, and if they affect the personal and professional choices they make. This study is guided by the following questions: 1. Why do Black women transition from the faculty to academic administration? a. How does administrative work fit into their larger career goals and the process of reaching them? b. How do they understand and perceive the ?traditional? pathway to the presidency? 2. How do Black women manage or navigate experiences with race and racism in their administrative roles? a. How are these experiences and the ways they are managed similar or distinctive from what they encountered as faculty? 3. How do Black women senior administrators develop and leverage their cultural wealth to navigate the academy, develop their career aspirations, and make decisions about their work? a. In what manner did social class manifest in their career path? Research Design 8 My research questions involve race, gender, and cultural capital as overarching themes, therefore it is necessary to incorporate frameworks that provide an appropriate lens to observe these phenomena. Two theoretical frameworks inform this research: Black Feminist Thought (BFT) and Community Cultural Wealth (CCW). BFT is a critical framework that allows for the uncovering and confronting of power structures that perpetuate racism and sexism, while critically working to eradicate racism and sexism. BFT gives voice to the experiences of Black women who are often neglected in the broader feminist movement (Harris, 2007). Four dimensions embody this epistemology: lived experience as a criterion of meaning, the use of dialogue in assessing knowledge claims, the ethics of caring, and the ethic of personal accountability (Collins, 2000). BFT will allow me to see the unique way Black women use their identity to thrive in senior leadership by overcoming racism, sexism, and classism. As a framework it also provides me with a lens to relay their personal narratives. CCW allows for an understanding of how underrepresented communities develop and utilize their own forms of cultural capital to succeed (Espino, 2014). Cultural capital reflects the knowledge and symbols (e.g., style of dress or credentials) that are passed down generationally to maintain and uphold social class (Bourdieu and Passeron, 1977). Certain types of cultural capital are valued more than others, and capital consistent with the dominant culture is valued more than the capital of those born outside the dominant culture (Bourdieu, 1986). CCW utilizes a non-deficit approach to understanding how students, particularly Latinx, use their unique form of cultural capital, based on their experiences, to navigate college. Yosso (2005) identified six types of cultural capital: 9 aspirational, linguistic, familial, social, resistant, and navigational. In this study, CCW will provide a framework for understanding how Black women apply their backgrounds and experiences to persevere as administrators. I will use narrative inquiry as my methodology. Narrative inquiry is designed to allow for the use of interdisciplinary approaches to represent and interpret testimonies of participants (Clandinin & Connelly, 2004). Narrative inquiry used in conjunction with Black Feminist Theory will allow me to challenge the oppressive dominant narrative, empowering participants by shifting the norm from the center. Black women who hold senior administrative positions at large research universities, who either had or currently retain faculty appointments, will serve as participants. Key Terms and Definitions African-American/Black: Persons who identify as a descendant of the African diaspora. Black will primarily be used as it is more inclusive, and therefore includes those who might be from immigrant, African, and/or Caribbean cultures. Whereas the term African American is often used to described descendants of American slaves. Code switch: In chapter two, code switching will be used as linguistic capital. Code switching is a strategy of cultivating a work and personal persona to allow a minoritized person to move seamlessly between two cultural worlds. Examples might include slang, jargon, and/or attire. (Guiffrida, 2003). HBCU: Historically Black Colleges and Universities are colleges or universities founded prior to 1964, as included in the first Higher Education Act, with the purpose to educate Blacks. 10 Latinx: A more gender-inclusive alternative to Latino/a. Minoritized: Persons who are considered minorities in spaces upheld and supported by an overrepresentation of Whiteness due to the exclusionary and racist practices of the dominant culture (Harper, 2012). Predominately White Institution (PWI): Postsecondary institutions with student populations of 50% or more. Senior Administrator: Positions in higher education with significant leadership responsibilities. Chair, Dean, Vice President, Provost, and their derivatives such as ?assistant? or ?associate.? Also including those who occupy positions in the President/Chancellor?s cabinet like Chief Academic Officer. Students/Faculty/Administrators of Color: Persons who identify themselves as African-American/Black, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American, and/or Asian/Pacific Islander. Significance Diversity in the presidency, as well as other levels of senior administration, is imperative if higher education is to remain relevant and continues to push societal norms in an ever-diversifying nation (Harvey, 1999). Senior administrators and presidents can make decisions that shape campus culture, academics, and the financial health of an institution. College presidents are placed in the unique position to satisfy several constituents: boards of trustees, faculty, administrators/staff, students, and the town surrounding the university (Birnbaum, 1992). Fundraising, town and gown relationships, increasing the profile of their institution through rankings, and ensuring students have a 11 rigorous and supportive environment also all fall under the purview of the president (ACE, 2012). Through these significant relationships and responsibilities, presidents have the ability to advance a diversity agenda for their campus (Kezar, 2008). By leading committees to shape/revise mission statements and strategic plans, presidents have the authority to ensure diversity is included as a major tenet (Hale, 2004). These types of documents then have the ability to transition from words on a page to actions and institutional norms based on the priorities and leadership of the president (Kezar, 2008). Campus leaders who support diversity often have task forces and committees in place across campuses designed to improve diversity throughout the institution (Kezar, 2008). Doing so ensures the responsibility does not fall squarely on one office or person, such as the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Diversity committees can also be tasked with evaluation, which then becomes a mean of accountability to gauge campus climate and to determine where resources should be distributed (Hurtado, et al, 1999). Infusing diversity into multiple levels of an institution can help those from the dominant culture understand perspectives from other racial/ethnic groups. Black women presidents are more likely to embody the traits necessary to implement a diversity agenda, as they are more likely to cultivate a servant leader persona as a means of engaging support from the campus community (Latimore, 2009). Presently, there are an insufficient number of women and minoritized persons in senior leadership to support a diversifying student body (Holmes, 2004; Turner, 2003). For the purposes of this study, I will focus on Black women and how they can serve as a 12 population to aid in diversifying senior administration. From 1998 to 2008, the representation of minoritized students increased from 26 to 30%, whereas the representation of White students decreased from 67 to 58% on campuses (Kim, 2011). The US Census (2010) projected that by 2050 underrepresented populations will outnumber Whites for the first time. If this prediction is carried over to higher education, the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) projects that universities will become majority minority well before the rest of the nation, approximately by 2020 (http://www.wiche.edu/knocking-8th). Women have also made tremendous strides in higher education enrollments in the past forty years. The proportion of women on college campuses has been on a steady incline since 1970, and women currently represent 57% of all college students (NCES, 2013). Universities have worked hard to meet the needs of a changing student population by implementing a variety of strategies to recruit and retain diverse students, including aggressive admissions initiatives and attractive financial aid packages (Hurtado, Clayton- Peterson, Allen, Milem, 1998; Jayakumar, Howard, Allen, & Han, 2009; Sol?rzano, Ceja, & Yosso, 2002). However, institutional leaders have not been as aggressive in their efforts to recruit and retain diverse administrators. Increased diversity in the senior faculty and administration lends to better outcomes for students of color. Diverse higher education employees that reflect the populations they serve make for better experiences for students and a stronger campus climate altogether by preparing students for a global economy and providing multiple perspectives (Newton, Rorer, Stillwell, Wang, & Matsuo, 2014). Diversifying higher education leadership is one way to help dispel 13 stereotypes and encourage a more inclusive university environment to meet the needs of a diversifying student population (Cook, 2012). Students are likely to engage more in an institution where they see themselves reflected in the leadership (Harper & Quaye, 2008). Having Black women in a position to make pivotal decisions through a racial and gendered lens can increase the inclusivity of a campus as a whole. Research suggests women in leadership positions are more likely to value listening to others, empower those around them, and possess a more participatory leadership style (Jablonski, 1996). Black women may also integrate the aptitude and acumen they have as members of two marginalized identities in one as a leadership strategy more than White women (Bell, 1990). Black women are more likely to utilize divergent thinking, creativity, risk-taking, and boundary spanning as strategies to solves problems as leaders (Parker & dt, 1996). Divergent thinking is the aptness to create several different solutions to one problem (Vincent, Decker, & Mumford, 2002). Utilizing divergent thinking alongside creativity as problem solving strategies is a result of Black women living in a racially divided society and learning to adapt to their world (Parker & dt, 1996). As a senior administrator this is a valuable skill as universities are increasingly faced with more complex challenges. Additionally, boundary spanning is defined as building partnerships and seeing interconnections, while supervising through negotiation and collaboration (Parker & dt, 1996). Therefore since Black women have to navigate two cultures, they have the ability to maneuver through many other cultures and situations that may arise on campus. This work will contribute to an extension in current literature on Black women in academe by focusing on Black women who transition from faculty to administrative 14 roles. Universities that are committed to improving the diversity in their senior administrative ranks, especially as more students are demanding it, will benefit from the findings of this study by understanding the experiences of Black women in those roles. Additionally, I will provide a deeper understanding of the unique assets Black women bring to university leadership. Through this research, I will examine what has and has not worked for a group of Black women as they negotiate the various power and political dynamics necessary to ascend to senior positions, including the presidency. Another objective for this study is to be able to review their experiences and gain a better understanding of where Black women have gotten support and areas where they might need support. And with this information, universities can utilize this knowledge to establish policies that bolster the retention and success of Black women. Dissertation Overview This dissertation proposal contains three chapters. Chapter one discusses the problem with a lack of Black women in senior administrative positions in higher education, purpose, and significance of this study. Chapter two provides an overview of relevant and extant literature on Black women in faculty and administrative positions, Black women in presidential posts, and the transition to those positions. The theoretical frameworks and key themes addressed in this study are reviewed as well. Chapter three describes my research design, setting, and the researcher?s role in the study. 15 Chapter 2: Literature Review Higher education administrators, particularly college presidents and other senior administrators, have been studied extensively, (Birnbaum, 1989, 1992; Birnbaum & Umbach, 2001; Demerath, Fisher & Koch, 1996; Flawn, 1990; Kinder, 1981; Monks, 2007; Neumann & Bensimon, 1990; Padilla, 2005; Shapiro, 1998; Slaughter, 1993; Stephens, Taylor, & Books, 1967; Tang, Tang, & Tang, 2000; Wessel & Keim, 1994). The literature discusses the nature of administrative positions (Kezar & Eckel, 2002; R. Neumann, 1993; Velcoff & Ferrari, 2006; Zach, 2005), the individuals who occupy those roles (Bennett & Shayner, 1988; Bower, 1996; Bridges, 1996; Pfeffer & Davis-Blake, 1987; Solomon & Tierney, 1977; VanDerLinden, 2004), and how their identities shape their leadership style (Bridges, 1996; J. F. Jackson, 2003; J. F. L. Jackson, 2004; Mitchell, 1993; Pfeffer & Davis-Blake, 1987; Tedrow & Rhoads, 1999; A. Williams, 1989). The majority of this literature focuses on the experiences of White men, with a subsection of this literature addressing the experiences of White women. Over the span of the past 30 years, there has been limited, intermittent work focusing on Black women administrators. The extant literature on Black women in higher education leadership roles discusses their representation of Black women in administrative capacities (Benjamin, 1997; Patitu & Hinton, 2003), organizational and institutional barriers to their success (Allen, Jacobson, & Lomotey, 1995; Green & King, 2001; Hughes & Howard-Hamilton, 2003; Parker & dt, 1996), and their professional development (Grant, 2012; Patitu & 16 Hinton, 2003; Tack & Patitu, 1992). Little is known, however, about Black women?s leadership styles, daily activities, and personal lives. This chapter begins with an overview of literature on Black women in faculty positions. As faculty are the population from which many senior administrators are drawn, reviewing literature on Black female faculty builds the foundation for what occurs or what is overlooked in the experiences of Black women in the academy. Following a review of the literature on Black female faculty, I present research on Black administrators in higher education. Studies on Black women administrators is scant; therefore, I begin by presenting a broad overview of literature on women in higher education administration (Christman & McClellan, 2008). Reviewing literature on women administrators provides a more comprehensive base for understanding gender inequities. I then provide a synopsis of the limited literature that examines the experiences of Black women in administrative positions. Subsequently, I present studies on professional development for faculty, highlighting experiences within leadership identification initiatives. In particular, I focus on those who have access to such programs, what these programs entail, and their effectiveness as catalysts to senior administration. There is a dearth of literature on professional development, especially regarding the development of Black women (Grant & Simmons, 2008; Jackson, 2004; Jones & Osborne-Lampkin, 2013). This gap in the literature will be apparent in this review, specifically in terms of how Black women pursue or have access to professional development opportunities. 17 The final section outlines, in detail, the theoretical frameworks guiding this study: Black Feminist Thought (BFT) and Community Cultural Wealth (CCW). Although Black women share similar raced and gendered experiences while navigating systems of oppression, BFT celebrates the diversity of experiences within the community of Black women (Patton, Njoku, Rogers, 2009) and suggests that race, gender, and class are systemic systems of oppressions that affect Black women in distinct ways (Collins, 1989). Community Cultural Wealth also guides this study, allowing for a focused discussion of how Black women create and use their own unique forms of capital to navigate the academy. Traditionally, CCW has been employed to explore the experiences of Latinx students; however, in this study it will be used to understand whether and how Black female administrators engage with their communities and utilize history of social justice to advance from faculty to administration (Jayakumar, Vue, & Allen, 2013). Black Female Faculty The racial and gender identities of Black women are marginalized in the dominant culture (Collins, 1986; Jones & Osborne, 2013). Both are primary and visible identities, though for many Black women, race is more salient than gender (Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Shorter-Gooden & Washington, 1996; Turner, 2003). Race and gender together play a factor in how faculty are received by students and their faculty colleagues (Ford, 2011), how graduate students are socialized (Modica & Mamiseishvili, 2010), and how institutional policies are formed (Waring, 2003). Several themes emerge from the extant literature on Black female faculty that highlight factors shaping their experiences and outcomes such as tokenism, marginality, isolation, alienation, and invisibility (Butner, 18 Burley, & Marbley, 2000; Turner, 2003; Turner, Myers, & Creswell, 1997; McGowan, 2000). Campus Climate Campus climate is a complex lattice of relationships, attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors on a campus (Hurtado, 1994). In recent years, the definition of campus climate has been expanded to include how the history and structure of a university influences the environment (Milem, Chang, & Antonio, 2005). Campus racial climate encompasses the ways in which persons perceive how race, ethnicity, and diversity play out on campus; which therefore can influence how people engage with their environment (Griffin, Pifer, Humphrey, & Hazelwood, 2011). Most literature on campus racial climate is student-centered (Cabrera, Nora, Terenzini, Pascarella, & Hagedorn, 1999; Hurtado, 1994; Hurtado & Carter, 1997; Johnson, 2012; Museus, Nichols, & Lambert, 2008; Museus & Truong, 2009; Rankin & Reason, 2005; Solorzano, Ceja, & Yosso, 2000; Yosso, Smith, Ceja, & Sol?rzano, 2009), but the themes can be applied in describing campus climate for faculty and administrators (Hurtado, Milem, Clayton-Pedersen, & Allen, 1998; W. A. Smith, 2004). Campus racial climate research reiterates the importance of moving beyond the number or proportion of minoritized persons in a campus community, emphasizing the impact of substantive interactions and relationships between populations (Hurtado, Milem, Clayton-Pedersen, & Allen, 1998). Hurtado, Milem, Clayton-Petersen, and Allen (1999) specify four aspects to which campuses should attend to promote a positive racial climate and positively affect student outcomes: the involvement of students, faculty, and staff of color; a 19 curriculum which includes the experiences of minoritized populations are included; recruitment, retention, and graduation programming for students of color; and a university mission statement that emphasizes the significance of diversity. To translate these for faculty and administrator purposes, programs focused on the recruitment and retention of minoritized faculty and administrators must be implemented (Jackson, 2003; Patitu & Hinton, 2003), and institutions should work to include minoritized faculty and administrators in all levels of governance in substantive ways (Harley, 2007; Milem et al., 1998). Additionally, faculty should be encouraged to research and include diversity- based topics in their curriculum/research agenda (Mayhew, Grunwald, & Dey, 2006; Trower & Chait, 2002). In some cases, academic contexts are viewed by marginalized persons as oppressive environments (Victorino, Nylund-Gibson, & Conley, 2013), that breed a feeling of chilliness (Aguirre, 2000), and are places not designed for the comfort of those who are not White men (Walton, Logel, Peach, Spencer, & Zanna, 2015a). Sandler (1969) originally described the chilly climate as how women experience the academy, explaining that they are more likely to experience gender discrimination, have the value of their research contributions diminished, receive negative student evaluations, and encounter challenges from male students. In their work on academic departments, Maranto and Griffin (2011) offered a broader definition of a chilly climate as an environment from which marginalized populations feel excluded, devalued, and marginalized. 20 These two definitions of ?chilly climate? were found in studies where White women were the primary focus and the climate was precipitated by sexism. While this work addresses and acknowledges the challenges associated with gender-based climate issues, Black women may experience the chilly climate both similarly to and differently from their White female counterparts. In addition to sexism, Black women contend with racism, and often have to manage racial and gender-based stereotypes simultaneously (Griffin et al., 2011; Viernes Turner, 2007). For example, previous studies suggests that both women and Black scholars perceive greater pressure than their White male counterparts to produce more rigorous scholarship, in higher quantities, and in more prestigious journals (Stanley, 2006; Turner, 2003; Turner et al., 1997). Climates that perpetuate the notion that Blacks and women must work harder to prove their scholastic worth may be particularly difficult to navigate for individuals who sit at the intersection of Black and female identities. Black women generally report being less satisfied with their racial climates than White men (Harley, 2007; Mayhew et al., 2006; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001; Trower & Chalt, 2002), and even as White women work to understand and interrupt the chilly climate for themselves and for people of color, they can also be complicit in upholding it (Dixon, 2013). The implicit biases some White women have about Black women make it possible for a chilly climate to be upheld even by those who are also negatively affected by it (Sue, 2010). Some women may find ways to navigate the chilly climate of academia. Black women are more likely than their White counterparts to seek support outside of their 21 department (Holmes et al., 2007), engaging with scholarly communities outside of their universities, such as professional associations (Dixon, 2013) and engaging in service to students and the institution (Griffin et al., 2011). Engaging with faculty outside of their home departments can increase their professional and social networks but can also increase their feelings of isolation within their home departments (Constantine, Smith, Redington, & Owens, 2008; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001). However, even with external mentoring, community building, and service engagement, some Black women can sometimes negatively portray their experiences as faculty (Dixon, 2013; Griffin et al., 2011; Mayhew et al, 2006; Jayakumar et al., 2009). Holmes, Land, and Hinton-Hudson (2007) found that while mentoring was an effective way to help Black women combat the chilly climate, these relationships still leave Black women living with the effects of the chilly climate. Black women expressed being unclear about what to ask their mentors, or what help a mentor could provide them (Holmes, Land, & Hinton-Hudson, 2007; Patton, 2009; Turner et al., 1997; Zambrana et al., 2015). Additionally, when Black women were provided with female mentors, some perceived their mentor preferred to be the only woman in the department which also led to a sense of isolation (Dixon, 2013; Holmes et al., 2007; Walton, Logel, Peach, Spencer, & Zanna, 2015b). Interactions with Students Extant research suggests that Black women experience their interactions with students differently than their colleagues. First, they may have more negative interactions with students. Black women faculty in predominately White classroom spaces are more likely than their White peers to be disrespected by students (Wilson, 2012), have their 22 authority and credentials challenged (Ford, 2011; Lazos, 2012; Pittman, 2010), and have their teaching style critiqued (Harlow, 2003; McGowan, 2000). Black women are also more likely to report receiving low ratings on student evaluations and having their intellectual skills questioned (Grant, 2012; Stanley, 2006). Several studies suggest White male students may be particularly vocal, exhibiting confrontational behaviors (Harlow, 2003), criticizing lectures (Howard-Baptiste, 2014; McGowan, 2000), and displaying threatening or intimidating behaviors (Pittman, 2010) toward Black women faculty. Some research also suggests that White male students are less likely to demonstrate appropriate levels of respect towards their Black female counterparts, through behaviors including opening Black women?s office doors without knocking, writing passive aggressive emails, and calling Black female professors by their first names (Mertz, 2011; Pittman, 2010). Black women play an important role in building an inclusive space in the classroom. Given their unique perspectives, Black women are more likely to include multiculturalism in their syllabi and curriculum (Harley, 2007; Howard-Baptiste, 2014). Yet, when Black women included multicultural-based topics, they reported resistance and challenges from White students (Ford, 2011; Stanley, 2006). For example, White students have complained to administration about Black women?s courses being too focused on diversity (Stanley, 2006). While there may be unique challenges Black female faculty face as they engage with some students, research also suggests that Black women are more likely to have uniquely close relationships with students, particularly Black students. Black students 23 report enjoying their interactions with Black faculty more, noting that they are often more student centered than their White instructors (Guiffrida, 2005). As former Black students, Black faculty are uniquely equipped to understand and help Black students through a different form of mentoring and sharing novel insights (Griffin, 2013; Guiffrida, 2005). Scholars suggest Black female faculty may be more open to nurturing relationships that address their students? social, academic, and emotional health (Hirt, Amelink, McFeeters, & Strayhorn, 2008; Mawhinney, 2011). While this may be the case, it is important to note that due to gender and racial stereotypes, Black women may be expected to be more open and nurturing than their colleagues, even if they did not want to be (Bellas, 1999; Griffin & Reddick, 2011; Kierstead, D?Agostino, & Dill, 1988a; Winkler, 2000). This increased level of care can be understood through the lens of ?other- mothering?, a predisposition to uplift their communities, and an understanding of shared experiences (Collins, 2002; Mawhinney, 2011; McDonald, 1997). Othermothering is a historical concept born out of slavery, where non-related Black women would ?mother? children separated from their birth mothers (Guiffrida, 2005; McDonald, 1997). Roseboro and Ross (2009) state that Black women are more likely to maintain a kinship relationships with their students and see it as integral to their role as educators. Griffin (2013) and Guiffrida (2005) apply othermothering in a gender neutral way in their research, incorporating these behaviors to both Black male and female faculty. Alternatively, I have opted to use the othermothering definition consistent with Collins?s (2002) and Roseboro and Ross?s (2009) interpretations, which defines othermothering as specific to Black women and how Black women faculty relate to their students. 24 Black women tend to foster strong commitments to their students which can sometimes result in negative effects, particularly if these relationships become unbalanced (Howard-Baptiste, 2014). Commitments to students may leave Black women in the position of placing their students? needs before their own, leaving them less time to do work which is expected and rewarded in the tenure and advancement process (James, 2010). Some Black women are aware of the consequences of the imbalance, but many display difficulty in saying no to students in need (Griffin, Bennett, & Harris, 2013). Black women at PWIs, who value relationships with their students and serving as mentors, see themselves as responsible for helping to create a positive racial climate for students (Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001; Harley 2007); othermothering can be a service strategy that goes unrecognized (Mawhinney, 2011). This can negatively affect Black women as research is privileged in the tenure process more than service (Tierney & Bensimon, 1996). Sheryl Sandberg (2013) asserts that women in leadership positions often have to choose likeability or success. A successful and powerful woman is less likely to be viewed as likeable, and likeable women are less likely to be seen as powerful. This double bind is steeped in stereotypes where women are expected to be warm, friendly, and soft (Kierstead, D?Agostino, & Dill, 1988b). Men are assumed to be more agentic by nature, however women displaying similar traits are viewed less desirably (Heilman, 2001; Laursen, Dunn-Rankin, Nielsen, & Marschke, 2007). Research suggests that women faculty who do not make themselves easily accessible outside of class or who 25 lack nurturing behaviors are not perceived as likeable, and receive more negative student evaluations (Aguirre, 2000; Kierstead et al., 1988b; Lazos, 2012; Wilson, 2012). Likeability, smiling, and attractiveness work symbiotically to garner positive evaluations for women (Lazos, 2012), but White students typically cannot judge the facial expressions of minorities (Wingfield, 2010) and are less likely to find Black women attractive (Harley, 2007; Harlow, 2003). These factors can have a negative influence on student evaluations of Black women (Lazos, 2012), which can have negative implications on tenure review and advancement (Griffin, Bennett, & Harris, 2013). Consequently, tenure evaluations have been shown to be gender biased as women are more likely to be reviewed based on expectations of how women are supposed to perform. The double bind is amplified for Black women, as efforts to appear competent in order to resist questions about their abilities can be negatively interpreted by students. For example, some Black women assume an authoritative stance in the classroom as a strategy to resist their perceived incompetence, which some students perceive as being infantilized (Harlow, 2003). Research suggests some Black women try to maintain an even tone and withhold emotion in the classroom to offset students? perceptions of anger and unfriendliness (Harlow, 2003; Williams, 1991). The fine line Black women must walk between their identity performance, legitimacy, and likability is specific to the Black female experience. Interactions with Colleagues 26 Research suggests the chilly climates Black women face can lead to attrition (Gregory, 1999; Harley, 2007; Henry & Glenn, 2009a; Holmes, Land, & Hinton-Hudson, 2007; Jayakumar, Howard, Allen, & Han, 2009; Jones, Wilder, & Osborn-Lampkin, 2013; Thomas & Hollenshed, 2001; Turner, 2002). The relationships between Black female faculty and their colleagues can be the catalyst for their departure when they are unfavorable, or can promote success and satisfaction when they are positive (August & Waltman, 2004; Constantine et al., 2008; Dixon, 2013; Franklin & Boyd-Franklin, 2000; Howard-Baptiste, 2014; Hughes & Howard-Hamilton, 2003; Kalev, Dobbin, & Kelly, 2006; Lloyd-Jones, 2009; Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Stanley, 2006; Tack & Patitu, 1992; Yoder, 1991). Black women describe a sense of feeling physically and emotionally disconnected from their departments (Stanley, 2006), and this response and isolation appears to be connected to the often challenging relationships Black women faculty have with their colleagues. There are many factors contributing to the isolation of Black women. Racism and sexism can lead to Black women being shunned from social networks (Harlow, 2003; Stanley, 2006). An example of this can be as simple as departments having social events where faculty attendance appears optional but is subtly required (Stanley, 2006). Black women may choose not to attend social events because of how they might be treated, and then realizing that their absence becomes a problem. Black women were more likely to be asked by colleagues to complete tasks that were not consistent with their job description, such as taking attendance for classes they are not teaching (Dixon, 2013). In addition to colleagues, Black women are more likely than men to report difficult 27 relationships with their chairs (Johnsrud & Sadao, 1998). This is significant because department chairs can play an integral role in the socialization and integration of faculty members (August & Waltman, 2004) and because collegiality between colleagues and chairs is important to stave off feelings of estrangement. Understanding and addressing the consequences of negative interactions between Black women and their colleagues is integral to the retention of Black women in academia (Dixon, 2013; Howard-Baptiste, 2014). Some Black faculty resist this disconnection by aligning themselves with campus research centers, or seeking out joint appointments in other departments like African American studies (Griffin et al., 2011). While these strategies may help Black faculty foster relationships with other faculty, it can also result in fewer close departmental relationships, which are critical particularly during the first stages of the tenure and promotion process (Griffin et al., 2011). Without positive interactions with colleagues, Black women may experience burnout (Hughes & Howard-Hamilton, 2003) and might not be able to effectively maneuver workload issues, such as being overburdened by service (Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Stanley, 2006; Tack & Patitu, 1992). Legitimacy. The research that is considered mainstream, and therefore legitimate, is based on a normative model of White supremacy (Bernal & Villalpando, 2002). In academe, where whiteness is the standard, scholarship conducted by White scholars and on White populations is seen as more legitimate (Johnsrud & Sadao, 1998). Scholars who generate mainstream research are viewed to have credibility, expertise, and status within the academy (Turner, Myers, & Creswell, 1997). Many minoritized faculty engage in 28 scholarship that connects to their own communities and highlights experiences of marginalization and oppression (Stanley, 2006). Minoritized faculty who research their own communities are sometimes criticized for being too subjective for their research to be considered scholarly (Aguirre, 2000; Bernal & Villalpando, 2002; Stanley, 2006). Additionally, some Black faculty found that nontraditional research, or scholarship centered on minoritized populations, was devalued during their tenure review, despite assurances their work would be valued (Jayakumar et al., 2009). This is vital because it is valuable to bring perspectives not previously found in research to the fore, despite those who incorrectly consider this research to be less rigorous than other scholarship (Aguirre, 2000; Johnsrud & Sadao, 1998; Modica & Mamiseishvili, 2010; Stanley, 2006). If Black women are less likely to receive tenure, then they are outside of the pipeline for administrative positions. Some studies suggest Black women burden themselves with more work in an attempt to gain legitimacy from their peers (Ford, 2011; Stanley, 2006). Some Black women displayed a greater level of scholarly activity than their peers to prove their legitimacy (Ford, 2011), while others imposed unrealistic expectations of perfection upon themselves in order to dispel negative stereotypes about their race (Griffin et al., 2011). Black women may be more likely to receive indirect messages about their perceived incompetence from their colleagues (Ford, 2011; Harley, 2007; Harlow, 2003; Pittman, 2010; Stevenson, 2012). Research suggests faculty colleagues often assume and directly suggest that Black women were hired on the basis of their race and/or gender, rather than their skills and talents (Stanley, 2006; Wilson, 2012). 29 Marginalization and Invisibility Due to their small numbers, Black women are often the only or one of a few Black women in their departments or programs, which makes their presence hypervisible (Aguirre, 2000; Few, Stephens, & Rouse-Arnett, 2003; Harley, 2007; Laden & Hagedorn, 2000; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001). A byproduct of being highly visible in the academy is a lack of anonymity, making errors and mistakes made by Black women more visible (Yoder, 1991). This is problematic as Black women may believe they cannot make errors, creating a need for perfectionism their White peers may not experience in the same ways (Aguirre, 2000; Yoder, 1991). Black women also experience hypervisibility when a directive is given to include more diversity on committees and initiatives (Aguirre, 2000; Ford, 2011; Harlow, 2003). The findings of one study suggest that as departments sought assistance in recruiting diverse candidates, or diverse representatives on a committee, Black women reported their presence was hypervisible to their colleagues (Constantine et al., 2008), situating them in the spotlight. Similarly, Hinton (2009) found Black women were asked to join committees in an attempt to increase diversity, leading to more invitations and heavier service burdens than their peers. Given this hypervisibility, how can Black women also perceive themselves to be invisible? When Black women express experiencing invisibility, it manifests as students? and colleagues? inability to see their credentials and intelligence (Howard-Baptiste, 2014) or feelings of being overlooked, ignored, or dismissed (Constantine et al., 2008). Women are more likely to report men ignoring their comments when they present ideas in 30 meetings (Sandler & Hall, 1986). Some women note that they are often interrupted while speaking (Howard-Baptiste, 2014). When not dismissed or ignored, women noted how others discussed their gender more than their achievements and accolades, which also contributed to hyper-invisibility (Kanter, 1977; Stanley, 2006; Turner et al., 1997). Stanley (2006) described a woman collaborating with her male colleague being questioned about her marital status rather than focusing on the scholarship at hand. Another study noted women being reminded that they are one of few women in the department or receiving remarks on their clothing, but had to work hard to get their skills noticed (Kanter, 1977). Workload Women faculty are more likely than men to report dissatisfaction with their workloads (Hagedorn, 1996, 1996; Harley, 2007; Riger, Sullivan, Stokes, & Raja, 1997; Tack & Patitu, 1992). Faculty can be dissatisfied with increased teaching loads, which can distract from conducting research, and a lack of organizational support. This distraction affects female faculty as academics are expected to travel for conferences and job opportunities, as a means to share and promote their scholarship. Women often have unusual expectations placed upon them, which lead to ?hidden workloads? and can affect their ability to travel and research (Clement & Rickard, 1992; Hagedorn, 1996; Henry & Glenn, 2009b; Laursen et al., 2007; Luke, 1997; Riger et al., 1997). Hidden workloads refer to the taxing effects of tasks such as advising, service, and committee work (Harley, 2007). Women also suggested there were different evaluation benchmarks applied to review their work, which was evidenced by inappropriate statements by external 31 reviewers in tenure evaluations for women (Hagedorn, 1996; Laursen et al., 2007; Ropers-Huilman, 2000). This dissatisfaction can lead to their departure from the academy (Aguirre, 2000; Hagedorn, 1996; Ibarra, 1993; Laden & Hagedorn, 2000; Laursen et al., 2007; Ropers-Huilman, 2000). Black women faculty are more likely to be engaged in their teaching, advising, and service requirements than their White peers (Jayakumar, Howard, Allen, & Han, 2009; Stanley, 2006). Black women often take on extra workloads which causes them to give more of themselves without compensation, and this ultimately leads to burnout (Davis, et al., 2011; Henry & Glenn, 2009; Mobley, 1992). Considering the small numbers of Black female faculty present on most campuses, this can lead to a large volume of service requests, which takes time that could be used for conducting research (Edwards, et. al, 2011). For example, Black women are aware that serving on committees as a diversity representative can be burdensome; yet they also know if they neglect to serve on committees their voice will continue to be unheard (Griffin et al., 2013; Stanley, 2006). Furthermore, the expectation of being the diversity expert on many committees may cause Black women to experience a higher level of job-related stress than their peers due to the effects of hypervisibility and overexposure (Stanley, 2006). Compounding the expectation of being the diversity expert is the desire to decline opportunities along with the pressure to accept extra service work because of the belief that as (Black) women they must represent all (Black) women (Kanter, 1977; Yoder, 1991). Conversely, some literature discusses the agency minoritized faculty have when accepting service 32 assignments. Some minoritized faculty may prefer to engage their time in service activities to satisfy their own personal and political aspirations. Thus minoritized faculty may not feel overburdened by service; rather, the underlying assumption of the institution that devalues service adversely influences minoritized faculty and is more problematic (Baez, 2000). Generally, there are aspects of the academy that favor male faculty in terms of workload. For example, faculty are typically reviewed for tenure and advancement after 6 years, and faculty in the past were sometimes discouraged from slowing or stopping their tenure clock, which can be viewed unfavorably by tenure committees (Armenti, 2004; Hagedorn, 1996; Laursen et al., 2007; Ropers-Huilman, 2000). The structure for promotion and tenure is designed for men to succeed and thrive (Bensimon & Marshall, 2003). Bensimon and Marshall (2003) argue that men are the standard of productivity that women are compared to, and this thinking leads to encouraging women to work like men. They found that that is not a fair benchmark for women as it can negatively influence their opportunities for advancement. Women are more likely to consider family planning decisions based on a tenure clock than men (Astin & Leland, 1991). Women are disproportionally affected if they choose to bear children and subsequently take maternity leave (Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2004; Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2012). Women, more than men, view the time requirement of rearing and bearing children as a threat to tenure (Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2012). To circumvent these issues at research intensive institutions, some women choose not to have children (Armenti, 2004), elect to work at non-research-intensive institutions (Ropers-Huilman, 2000; Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2004; 33 Wolf-Wendel, et al., 2006), or accept non-tenure track positions (Hagedorn, 1996; Laden & Hagedorn, 2000; Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2012). However, the research on faculty women?s productivity and having children is inconclusive (Armenti, 2004), as some state childbearing has a negative effect (Sonnert & Holton, 1996), others state that there is no effect (Hill, Holmes, & McQuillan, 2014; K. Kelly & Grant, 2012), and another finds that children makes women faculty more efficient (Wolf-Wendel & Ward, 2004). Institutions can help alleviate the perceived burden of children on women?s careers by adopting family-friendly policies. However there is still work to be done to ensure women feel supported by university policies (Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2004). In addition to childbearing, marital status can influence career satisfaction in women. There is a positive correlation between career success and women who are partnered (Armenti, 2004; Luke, 1997; Raddon, 2002; Riger et al., 1997; Turner et al., 1997). Research has shown faculty who have a partner at home to vent to and share responsibilities is a benefit for women (Thompson & Dey, 1998). Additionally, Thompson and Dey (1998) discovered that because of the presence of a partner, women are less likely to experience familial or financial pressure to advance. The decrease in pressure appeared to positively encourage professional advancement in partnered women (Riger et al., 1997; Thompson & Dey, 1998). While Black women experience similar workload issues as White women, they are also subjected to lower salaries and are promoted less often than their White colleagues (Aguirre, 2000; Ford, 2011; Henry & Glenn, 2009b; Jayakumar et al., 2013; 34 Riger et al., 1997; Turner et al., 1997). Female faculty earn 30% less than their male counterparts (Perna, 2002), and, according to NCES (2002), 44% of women in faculty positions have tenure when compared to 66% of men. When race is included for analysis, Black faculty are more likely to earn a starting salary less than $40,000 and less likely to obtain tenured positions (NCES, 2002). Consequently, Black women are twice as disadvantaged as their White peers, being both Black and female. Mentorship Mentoring is a significant factor in faculty retention (Fries-Britt & Kelly, 2005; Fries-Britt & Snider, 2015; Jayakumar et al., 2009; Kelly & McCann, 2013, 2014; Schwarz & Hill, 2010; Stanley, 2006; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005; Turner, 2003; Turner et al., 1997, 1997; Wilson, 2012) and can be found in formal or informal relationships between junior and senior faculty. For Black faculty, mentoring relationships can assist in combating an unfriendly climate, navigating the tenure and promotion process, and cultivating relationships with other scholars for research collaborations (Grant, 2012; Jones & Osborne-Lampkin, 2013). How mentors can be helpful. Having a mentor can help with understanding how to manage teaching, research, and service requirements (Henderson, 2010; Johnsrud & Sadao, 1998; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). In teaching, mentors can help Black women understand how to address unfavorable student evaluations when considered for promotions. Mentors often have a clear understanding of their mentee?s strengths and weaknesses (Stanley & Lincoln, 2005), enabling them to separate the instructional skills of the faculty member from what could signal unfair treatment and biased student 35 assessments (Turner et al., 1997). Navigating research, funding, and career transitions also requires mentors to understand the written and unwritten rules of advancement (Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Multiple studies and scholars suggest faculty who had mentors to help them deal with the research process, submit manuscripts, and secure funding were more likely to persist in all areas including promotion through the ranks to full professorship (Goulden et al., 2011; Schwarz & Hill, 2010; Tierney & Bensimon, 1996). Research also shows that faculty who had mentors aiding them on how and where to receive office support and cultivating a research team were more successful (August & Waltman, 2004; Rosser, 2004). Further, publishing manuscripts involves more than submitting to journals; it includes knowing which journals are looked upon more favorably. Mentors can help faculty determine the best fit for their work (August & Waltman, 2004; Schwarz & Hill, 2010). Mentors can also support faculty as they make sense of service obligations and responsibilities. Senior faculty understand the amount and type of service that is seen favorably in the tenure process (Zambrana et al., 2015). Junior faculty can then organize their time and concentrate on service efforts that help their advancement and decline or postpone other opportunities for a later date. Baez (2000) separates service into general and race-based categories. This differentiation is important because of the toll it can take on faculty. General service is service required by all faculty such as reviewing journal manuscripts and program development, whereas race-based service is service faculty feel compelled to engage in to support and promote their communities. By separating service into categories, he articulated why it is essential for minoritized faculty to have mentors 36 who understand the significance of this difference, and for mentors to help junior faculty negotiate general and race-based service engagement (Baez, 2000). Both forms of service produce different effects on minoritized faculty. General service and its time requirements can cause minoritized faculty to experience cultural taxation (Tierney & Bensimon, 1996). Race-based service, while also time consuming, presents minoritized faculty with more opportunities for interpersonal support (Baez, 2000). For women faculty in particular, mentors can help faculty overcome institutional barriers, mitigate isolation, and extend their social networks (Fries-Britt & Kelly, 2005; Henderson, 2010; Schwarz & Hill, 2010). In the home, women disproportionately carry the responsibility of managing family obligations (Wolf-Wendel et al., 2006). When women meet difficulties outside of academia, such as needing to care for an ailing parent, it is beneficial to be able to speak to someone who might have similar experiences to receive advice or who might know how to handle departmental policies (Schwarz & Hill, 2010). Research has also shown that women benefit from the presence of mentors serving as a sounding board, which can help ease feelings of isolation and improve persistence (Bova, 2000; Fries-Britt & Kelly, 2005; Patton, 2009; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Identity matching in mentoring relationships. Research has broadly shown that mentees prefer mentors with whom they share identities, and mentors prefer mentees with whom they share identities, as well (Bova, 2000; Few et al., 2003; Grant, 2012; J. Jones, 2014; T. B. Jones & others, 2013; Patton, 2009; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Some Black female faculty might prefer to have Black women as mentors, but soon realize that there are not sufficient numbers of Black female faculty to adequately provide 37 mentorship (Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Research suggests that Black women are less likely than their White (male or female) and Black male peers to have mentors (of any race or gender) help them handle the academy (Bertrand Jones, Wilder, & Osborne- Lampkin, 2013; Grant, 2012; Grant & Simmons, 2008; Jackson, 2004). This is problematic for Black faculty who are underrepresented in academe because there are not enough senior Black faculty to mentor every junior faculty member (Bertrand Jones, Wilder, & Osborne-Lampkin, 2013; Grant, 2012). As there are fewer Black women in academe, it becomes important for them to seek positive and productive mentor relationships outside of their departments and across racial lines (Bernal & Villalpando, 2002; Grant & Simmons, 2008; Henderson, 2010; Stanley, 2006; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001). Black women can also utilize peer mentors (Bova, 2000; Henderson, 2010; Johnsrud & Sadao, 1998; Patton, 2009). Where problems arise in mentoring relationships. The lack of same-sex, same gender mentors is a conundrum for Black women, who already contend with racial and sexist stereotypes. Some Black women faculty find that Black male and White mentors make valuable contributions to their professional growth (Stanley, 2006). For some, the role of mentor was more about commitment and dedication than race or gender (Fries- Britt & Kelly, 2005; Kelly & McCann, 2013). However, it can be difficult for Black women to trust and show vulnerability with White male and female mentors (Grant, 2012), particularly since displaying such vulnerability could be seen as weakness (Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001). One study suggests that minoritized scholars who had 38 negative experiences with White mentors during their K-20 education were less likely to trust White mentors when they reached academia (Zambrana et al., 2015). Minoritized faculty can also receive poor advice and be negatively influenced by mentors. Zambrana and colleagues (2015) found that some mentors recommended faculty of color to de-racialize their research to make it more palatable to journal editors. This form of assimilation, while well-intentioned, can cause minoritized faculty to feel alienated and victimized by the same system some of them entered to attempt to dismantle. Further, some White mentors were clouded by their implicit biases and perceived minoritized faculty as inferior. This challenged mentees abilities to adjust to academia, which further aggravated feelings of self-doubt (Zambrana et al., 2015). The professoriate is primarily comprised of White men and women, thus, it is imperative for White scholars to forge collaborative relationships with and serve as mentors for Black women. Stanley and Lincoln (2005) noted that White mentors can be as effective as Black mentors to Black mentees; however, White mentors require an extra level of sensitivity of racial/ethnic differences and a heightened awareness of their privilege. This level of consciousness is significant because Whites are situated in society differently than Black women, as they represent the dominant culture, and possess different social capital. White men and women mentors who use their capital and status to support Black women mentees can have fruitful relationships with each other (Fries- Britt & Kelly, 2005; Grant & Simmons, 2008; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Faculty Transition to Administration 39 There are multiple reasons why faculty choose to transition into an administrative position. Snyder, Howard, and Hammer (1978) found that mid-career transitions for faculty are not uncommon as individuals choose to seek new and more challenging experiences. They also found that faculty who transitioned to administration were drawn to the perceived increase in power and authority (Snyder et al., 1978). The move to administration can also include an increase in income, and provide a new way of understanding how universities work (Palm, 2006). Other faculty are inspired to facilitate change at their institution and see administration as the best avenue (McCarthy, 2003). Some faculty possess attractive administrative traits, such as visibility, collegiality, and the ability to complete tasks effectively. These qualities make them attractive to administrators who are seeking to groom faculty for administrative positions (Strathe & Wilson, 2006). Academia and administration provide different lifestyles and require different skills. Academic culture allows faculty to have autonomy and the freedom of creativity, whereas administrative culture values efficiency and a more collective focus to improve the institution as a whole (Del Favero, 2006). For faculty there are few opportunities to gain an understanding of a university from an institutional perspective, particularly when their interaction with administration is often centered around compensation and evaluation (Strathe & Wilson, 2006). Scholars primarily conduct research, participate in service through advising and committee work, and teach. The initial step toward working in academic administration is usually through becoming a department chair because, some faculty become department chairs by default 40 or when it is a faculty member?s turn to engage in departmental service (Pritchard, 2009; Strathe & Wilson, 2006). As such, for some faculty, department chair is not considered a long-term opportunity. There is an extant literature on the transition from faculty to department chair. One study found that new chairs attain the position after being successful faculty (e.g., effective navigation of the tenure and promotion process), but with scant to no formal preparation for their new administrative role (Thomas & Schuh, 2004). Most formal training for department chair positions include on the job training, and one of the most challenging aspects of the position is learning how to lead (Lumpkin, 2004). Thomas and Schuh (2004) assert that the shift from faculty to chair is one of socialization and includes managing distinct personal and professional roles and relationships with students, faculty, staff, and other administrators. New chairs can find themselves in the peculiar position of managing relationships with colleagues they may have considered friends. Chairs might notice their colleagues might become distrustful of them now that they have transitioned to administration (Glick, 2006). This new role also places chairs in close connection with the school/college?s dean, which might be uncharted territory for faculty who do not have frequent contact with administrators prior to their transition (Lumpkin, 2004; Pritchard, 2009; Thomas & Schuh, 2004). Faculty interactions may not include engagement with their chairs beyond what is required, and therefore might have a limited understanding of the chair role (Pritchard, 2009). This can lead to a misunderstanding or an oversimplification of academic administrative roles, 41 which morphs into to an ?us versus them? perspective in the academy where faculty are ?us? and administration is ?them? (Snyder et al., 1978; Strathe & Wilson, 2006). Faculty who consider the transition to administration also have to contend with a shift in their responsibilities. For example, they must take an interest in everyone?s scholarship, whereas as faculty they are required to have an interest in their own research agenda (Thomas & Schuh, 2004). For some faculty turned administrators, these new responsibilities breed stress and a sense of feeling overwhelmed. White (2004) describes this sensation as a ?deer in the headlight? or ?in the fire? (p. 93) phase. In this period the gravity of how much information new administrators were expected to know, coupled with the responsibilities of attending time-consuming evening and weekend events hit them all at once. Some administrators found it difficult to maintain control of their schedule, particularly since they were used to research as the center of their time. As faculty, they could schedule service and parts of their teaching responsibilities around their research time (White, 2004). As administrators, they found themselves scheduling their research around their administrative duties which was a shift in how they managed their time (White, 2012). Considering the challenges that accompany the transition from faculty to chair, transitions from chair to other academic administrative posts may require additional socialization and negotiation of identities, as well as personal and professional relationships. Jackson and Gmelch (2003) studied the socialization process of academic associate deans, which could be the next promotion for department chairs. In their study, they outline a three-phase socialization process as they progress in their roles: preparation 42 for leadership, induction and the creation of survival skills needed to thrive in the post, and continuous professional development (Jackson & Gmelch, 2003). In addition to these steps to socialization, they also pose a framework of three spheres of influence necessary for the success of associate deans. The first sphere is a comprehensive understanding of the role. The second is the acquisition of necessary skills to work with faculty, staff, students, and other administrators. The last sphere of influence includes engaging in reflection and the perfection of leadership skills. This framework can also be applied to other transitions for academic administrators to develop the leadership and managerial skills faculty may not naturally possess. Women in Higher Education Administration More women than men are entering the higher education workforce (Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009), but women are still underrepresented in senior positions at research institutions. Women constitute 45% of all senior administrators, which is close to parity with men (Allan, 2011). However, further review indicates that women are clustered in less prestigious institutions, such as community colleges, where women represent 52% of senior administrators, or less prestigious 4-year universities (Jackson, 2004; Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; King & Gomez, 2007). Among 4-year, and specifically at research institutions, women tend to be more present in positions outside of academic affairs such as student affairs, external affairs, and overwhelmingly in chief diversity officer positions which are outside the presidential pipeline (Allan, 2011). Academic administrators who transition from faculty have a shift in responsibilities. For women this transition is compounded by unique barriers that keeps 43 them from being represented equally. Women who are able to reach senior administrative positions in the more prestigious academic posts must find ways to create and utilize social capital (Sanchez-Hucles & Davis, 2010). Social capital in administration is based on the cultivation of resources and interactions of social relationships (Smith, 2007). The cultivation of social capital is sometimes more important to promotion and advancement than skill performance (Eagly & Carli, 2007). Women, more than men, have to find ways to place themselves in situations that allow for the collection of social capital, including after hours networking events and outings. This places additional pressure on some women, who are already charged with family responsibilities, to weigh their personal and professional time. Furthermore, women also have to calibrate their personalities to be seen as assertive enough and likable enough (Eagly & Carli, 2007). Especially since women are expected to be seen as equally capable and likeable. ACE (2015) has identified three explanations for the lack of women in senior administration: leaky pipeline, work/life balance, and salary inequities. Pipeline Problems in the pipeline mean that there are few women in senior leadership positions because there are few qualified women in faculty positions to transition to leadership roles (Anders, 2004; Blickenstaff, 2005). This is a concept worthy of further analysis, particularly considering that women earn more degrees than men at every level (ACE, 2015). Mason and Goulden (2002) show that women at every level leave the professoriate at rates higher than men. At research institutions women are 44 underrepresented in the tenured associate (26%) and full professor (19%) ranks (Touchton, Musil, & Campbell, 2008). This is problematic considering this is the pool where academic administrators will be chosen. Reasons why women leave academia include salary inequity, unfriendly work environment, family responsibilities, and for advancement opportunities in industry (ACE, 2015, Arnst, 2016; Eagly, 2004; Laursen et al., 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). In addition to the aforementioned reasons, women tend to be clustered in the humanities rather than the sciences (White, Chu, & Czujko, 2014). Presidents at doctoral-granting institutions are more likely to be from science/technology/engineering/math (STEM), or other male dominated majors (Birnbaum & Umbach, 2001). This effects women and their opportunities for advancement if the more male dominated STEM fields are more valued than the humanities (Adkison, 1981; Arnst, 2016; England et al., 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). Work/life Balance Some argue that the administrative workplace is not designed for flexibility, particularly when it comes to women (Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; Mason & Goulden, 2002). In particular, administrators are expected to work long hours, travel and handle campus emergencies, particularly if they have student affairs responsibilities. As women try to advance, they may find themselves having to balance their personal and professional obligations in a way that men do not, and are less likely to receive institutional support than their male counterparts (Leonard & Malina, 1994; Sanchez- Hucles & Davis, 2010; Tack & Patitu, 1992). 45 One of the personal obstacles women face is the pressure to fulfill prescribed gender roles in their academic and home lives. Women often assume to adopt the majority of household chores, address childcare and/or elder care ? these time consuming ?duties? can adversely affect their careers (Anders, 2004; Blickenstaff, 2005; Lloyd- Jones, 2009; Nielsen, Marschke, Sheff, & Rankin, 2005; Riger et al., 1997; Tack & Patitu, 1992). Women are also subject to ?mommy bias.? As women choose to have children, they were more likely to accept ?second tier? roles such as instructors, lecturers, and adjuncts, who are less likely to transition to academic administrative positions (Mason & Goulden, 2002). The overrepresentation of women among untenured faculty leaves fewer women in the pipeline to move into senior administrative academic roles. Patriarchal Workplace The academic workplace, much like the corporate workplace, is a social institution and is patriarchal in nature (Bierema, 2002). Patriarchy is a system of oppression that involves power, sets policy, and has traditionally been disproportionately in the hands of men (Nicolson, 2003). Within society, systemic systems of patriarchy are maintained due to men capitalizing on their male privilege, while simultaneously suppressing and undervaluing women (Rodriguez & Villaverde, 2000). Women?s lack of access to power is correlated with their lack of access to patriarchal knowledge (Latimore, 2009). The patriarchal workplace affects women in several ways. Women receive less pay than men for the same roles (Perna, 2002). Administrators are sometimes encouraged to attend conferences for professional development and to share their best practices. This 46 means women, who are disproportionately responsible for taking care of home duties, are disadvantaged as it becomes difficult to engage these valuable professional endeavors that are needed to advance their careers (Eagly, 2004; Mitchell, 1993). Leadership styles are also a factor for women in administrative positions. There have been several studies to show that women who adopt or display traits typically seen as masculine have a smoother transition to senior positions. Bierema (2002) argues that many women live in a state of gender unconsciousness, and therefore perpetuate the status quo by uplifting and supporting patriarchal policies/traits. This is evidenced by women who do not believe in the existence of the glass ceiling effect, or those who believe they can transcend it by working hard. In the same study, Bierema (2002) discussed the power of gender consciousness and how women connecting to other women could interrupt a patriarchal workplace. Improving Retention of Administrators Morale and job satisfaction are important aspects of the retention of senior women faculty since they are more likely to move into administration. Hurtado and DeAngelo (2009) identified three factors that can improve retention: encouraging an environment where faculty can build social networks among themselves, facilitating participatory decision-making processes, and balanced teaching and service loads. When women reach administrative roles, morale and job satisfaction are again paramount to retention. Women who leave their administrative posts cited lack of advancement opportunities, incompatibility with their supervisors, and an undesirable work schedule as potential reasons (Jo, 2008). Therefore, women are removing themselves from the pipeline through 47 turnover, which is significant since many academic administrative jobs are gained through promotion (Walton & McDade, 2001). Similar to the significance in faculty development, mentors can also play an important role in retaining women administrators. Women tend to be promoted after 8 years whereas men are typically promoted after 6 years (June, 2009). More mentoring programs or early professional development programs can help women combat this (June, 2009). Much like women faculty, there are few women in senior administrative positions to mentor junior women. To combat this, some universities have implemented leadership development programs for women and minoritized populations (Flood, Johnson, Ross, & Wilder, 2010). Theoretical Frameworks This study is guided by two theoretical frameworks to provide an understanding of how Black women in senior academic administrative positions navigate their career and their experiences in their roles: Black Feminist Thought (BFT) and community cultural wealth (CCW). Many social/human developmental theories are not designed to fit the needs of those who do not fit the dominant narrative (Hughes & Howard- Hamilton, 2003), therefore it was important to select frameworks that centralize the narratives of marginalized populations. Rooted in sociology, BFT explains the social location of Black women and how they interact with others (Collins, 2002; Stephens & Phillips, 2005). Community cultural wealth was developed by Yosso (2005) as a critique of Bourdieu?s (1986, 2011) definition of cultural capital. CCW highlights the knowledge, skills, aspirations, and networks of minoritized populations. CCW in conjunction with 48 BFT will enhance what we know about Black women administrators by focusing on their voice and the various forms of capital they cultivate to reach their positions. Black Feminist Thought Only the black woman can say 'when and where I enter, in the quiet, undisputed dignity of my womanhood, without violence and without suing or special patronage, then and there the whole Negro race enters with me. ?Anna Julia Cooper Black women are distinctly situated in society as they occupy two marginalized identities. Race is more salient than gender for many Black women in the workplace (Jones, 86; Shorter-Gooden & Washington, 1996; Turner, 2003). However, Black women also experience sexism in the Black community. This means that traditional feminist theory frameworks, based on the perspectives of White women, neglect a significant portion of the experiences of Black women. Also theories solely focusing on Black identity often miss the salience of gender. Black Feminist Thought (BFT) is an ideal theoretical framework for this study as it normalizes the positions of Black women in society (Stephens & Phillips, 2005). BFT provides the medium for the exploration of narratives of women who live at the intersection of two dominant identities: race and gender. While Black women are unique individuals, as a group they possess a distinctive set of experiences that are different from those who are not Black and female (Collins, 2000). Black Feminist Thought, similar to critical race theory, was created to resist oppression in practice and theory (Collins, 2000). There are three key themes of Black Feminist Thought that are utilized in this study. The first assumption is the impossibility of separating ?the structure and thematic content of thought from the historical material 49 conditions shaping the lives of its producers? (S16, Collins, 1985). Although BFT can be employed by others, Black women are the producers of BFT. Or in this case, Black women are the only individuals who can accurately describe their viewpoint as Black women. The second assumption addresses the distinct perspectives of the experiences of Black women, while understanding that there will be some specific commonalities of viewpoints among Black women (Collins, 1985). The last assumption acknowledges the diversity of class, religion, age, and sexual orientation and how these multiple contexts can shape how their experiences are understood (Collins, 1985; Howard-Hamilton, 2003). Meaning that while there are commonalities of vantage points within the Black female experience, the diversity within Black women allows for the themes of BFT to be expressed differently across women. Four dimensions embody this framework: lived experience as a criterion of meaning, the use of dialogue in assessing knowledge claims, an ethic of caring, and the ethic of personal accountability (Collins, 2000). Lived experience as a criterion of meaning denotes the information and wisdom Black women accrue as a result of their socialization through their lives (Henry & Glenn, 2009b). Collins (2002) noted this dimension infuses knowledge and wisdom, or in simpler terms, book knowledge with the lessons learned by living life. The use of dialogue stresses the significance of establishing a sense of community and relationships to verbally share their narratives as the oppression Black women experience are rarely resolved in a vacuum (Collins, 1986). The ethics of caring places a high value on individuality, while also including emotion, expression, and empathy as a means to better understand the experiences of each Black 50 woman (Henry & Glenn, 2009b). Collins (2002) states that in addition to speaking with emotion to bolster knowledge claims, it is equally important that the listener is empathetic otherwise the speaker may not feel comfortable to share their thoughts. The ethic of personal accountability assumes that people have to convey their knowledge claims through dialogue and be held accountable for the validity of their knowledge claims. Collins (2002) posits that those who create knowledge claims and the knowledge itself are equally important. For example, before a woman might agree with a man making an assertion about women?s health, she might question his background, occupation, and ideological stance to determine if his claims are credible. As a method of communication, BFT makes use of dialogue to establish bonds and relationships since oppressive and contentious events are seldom solved alone (Collins, 2000). BFT helps Black women encourage other Black women to discover counterspaces where they can communicate openly in a safe space (Howard-Hamilton, 2003). Through the use of dialogue, BFT affords Black women the opportunity to define their outsider within status (Howard-Hamilton, 2003), meaning that Black women may have a seat at the senior administrative table as an insider, but, as an outsider their voices may not be valued. Table 2.1 Four Dimensions of Black Feminist Thought Dimension Description 51 Lived Experience as a Valuing the importance of formal knowledge and Criterion of wisdom gained by life experience Meaning Use of Dialogue Knowledge claims are gained through a sense of connectedness with others, rather than alone Ethics of Caring Speaking from the heart. Words are more than just words. They should be backed up by meaning, empathy, and emotion. Ethic of Personal Holding people responsible for their knowledge claims. Accountability Including seeing emotion, ethics, and reason equally as a means to generate wisdom Using BFT as a lens creates an opportunity to acknowledge, encourage, and highlight the heterogeneity of the experiences of Black female administrators in academia. This will include their experiences with mentoring, or lack thereof and tokenization, as faculty, and as administrators. I will use the four dimensions of BFT to examine the shared experiences of Black female administrators, while also acknowledging the diversity and unique perspectives of their viewpoints and narratives. The lived experience as a criterion of meaning will be used to understand what wisdom Black women have gained during their careers. The use of dialogue will be employed to build a sense of connectedness and community between the participant and me, as the researcher also sharing race and gender identities. The ethic of caring, allows me to 52 display a level of empathy for my participants to gain a level of trust. Without that trust, participants may not see me as credible and therefore may not share their deep or emotional experiences. The ethic of personal accountability will be utilized to demonstrate how each participant is responsible for her own knowledge claims. BFT allows me to encourage each participant to discuss the totality of their career trajectories in ways that generate knowledge for future Black women in administration. Community Cultural Wealth Capital is a form of currency and structures designed to uphold class and societal norms (Bourdieu, 2011). Capital is important because it serves as a conduit for the upward mobility for the marginalized and helps those in dominant culture maintain their status in society. Bourdieu (1986) identifies three types of capital: economic, social, and cultural. Economic capital involves monetary and material wealth. Social capital is the accrual of and access to connections and networks. Cultural capital is more nuanced in that it includes skills, dispositions, language usage, and abilities acquired from community and family (Samuelson & Litzler, 2016). Economic, cultural, and social capital are inherited or gained through the acquisition of education (Yosso, 2005). Social and cultural capital increase in value as they are used, they do not decrease in value over time (Bourdieu, 2011). The Bourdieuian definitions of capital place an emphasis on capital from the dominant culture. For the dominant culture, the ability to inherit cultural capital is similar to being able to walk through the world with secret keys to open secret doors to success. The types of networks, knowledge of art or travel, and style of dress are all considered 53 cultural capital. In the United States, White, middle class families are identified as ?the norm,? and those situated in the dominant culture possess capital and values that are passed down through generations and ensure success for middle class families in the future by upholding certain standards. Given this, families or individuals who fall outside of or lack access to this dominant group are considered culturally poor and underserved (Yosso, 2005). Bourdieu (1986) states that access to success by the marginalized is dependent upon their ability to adopt and gain capital from the dominant culture in order to achieve success and class mobility. Does this mean those born outside of White, middle to upper class identities lack cultural capital, or do they lack the ?right? or normative cultural capital? Yosso (2005) maintains that everyone has cultural capital, but certain forms of cultural capital are valued more than others. Organizations and institutions value middle class forms of capital, and those that do not possess or fit within middle class standards are assumed not to have valuable (or any) cultural capital. However, minoritized and individuals from low income backgrounds possess valuable forms of capital that facilitate how they navigate systems and structures (Yosso, 2005). Community Cultural Wealth (CCW) recognizes the cultural capital that is not typically recognized by the dominant culture (Yosso, 2005). Yosso developed (CCW) on the basis of counterstories and shifting the center from Whiteness as the norm to the lens of the minoritized through critical race theory (CRT). CRT is designed to continually uncover inherent racism and give a voice to minoritized persons. CCW assumes that all persons have cultural capital of value. Within this frame, capital is expressed differently 54 by marginalized persons, and the capital of marginalized persons assists them with advancement and mobility. Yosso (2005) suggests six separate ?funds of knowledge? or types of cultural capital that Latinx students possess and use to work together to help them persist and resist systems of oppression. The six forms of capital comprise the basis of community cultural wealth. The six funds of knowledge are: aspirational, linguistic, familial, social, navigational, and resistant capital. These forms of capital are meant to empower minoritized populations and combat a deficit-based model of understanding persons of color (Yosso, 2005). Table 2.2 Types of Cultural Capital Wealth Funds of Definition Knowledge Aspirational The ability to look beyond obstacles and see future goals and dreams Linguistic The idea that minoritized persons have multiple languages/modes of communication. One is internal to their culture, and the other is external and used in professional spaces. Familial Community of immediate and extended communal bonds. Relationships nurtured through churches, sororities, and 55 other close friendships to offset an isolating academic/professional environment. Navigational A person?s ability to maneuver through social institutions. Social The creation of a network of people to provide minoritized persons with the connections to their community. Resistant Skills gained by confronting and understanding systems of oppression such as sexism and racism. Aspirational capital is a person?s ability to dream beyond their current situation and look for success in the future (Espino, 2014; Yosso, 2005). Little is known about the aspirations of Black women in faculty or administrative positions, and it is important to understand how aspirations play a role in the career choices and professional goals of Black women in senior administrative positions. Linguistic capital includes the cognitive and social skills a person gains through their membership in one or more cultures, (Yosso, 2005; Yosso & Solorzano, 2005; Espino, 2014). This form of capital also manifests itself in the form of storytelling and oral histories (Perez, 2012). For example, bilingual students are comfortable translating across multiple environments, which can give them a competitive edge as they progress throughout their careers in our ever- evolving global society where speaking multiple languages is valued. Black women may also have linguistic capital, but may manifest in the form of code-switching. Code- switching is the use of slang/jargon/attire inclusive to one?s cultural group (Guiffrida, 2003). Some Black women have found code-switching to serve as a strategy of 56 cultivating a work and personal persona to allow them to move seamlessly between two cultural worlds in academe as a means of cultivating relationships and community (Young, 2009). Familial capital is the community of immediate and extended family, as well as friendshps that mirror family relationships (Yosso, 2005). These relationships are useful because they serve as a conduit to maintain healthy ties to one?s cultural community and resources. This may be applicable in the lives of Black faculty, as many Black women turn to their churches, sororities, and social organizations for community when they are unable to gain access to support and relationships within their academic departments (Gregory, 1998). Social capital is similar to familial capital in that it includes church and social organizations; however, in this instance the institutions serve as networks of people with potential access to information and community resources (Espino, 2014; Yosso, 2005). In these networks, minoritized populations are known to share and pass along knowledge (Larrotta & Yamamura, 2011). In this study Black women?s relationships with their peers and colleagues from within or outside their universities may provide access to social capital. Navigational capital is the accumulation of skills needed to maneuver through social, or in this study, academic institutions such as universities or professional associations (Yosso, 2005). This is particularly important for Black women who are expected to navigate a system not designed with them in mind. For example, a Black 57 woman might have accumulated skills from her personal experiences to help her traverse a hostile racial climate on campus. Lastly, resistant capital embodies the skills gained by resisting oppression (Espino, 2014; Yosso, 2005). Black scholars report the need to prove their intelligence or worth in academic environments (Fries-Britt & Griffin, 2007; Griffin et al., 2011), and for some Blacks, the perception of how their colleagues viewed their work pushed them to become even more successful (Griffin et al., 2011). Others explored ways to overcome racism and sexism by redefining themselves and searching for validation outside of their departments (Griffin et al., 2011). This display of resilience can be a strength rather than a hindrance for some Black women (Bova, 2000; Butner et al., 2000; Ford, 2011; Harlow, 2003). Conversely, Black academics may tire of proving and resisting which could lead to their disenchantment with the academy and decrease their identification with academe (Griffin et al., 2011). These examples are true of Black faculty in general, and I hope to discover if they are uniquely true for women. The promotion and tenure guidelines of academia favor the dominant culture over those at the margins like Black women. Those who succeed and thrive are the persons who master the written and unwritten rules of tenure and promotion (Butner et al., 2000). However, Black and female faculty are less likely to possess the information about the unwritten rules (Gregory, 1998). The dominant narrative assumes that Black women faculty and administrators need to change and conform to the current meritocratic system, which is assumed to be equitable (Yosso, 2005). CCW provides an understanding of how 58 Black women push against the dominant culture and develop resources and the ability to navigate academia successfully. The application of Black Feminist Thought and Community Cultural Wealth is relevant to this study as it allows for an understanding of how Black women overcome cultural, societal, and institutional barriers. BFT acknowledges the diversity within Black women, while also recognizes the similarities they share being Black and women. CCW defined six funds of knowledge Latinx students possess, and I apply these same funds of knowledge to Black women in senior academic administrative positions. I argue the same tools are necessary for Black women to advance in the academy, given their social identities of race and gender. CCW builds upon BFT by allowing me to outline how Black women learn the unspoken rules of academia through cultural capital. Together, both frameworks present the significance of affirming the cultural capital Black women already have and how they utilize it to advance in their careers. Summary This review presents literature on the current state of Black women in faculty and academic administrative positions. Most academic administrators began as faculty, and therefore literature on the experiences of women, Black, and Black women faculty were examined. The next body of literature discussed highlights what is known about academic administrators and some of the challenges and opportunities women face in those positions. Women leave academia at every level resulting in fewer women in the pipeline to transition to administration (ACE, 2015; Anders, 2004; Blickenstaff, 2005; Touchton, 59 Musil, & Campbell, 2008). A few reasons why women vacate their faculty posts are salary inequity, unfriendly work environment, family responsibilities, and for advancement opportunities in industry (ACE, 2015, Arnst, 2016; Eagly, 2004; Laursen et al., 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). When women advance to administration they must adapt to a shift in their job responsibilities, gain new leadership and managerial skills, and negotiate their work/life balance in ways men are not necessarily asked (Armenti, 2004; Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; Mason & Goulden, 2002; Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2004; Wolf-Wendel et al., 2006). There are few studies examining the actual transition from faculty to administration, and this study will extend the scope of work done on the transition from faculty to administration, particularly the experiences of Black women. This study also examines the personal and professional costs Black women face as they ascend to some of the most powerful positions on campus. Administrators and campus leaders will gain a stronger understanding of the experiences Black women face as they progress in the academy and will be challenged to ensure that their campuses are inclusive, and Black women will gain insights to help them persist throughout their trajectory. 60 Chapter 3: Methodology In this chapter I will review the research questions directing this study, outline the relevance of qualitative methods for this work, and provide a brief synopsis of a pilot study which informed this study?s design. A description of the setting, methodological approach, selection of Black female participants, and proposed method for data collection and analysis will follow. This chapter will end with a discussion on transferability, a reflexivity exercise, and limitations. The purpose of this study is to better understand the career development and trajectories of Black women in administrative positions by examining their narratives of persistence as administrators in Predominately White Institutions. Questions guiding this research are: 1. Why do Black women transition from the faculty to academic administration? a. How does administrative work fit into their larger career goals and the process of reaching them? b. How do they understand and perceive the ?traditional? pathway to the presidency? 2. How do Black women manage or navigate experiences with race and racism in their administrative roles? a. How are these experiences and the ways they are managed similar or distinctive from what they encountered as faculty? 61 3. How do Black women senior administrators develop and leverage their cultural wealth to navigate the academy, develop their career aspirations, and make decisions about their work? a. In what manner did social class manifest in their career path? Rationale for Qualitative Strategies Qualitative research creates opportunities to observe individuals in their natural settings and understand how they make sense of experienced phenomena (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). Qualitative research has the ability to move social change forward through creating an opportunity for deeper understanding of participants? experiences, shared through their own voices (Creswell, 2013; Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). Qualitative studies have been useful in exploring emerging or understudied populations by providing an opportunity for in-depth analysis of experiences. This is an appropriate fit for this study as Black female administrators are an understudied population and there is much to learn from their experiences (Creswell, 2012; Hesse-Biber, 2010). The research questions are designed to procure full and vivid descriptions of how Black women navigate their environments in light of racism, sexism, and classism. There are several characteristics of qualitative studies that facilitate developing deeper understanding of human and social conditions: natural setting, researcher as instrument, multiple methods, complex reasoning, and reflexivity (Creswell, 2012). In qualitative studies, data are collected in the natural setting, the field where participants experience the phenomena, so that the researcher can develop a better understanding of the participant?s context. The primary data collection tool in qualitative work is the 62 researcher interacting directly with participants, rather than a survey or questionnaire that is often distributed from afar and omits detailed follow up conversations (Creswell, 2012, 2013; Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). Complex reasoning includes the inductive and deductive process that researchers use to analyze their data, organizing and building themes (Creswell, 2012). Reflexivity is how the researcher situates themselves in the study, and how their background influences their work (Creswell, 2012, 2013). Consistent with Creswell?s (2012) fundamentals to qualitative research, I will serve as the primary instrument by conducting interviews with the participants in their place of employment when possible; adhering to the rigorous standards of narrative inquiry as a method of data collection; and including a positionality statement to provide credibility to this study while also framing my assumptions going into this work. Understanding epistemologies is integral to every stage of the research process (Pallas, 2001). Epistemologies shape how we conduct and consume research (Pallas, 2001). Scientific research traditionally emphasizes its objectivity, generalizability, and reliability (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). Qualitative scholars challenge these standards and instead advocate for more appropriate measures, such as transferability, trustworthiness, and reflexive subjectivity (Breuer & Roth, 2003; Creswell, 2012). Reflexive subjectivity is having an awareness of one?s positioning. On the surface subjectivity appears counterintuitive to rigorous research, however reflexivity encourages self-scrutiny of the researcher (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). This level of self-awareness and positionality allows us to become more aware of our biases and pushes us to lessen them so we can accurately interpret our data (Pillow, 2003). 63 Positivism is the standard for scientific research. Positivism frames knowledge in generalizable cause and effect laws (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). Knowledge is defined objectively and with scant researcher bias in positivist scholarship (Creswell, 2012). Positivist studies value the creation and testing of a hypothesis. In order for this scientific method to be proven significant and truthful, the findings must be objective, able to be replicated, and reliable (Creswell, 2012). Positivists believe researchers and research to be independent entities (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). Constructivist argue that there is no objective ?truth;? people construct their own realities based on their social location (Pallas, 2001). The objective of constructivist- based research is to provide an understanding of how people construct their own reality, and to do so findings are created collaboratively by the researcher and participant (Creswell, 2012; Roth, Lawless, Tobin, 2000). This lack of separation between researcher and participant is a stark contrast to positivism that values the separation of researcher and subject. Although constructivists and positivists seek the truth, the former understands reality is subjective and can change and the latter sees reality as finite and objective. Findings in constructivist studies are more descriptive and structural than based on prediction as in positivist studies (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). Constructivism allows for flexibility in defining the truth, but some scholars critique constructivism for not deeply challenging historical political structures, such as race, class, and gender (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005; Haraway, 1988). Critical theorists agree with constructivists in that realities are shaped by the experiences of participants. Critical theory adds that politics, economics, ethnic/racial, 64 and gender structures mold how participants describe their narratives (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). The relationship between researcher and participant in critical research is different from constructivist. In constructivist research, researcher and participant are connected. In critical studies the relationship is between a particular researcher and participant/group (Lincoln & Guba, 1994). The researcher and participant work together to see how structures can be changed. The objective of critical research is to uncover injustice and to empower and emancipate the marginalized (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). Critical research elevates the conversation from discussing systems of oppression to encouraging transformative change through activism and advocacy (Creswell, 2012; Lincoln & Guba, 1994). My epistemology can be described as an amalgamation of two paradigms: constructivist and critical. Both epistemologies appeal to my intellectual and ethical senses. I understand that participants need to define their own realities. I believe that two people can experience the same phenomenon at the same time and still define it differently; neither will be incorrect. However, as a minoritized person I am sensitive to the history and political structures in place to oppress people who look like me. I recognize the realities of individuals are often influenced by patterns of dominance and their relation to power. As this study examines Black women, I believe it is important to acknowledge how race, class, and gender shape their realities. Methodological Approach: Narrative Inquiry Narrative inquiry can help researchers understand people?s experiences through their own stories (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990; Webster & Mertova, 2007), uncovering 65 the complex nuances of a person?s life experiences (Webster & Mertova, 2007). Narrative inquiry is a collaborative approach between researcher and participant used to understand experience ?over time, in a place or series of places, and in social interaction with milieus? (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000, p. 20). Everyone has a story, and often stories help people organize their thoughts and happenings into tales of important events (Dyson & Genishi, 1994). Narrative signifies how we conceptualize our way of being and description of time passed (Carr, 1986). Persons qualify their cultural membership through the content and creation of stories (Dyson & Genishi, 1994). According to Clandinin and Connelly (2000), ?experience is what we study, and we study it narratively because narrative thinking is a key form of experience? (p. 18). When compared to other qualitative methods, narrative inquiry is unique in how it is utilized and understood. Narrative is both the phenomenon and method (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990). A significant aspect of narrative inquiry is the collaborative process that includes mutual storytelling between the researcher and participant. It is through this storytelling and restorying that the narrative can become empowering for the researcher and participant (Carr, 1986; Clandinin & Connelly, 1988; Connelly & Clandinin, 1990). Restorying is defined as the collecting of stories, analyzing them for significant events such as time and setting, and then reconstructing them through a chronological sequence (Ollerenshaw & Creswell, 2002). In narrative inquiry, it is important for the researcher and participant to have a voice. Voice is defined as the meaning within a person and allows them to speak in a community, or in this study, an interview (Britzman, 1989). Britzman (1989) described tone and inflection as a reflection of the participants? feelings 66 and the gravity of their experiences. Together, tone and voice permits the participant to share the meaning of their story to the researcher. My primary role as a researcher using narrative inquiry is to provide Black women an opportunity to reflect upon their professional journeys and for me to share their voices in this study (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990). It is my responsibility to distinguish the difference between the telling and the tale, or story, itself (Merriam, 2002). The telling includes how individuals interpret their journey through emotions, actions and other characters. People rarely speak in chronological terms, therefore it is my role as the researcher create a story by constructing a timeline based on the participants telling of their narrative (Connelly & Clandinin, 2006). I will encourage participants to narrate their stories and describe unique instances of their training and professional development. I will ask them to explain challenges that they faced and obstacles that they had to overcome and ways that they navigated through difficulty and opposition. This data will be used to illuminate career trajectories of participants, their experiences with racism and sexism, and their usage of social capital. Pilot Study During the 2013-2014 academic year, I conducted a pilot case study, exploring the career trajectories of 11 Black women in senior administrative positions at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Predominately White Institutions (PWIs). Five participants were from PWIs and six were from HBCUs. Eight participants were faculty first and three of came directly from the private sector. At the time of data collection, seven of the participants were tenured faculty and held 67 administrative posts, such as chair, dean, or were in the presidential cabinet. Each participant engaged in a 90-minute interview where we discussed their experiences with racism and sexism, mentoring (or lack thereof), support systems, responsibilities as faculty and administrators, workload, and their perceptions of the campus climate. I examined how these women used forms of cultural capital to retain and promote each other in the academy. Several of the participants discussed the importance of cultivating a ?sister circle,? or a group of women who they could share ideas with, get information from, and be their full selves. The women from HBCUs described their ?sister circles? as organic relationships created by being in close proximity to other Black women in similar roles. The women from PWIs were less satisfied in their professional roles and were more intentional in seeking out ?sister circles? outside of their institutions. After completing this study, I found myself interested in continuing my work to understand the experiences of Black women administrators employed at PWIs. While all of the participants described how their identities as Black women influenced how they experience the academy, participants from PWIs noted social interactions that were different from their peers at HBCUs, and warranted further study. Black women employed at PWIs described moments of isolation, fatigue from dealing with the racism and sexism that comes from being ?one of a few,? and yet they did not express a desire to leave their institutions. Most of the PWI administrators expressed how much they enjoyed the perks their institutions provided them, such as prestige and financial resources, as reasons to remain in their environments. Participants employed at both HBCUs and PWIs understood that some students looked up to them as role models; 68 however, they perceived their impact on the campus environment differently. Women working at PWIs realized that their representation on campus was necessary to ensure diverse voices were heard. I am also intrigued by the external networks of Black women at PWIs. In my pilot study, I did not ask enough follow up questions about their networks outside of their campuses. I continue to wonder with whom do they feel comfortable showing their vulnerabilities? And if there is no one or group, then how do they find the strength to continue to advance in their careers? I want to examine whether Black women at PWIs feel supported by their institutions, and if their institutions provide them with the support necessary to seek relationships with peers at other institutions. I also seek to understand how these women create and cultivate professional networks of support and other opportunities to acquire the cultural capital that they need to survive and thrive in professional academic spaces. Setting Participants for this study were drawn from large, predominantly White, research- intensive institutions. Large, research-intensive institutions are selected as they are considered to be the most selective by student admission standards, and least likely to have Black women in senior administrative positions (Bower & Wolverton, 2009; Cook, 2012a, 2012b). I solicited participants through a purposeful, nationwide search because the number of Black women who fit the criteria of this study were not numerous enough to justify a regional or institution specific search. Participant Recruitment 69 I recruited fifteen Black women who were academic administrators to participate in this study. Within the context of this work, academic administrator was defined as the following titles: Chair, Dean, or Provost and any derivative of (e.g. associate, assistant, vice). My sample was curated through purposeful sampling (Creswell, 2012), as I was interested in a specific population within the senior administrator context. I began by contacting visibly Black women in senior positions at selected institutions by reviewing university directories and the websites of specific professional associations. Next, I compiled a list of potential participants who fit all participation criteria, and sent them an introductory email outlining my study (Appendix A) along with a call for participants as approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB). Those who responded affirmatively were asked if they ever held or currently hold teaching appointments, and if so would they be they interested in participating in this study. Additionally, I engaged in snowball sampling (Creswell, 2012), and asked participants to recommend other administrators who met participation criteria and were interested in the study. Data Collection Selected participants received an email invitation to participate in the project that included a consent form, a short demographic questionnaire to ensure they met the study?s criteria (Appendix B), and description of the study. I protected the confidentiality of participants by assigning them pseudonyms (Creswell, 2012; Hesse-Biber, 2010). After participants confirmed their participation, data collection was done within a three- dimensional narrative inquiry space and included three of the methods defined by 70 Clandinin and Connelly (2000) as appropriate for narrative inquirers to use to collect field texts. In narrative inquiry, the term field texts was used instead of ?data? (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). In a three-dimensional space, field texts had their own layers of complexity to ensure an accurate, rich narrative was told (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). The three modes of field text collection were journal entries, field notes, and research interview. I completed the journal entries that included my reflections and experiences interacting with the participants and this process. Journal entries were important to narrative inquiry; they allowed me to look inward and express my thoughts, situating them in a time, place and in alignment with specific events after each interview (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). Whereas field notes recorded the outward events, and were also crucial to narrative inquiry. Field notes were ongoing, detailed notes meant to discuss the ?ongoing bits of nothingness? of our days (Clandinin & Connelly, p. 104, 2000), which allowed me to capture details from interviews that a recorder could not record. This permitted me to enter into a space of observation during the interview, in addition to providing a record of details I needed later to fill in any blanks from my memory (Clandinin & Connelly, 1990). Lastly, I conducted interviews with participants. Each participant was interviewed once for approximately 90 minutes. A semi-structured interview protocol, informed by the literature review, theoretical frameworks, and pilot study interview protocol, was developed and administered to all participants. Hesse-Bieber and Leavy (2010) defined semi-structured interviews as the reliance on a particular set of questions while also 71 allowing the respondents the freedom to discuss issues of importance to them. Interview questions were open ended to allow for collection of rich, thick descriptions necessary to restory the participants? narratives (Merriam, 2002). All interviews were completed in person, by video-teleconference, or by telephone, and in a quiet location to protect the confidentiality of the responses of the participants. With permission, interviews were recorded using a digital recorder for later transcription and analysis. Data Analysis In narrative based studies, researchers interpreted participants? stories by focusing on their voices and experiences (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). Narrative inquiry highlights the complexity between participants? voices and the differences among them (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). Denzin and Lincoln (2005) noted that narrative researchers display three voices when interpreting data: authoritative, supportive, and interactive. The authoritative voice was the separation of the researcher?s voice from the participant. The supportive voice created a ?self-reflective and respectful? distance between the participant?s voice and my own (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005, p. 684). An interactive voice examined the voice of the participants, while accounting for their position, social location, interpretations, and personal experiences (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990; Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). I used the interactive voice, acknowledging my identity as a Black woman to ground my experiences and worldview and to help me interpret the experiences of the participants. There were multiple ways to transition from field texts (field notes, journal entries, research interviews) to research texts, and Clandinin and Connelly (2000) recommended researchers look inward to determine the best avenue. Since narrative 72 inquiry was autobiographical in nature (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000), I started reviewing my field texts by reminding myself why this work is significant to me. Justification in narrative inquiry answers the question ?why,? and is the notion that my research interests are based on my own narratives of experience (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). Next the process of reconstructing field texts to research texts occurred in three stages. In the first stage, I uploaded verbatim transcripts of the interviews into Dedoose (an online data analysis tool). Transcripts and field texts were read and reread, and I took notes in Dedoose during this reviewing process to help make sense of each document. In this process, I took into consideration parts of my own story, and interpreting and uncovering themes simultaneously, as described by Clandinin and Connelly (2000)?s steps to interpretive-analytic considerations. This iterative approach called for the re-assessment of the research questions along the way and utilizing a method of ?back and forthing of writing research texts? (p.138), which affords me the opportunity to move between participants? narratives, my existence in this work, and being thoughtful to my audience. After reading and re-reading the field texts, I matched my notes in Dedoose to each transcript to facilitate the open coding process. I used open coding as a method of summarizing chunks of information to help me identify themes emerging from the data. My objective was to discover the participant voices and create a chronological timeline through a storymap (Clandinin & Connelly, 1990). A storymap is a summarized account of what occurs in a participant?s narrative (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000). Storymaps started as outlines including ?character, place, scene, plot, tension, end point, narrator context, and tone? (p.131). Then I completed the outline by re-reading transcripts to 73 provide more complex details and analysis. Through these storymaps I was able to uncover emerging themes and commonalities between narratives. The third stage involved listening to each recording again to ascertain the tone of each participant, paying close attention to moments of voice inflections, nervous laughter and pauses. Noting how participants expressed themselves beyond words will facilitate my understanding, allowed me to determine the best adjectives to describe their story, and recreating their narrative. Validity and Trustworthiness Qualitative research relies on the concept of establishing trustworthiness, which is credibility, proving that the findings could be applied to other contexts, findings should be consistent, and the findings are framed by the participants rather than the researcher?s bias (Guba, Lincoln, & others, 1994; Lincoln & Guba, 1985). Trustworthiness occurs by showing credibility (internal validity), transferability (external validity), dependability (reliability) and confirmability (objectivity) (Loh, 2013). In narrative inquiry it is also important to maintain verisimilitude, which means to ensure the writing is so ?real? that it transports the reader to the perspective of the participant (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990; Creswell & Miller, 2000). Narrative studies are steeped in the interpretations of an individual?s life experiences. Therefore it is imperative that verisimilitude is established as a means to ensure the narratives ?ring true? and display a level of believability (Clandinin & Connelly, 1988; Connelly & Clandinin, 1990). I employed several measures to protect the integrity of my findings. I drafted analytic memos after each interview to include any observations and highlight any 74 emerging themes. In addition to memoing, I worked closely with my academic advisor and employed peer debriefers to audit my data collection and analysis procedures. I also used member checking, which allowed participants to review their transcribed interviews and drafts of my findings to ensure trustworthiness (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). This process permitted me to clarify and verify information that did not translate well from the recordings, while also empowered participants to confirm the accuracy of their narratives. In addition to member checking, I chose to include a reflexivity exercise in the form of a positionality statement to examine and uncover the biases and assumptions I held that could influence this study. Positionality Statement I am interested in diversity and equity within governance contexts in higher education. The topic of this study is to provide an understanding of the intersection of race and gender in the lives of Black women, and how this intersection of identity relates to their career progression and ascension to senior administrative positions. As a Black woman, it is imperative to me to expose and highlight the powerful narratives of women who succeed. Additionally, I want to become faculty and eventually enter academic administration. I pursued this topic to gain an understanding of what I might encounter. I was raised by a single mother, which is a significant aspect of who I am. She shaped my worldview through the exposure she gave me as a child; she shaped my core values as a person, and was my first introduction to feminism. My mother is a professional woman, who was in a position to provide me with a comfortable upbringing. As a registered nurse, she often worked long hours and was on call. One of my favorite 75 memories is of her bringing me to the hospital locker room and showing me around the operating room; it looked like a scene out of Grey?s Anatomy. I was able to meet surgeons, nurses, and other medical professionals. They would take the time to explain procedures and what they did. At that moment, I learned several lessons about race, gender, and class. White women were primarily registered nurses, surgeons were mainly White men, and aides and housekeeping staff were largely Black. Based on the reactions from nurses and staff, it was clear to me that surgeons (White men) were at the top of the chain of dominance. People listened when surgeons spoke and got out of their way when they walked down the hall. Nurses (White women) worked in a service/assistance capacity in that they made sure the surgical room was ready, instruments were sterilized, and knew how the surgeons liked to manage their procedures. The housekeeping staff (Blacks) were largely ignored by everyone, except my mother, who always spoke to them. What struck me was how focused my mother was on her work, even though I would know how tired or stressed she might have been. Her emotions were never visible to others, instead they saw her smile and quiet demeanor. Later she would explain how the surgeons would treat her (sometimes they would yell, others very respectful), how the nurses sometimes debriefed or socialized without her, and the housekeeping staff were not necessarily her peers. It made me realize how isolating her career could be. She was in a different professional status than her Black colleagues, yet was too Black for her White female nurse colleagues. I remember asking her why there were few Black doctors and nurses, and her response was ?I had the same question when I started working. 76 Where did the Black people go?? This realization has influenced my work as I attempt to explore how professional Black women navigate their academic careers in spaces that are dominated by White men, yet still may not share experiences with their White female colleagues. I once asked my mother?s thoughts on the feminist movement in the 60s while working on a school project. She said that Black women always worked and the issues from that time were centered on the liberation of White women. My mother possessed an understanding of how the oppressive intersection oppression of race, class, and gender shaped her position in life. She knew that in her status as a woman, she was not viewed as fragile in the way White femininity was, and therefore ?liberation? meant something different for her. My mother realized her narrative/struggle would not be told by White women, nor was that her expectation. She could see that although White women were oppressed due to their gender, they were still racially privileged. This was a profound moment for me. I can now see that her ideology was seeped in Black Feminist Thought (BFT). BFT recognizes and speaks to this type of self-definition in dealing with multiple oppressive identities. Between my mother, grandmother, and aunts, women with silent strength constantly surrounded me. Women who lived by the notion of ?don?t tell me, show me,? which alludes to the significance of credibility in BFT. These were Black women who were self-reliant, the backbones of their families, supporters of their husbands, and unafraid to take risks to advance in their own careers. When it was time for me to determine a dissertation topic, it was clear to me that I would focus on Black women. I wondered how many unsung heroes existed in the senior 77 administrative ranks of higher education. It was important to me to seek out Black women in senior administrative positions because they occupy a unique space in higher education. They can influence curriculum, be role models for students, work with multiple layers of management, and do so in environments that may not be friendly to them. As I reviewed the literature, it seemed as if the narratives of Black women were hidden in studies on Black men or White women. When in reality, neither scenario can accurately reflect the experiences Black women have as they sit at the intersection of their race and gender. Throughout my life I have valued individualism and how a person?s perspective can effect their experiences. I am very sensitive to context and how it shapes events and episodes. There are very few absolutes in my worldview, which means I believe that people can be exposed to the same phenomena but interpret it differently. This closely aligns me with constructivism in that I am interested in processes, a person?s lived experience, and how it shapes their understanding. I approach my research by taking great care to ensure participants? voices are interpreted in a manner that honors their narrative. I am an observer by nature, and as an observer I am aware of and fascinated by power structures and their effects. Being raised in Wisconsin and attending primary and secondary schools in an affluent district through a controversial desegregation effort provided me with an awareness of politics, power, and disparities at a young age. I was able to see which people were placed in power positions and could make decisions that would affect those without power. In my case, it was how White state legislators thought 78 it was a good idea to bus Black children to districts outside of the city and for White students to attend city schools. Local legislators implemented the State?s directive by picking exactly the type of Black students they wanted, if they had to accept them. This meant they chose Black students who lived on the outskirts of the city and whose parents were mostly professionals mandated to live in the city by their jobs such as anyone who worked for city or county government (which included my mother as a Milwaukee County Hospital employee). We were tested, poked, and prodded then separated; there was only one Black student per classroom. What this taught me about systems of oppression was: 1) everything is political, 2) those in power (Whites) are more comfortable with diversity when they can control the implementation rather than what is in the best interest for all, 3) as a city student, I should often state how grateful I was to be in those schools, 4) to improve the lives of people like me, I needed to learn as much as I could so I could sit at the table and one day wield my own power of influence. Those realizations align me with critical approaches. Critical theorists are interested in power dynamics and patterns of dominance, particularly how those in power use their influence on marginalized populations. Scope and Limitations This qualitative study was designed to collect information on Black women in senior administrative positions. The sample was intentionally small, and therefore data was generated by collecting rich and thick descriptions from each participant (Guba et al., 1994; Lincoln & Guba, 1985). The findings of this work did not produce broad generalizations. I had set parameters to help account for some factors such as institutional 79 type, location, and academic discipline, but there were still others not accounted for and there was still diversity within these contexts. Another limitation was understanding that participants might share information that they believed I wanted to hear rather than their actual experience, especially if it was negative or hurtful. Intra-racial diversity is another limitation I encountered. I chose to define Black to include anyone with roots in the African Diaspora in an effort to broaden my sample pool; however, there is variance within that population as native born Blacks have different perspectives than Caribbean and African born or their direct descendants (George Mwangi, 2014). Black immigrants may see their ethnic or immigrant identity as more salient than their race, and construe the Black-White paradigm of race in the United States differently than native born Blacks (George Mwangi, 2014; George Mwangi, Fries-Britt, Peralta, Daoud, 2016). Native born Blacks have the historical context of the peculiar relationship between themselves and the US, which includes a history of slavery and oppression. They may see race as more salient than their own ethnicity, or may not have a sense of their ethnic identities (George Mwangi, 2014). It was my goal, as a constructivist scholar with critical leanings, to place Black women as the center of their stories and not as a comparison to other groups. I hoped to describe the experiences of Black women through an empowered lens by acknowledging some of the systems of oppressions they faced, yet being careful not to victimize. Instead I aimed to highlight how Black women thrived and survived in the face of these oppressive structures. I understand that as a Black woman in higher education, I have an insider status with my sample. Therefore, this insider status provided me with a certain 80 level of intimacy with the participants as we shared race and gender. Even with shared identities, it was my responsibility to ensure that I did not assume we shared or even acknowledged the roles race, gender, and class play in our lives. 81 Chapter 4: Participant Profiles This chapter presents a profile on each participant. A table outlined each participant?s current role and place of employment which was denoted by an assigned institutional pseudonym, and a brief description of the faculty demographics of their institution. The discipline/field where they worked at the time of this study was included in the table, unless they served in a university-wide role. In those instances, I will include the field in which they completed their doctoral work. Next, I provide a profile that describes their career path and some relevant background information. Each profile will include quotes I selected from their interview that I feel best reflected their personality and how they view their roles. I began each interview by asking participants to tell me about their career paths. Each person started from their version of the beginning. For some that meant their first job post-PhD, and for others it meant their just position after undergrad or professional school. Participants described their trajectories chronologically and sometimes would include examples of their experiences with race, class, and gender. Once I understood the course of their careers, the participants discussed who and what was significant in their progress or tried to inhibit their growth. From there some participants would share stories about their backgrounds and families, which helped me in the creation of their profiles. Table 4.1 Description of Participants Participa Institution Discipline/Fiel Administrati Region Demographi nt al d ve cs of Faculty Pseudony Position m 82 Caitlin Rocky Social Science Vice Rocky 55% of Mountain Chancellor Mountai faculty are State n women and University 16% minoritized Cora Chesapeake Arts and Dean Mid- 41% of State Humanities Atlantic faculty are University women and 3% are minoritized women Courtney Sunshine Humanities Department West 37% of State Chair faculty are University women and 29% are minoritized Danielle Glory State Social Science Dean Mid- 18% of University Atlantic faculty are minoritized Daphne Glory State Social Science Dean Mid- 18% of University Atlantic faculty are minoritized Darlene Queens Social Science Dean Mid- 31% of University Atlantic faculty are women, 21% of faculty are minoritized and 3% are Black Diana Starbucks Social Science Associate West 26% of College Provost faculty are women and 2% are Black Felicity Porsche Social Science Dean South 41% of University faculty are women and 17% of faculty are minoritized Kate Mighty STEM Vice Provost, Mid- State Dean, and Atlantic University Associate Professor 83 Lynn Poway Social Science Dean West 50% of the University faculty are women and 6% are Black Madison Sandy State Humanities Director and West University Professor Megan Geyser Social Science Interim Rocky State Provost Mountai University n Sabrina Union STEM Associate Mid- 44% of College Dean Atlantic faculty are women and 5% are Black Tamara Aquatic Humanities Dean South 18% of University faculty are minoritized Tracy Commodor STEM Dean South 6% of faculty e are Black and University 4% are Black women Caitlin Caitlin is a vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion at Rocky Mountain State University, a large, urban, public university. Her responsibilities include enhancing diversity across the university?s 13 schools, foster an inclusive culture, recruitment, retention, and community relations. She also maintains her full professor status in her discipline. Caitlin began her career as a lecturer at a large HBCU, and one of her benefits was the ability to take two courses per semester for free. She decided to take advantage of that and pursued her Ph.D. over the course of several years. Upon completion, she was recruited to the flagship university at which she started her career, which is about an hour away from her current institution. She ?recognized that they had hired her as a twofer, as being African-American and woman. They were striving?to address criticisms of their gender and racial dynamics in their students, faculty, and staff.? While working at the 84 flagship was a welcoming experience and they touted their diversity efforts on their website, Caitlin ?invited? herself to the downtown campus within the state system after she received tenure. Caitlin decided that she wanted to transition to the downtown campus to live closer to a city and a more diverse environment. She currently remains at the downtown campus. Caitlin found that people made assumptions based on her race and gender, and guessed that her research interests included gender or intercultural dynamics; however, her focus was not related to her identity in the early stages of her career. Caitlin attempted to process this disconnect, and ?disrupted the power dynamics and the expectations by choosing to become?a critical scholar, looking at identity issues and power starting with gender and race, and then successively adding on other aspects of identity.? With her new research interest aligning with what her peers assumed she did anyway, Caitlin decided to change her research area as she was coming up for tenure. Her colleagues warned, ?Whoa, people don?t do that.? Her retort was, ?I?m gonna do that.? And after the decision to change her research interests, she developed her current reputation as a diversity and inclusion scholar. I wanted to follow up with Caitlin and inquire more about her decision to change her research agenda as a non-tenured, junior professor. Particularly since it is an unwritten rule that faculty do not make big changes until they are tenured. Caitlin believed it was because she was a child of the ?60s and 70s, and wonderful Motown music, and civil rights and all that.? She deems that period as a unique culmination of events that changed the zeitgeist of our country. Caitlin grew up in a Black neighborhood, 85 in the projects, and attended integrated junior and high schools. She was afforded the opportunity to take advanced classes with the ?so-called other smart kids.? That was the foundation that led to her confidence in any setting. A clear hallmark of her personality is her boldness and sense of being unafraid to do what others frown upon. When asked from where her confidence and boldness came from as an administrator, she stated, ??as an outsider within, I was aware of and processed being socialized to be in the tenure-track, maybe differently than my peers . . . and for me, it was an awareness that didn?t feel ? as I?ve since learned, for some people that feels more like a burden, and feels like a, ?ugh! They?re looking at me!? For me it?s like, ?Take a good look!?? Caitlin acknowledged that her peers might have been uncomfortable with their hypervisible, yet invisible status as a minoritized woman. These women may not have enjoyed the extra scrutiny and visibility, whereas Caitlin reframed it as a positive. Caitlin decided if her behavior and work was going to be watched, then she would give them something to see. Cora Cora is an arts and humanities dean at Chesapeake State University, a large, public, Mid-Atlantic, flagship university. Her college is one of the largest on campus, with approximately 320 tenure track and 500 professional track faculty. Cora oversees 14 academic units, 11 departments, and eight research centers. Cora began her career as a counselor in New York City. She had an opportunity to teach a course on the Black family and found that she had a penchant for teaching. At that point, Cora chose to pursue a doctorate in a social science discipline. After graduating, 86 she received a faculty appointment at a southern university, where her research interest evolved into feminist scholarship. From there, she ?received an opportunity to develop a center for research for women that focused on women of color and southern women.? Directing the research center was her first step into administration. She was recruited to move to her current institution, and Cora also decided to switch from her discipline to women?s studies. At her new institution, Cora became the chair of women?s studies, a position she held for eight years until she became the dean. Cora sees herself as ?someone who looks at the world through a sociological lens,? and calls herself as a person with a ?sociological imagination.? It is this sociological lens along with her ability to look at the broader picture and relationships between institutions and people that she thinks made her an attractive Dean candidate. When asked how her identity influences her experiences as a dean, Cora responded, ?Well, I mean, I think that being a Black woman who is a feminist scholar, who has written on Black feminism and all of those kinds of things, that is a very prominent part of my professional identity.? This perspective, which I believe embraces the fullness of both her gender and racial identities, can possibly contribute to her strength of big picture thinking. She illustrated how her research on two marginalized identities, which she embodies, influences her work as a dean who has to oversee a variety of disciplines and identities. Cora enjoyed her time as faculty, but also understands that she has a natural talent for administrative work. Administration was not her goal, especially when her three children were younger, but now it suits her lifestyle. Cora is not interested in advancing 87 to the role of provost because she appreciates her proximity to faculty and the happenings on the ground in her college. And although she does not have as much student interaction as she would like, she does not believe she will return to faculty once her deanship is over. Courtney Courtney is currently the chair of a humanities department and is also an associate professor in an arts department at Sunshine State University. Her institution is classified as a Hispanic-Serving and Asian-American/Pacific Islander-Serving Institution. Thirty- seven percent of the faculty are women and 29% are minoritized. The student population is 53% male and 2% of the student body is Black. Courtney began her career by working at museums; academia was her second career. Her first faculty position was at a small, private institution in a small town. Courtney was not happy there, as she was the sole Black faculty member. She observed that, ?I was the Black professor, and I didn?t want to be the Black professor, you know?? She also realized her preference was to be at an institution with more student diversity. So when her current institution offered her a position and tenure, she accepted. Her department transitioned from a program in January 2016. While there were directors previously, she is technically the first chair of the department in this new structure. It is a three-year appointment and her university relishes every opportunity to show that the first chair of their department is Black and female. The university will say, ?she is our first (Black chair),? despite the fact that the position has existed for two decades. The institution is encouraging her to stay on the administrative track; however, 88 she is not interested. Courtney said, ?they would love to have a Black woman in a role that is a powerful position just as kind of a poster child for diversity?diversity doesn?t really exist here.? Courtney is not interested in being tokenized. Courtney is currently married and described her husband as a true partner. They ?respect each other?s space,? ?love being together,? both have offices at home, and appreciate that there are things they need to do separately. Though she has ?opted out? of motherhood in her personal life, she often finds herself in maternal roles at work. Students from all majors come to her office for a shoulder to cry on, guidance, support, and advice. She does not see herself as ?nurturing or maternal,? yet she does want to be of service to students, particularly minoritized students. For example, she had an abundance of natural hair products so she brought them to her office for her ?naturalistas? and they were overjoyed. The extra work does weigh on her and has had an impact on her physical health; she once had bronchitis for three months. Her husband has encouraged her to draw more boundaries, and not check or respond to email after 5:30pm. Courtney is also fortunate that her institution includes two services once a month, such as facials or massages to assist with her self-care. Danielle Danielle is a social science dean at a large, private, research intensive university located in the Mid-Atlantic region named Glory State University. She has attended and worked at some of the nation?s most elite institutions. Danielle began her career in New York City where she was a faculty and ran a program in conjunction with the local school district. She then accepted a faculty position in the Mid-Atlantic region where she 89 received tenure. Danielle left that institution in search of a more urban university setting that would allow her to conduct research with a broader focus. It was there she was recruited to assume a chair position on a temporary basis. Her chair position catapulted her into a temporary vice dean post, which led to her accepting her first deanship. In Danielle?s career, she found that ?we depend on accidental administrators in higher ed too much.? To her point, she believed when people fall into administration accidentally, they are more likely to be White men. When she described how important it was for her to have a seat at the table, she was thinking of those who would be affected by her departure and how she could provide access for others. She decided to work with the provost at her previous institution to develop a $25 million faculty diversity initiative. It yielded 33 new minoritized faculty, which was a great accomplishment for her. Her vision provided almost three dozen faculty with the possibility of also one day having a seat at the senior administration table in the future. She left to pursue her deanship, so she was not sure if the institution could retain their new hires but she hoped they could. I asked Danielle to explain some of the influences in her personal life that guided her professional life since she discussed a sense of professional isolation in her previous roles. Danielle stated that her husband was her coach and her teenage children were her balance. She found that administration is more similar to corporate climates than her faculty role, so it was helpful that her husband could help her negotiate and strategize situations. However, she makes it a practice not to discuss work at home to maintain a strong separation between her family time and her career. In her continued search for a solution to combat isolation, Danielle also ?prayed and prayed? for an ally at work, 90 another equally senior administrator. She said, ?I just became totally immersed in the need for more people that look like me because I shouldn?t have to answer every question about being Black at a predominately White institution.? One day her prayer was answered and her university hired another dean who happened to be a Black woman, named Daphne. Danielle said they were ?happy that we have each other because it?s still very much White men.? Their friendship is so important that they both have their assistants ensure they have a monthly lunch scheduled to connect. Danielle is a big picture thinker. She is always preparing for or discussing the next steps. When thinking about her next career move, she sometimes misses teaching. She lamented that when she sees students it is usually when there is a problem. Danielle has no interest in becoming a provost or president, but believes it is important to ?always be in a state of looking.? She anticipates her next position to involve a research center or a nonprofit. Daphne Daphne is currently a humanities dean at the same large, private, research intensive university in the Mid-Atlantic region as Danielle: Glory State University. The campus is located in a lively and diverse urban center. This is Daphne?s second deanship. The first was a five-year tenure at a medium-sized, moderate activity institution in New England. Daphne has always been employed by private institutions, and she prefers them. When asked about her next steps, Daphne stated that she enjoys the challenges of being a dean, but can also see herself returning to full time faculty. 91 Daphne was born in the West Indies and grew up in Canada. Her positionality is unique in that she is not American born, which adds an additional layer to her racial and ethnic identity. However, her immigrant identity and life in the United States caused her to interpret situations, such as hiring, in the same way as some American born Black women. For example, Daphne did not anticipate being hired as a dean because she is a ?Black woman with dreadlocks and I?m a critical race theorist.? Daphne understands the significance of her racial and gendered presence on campus. She observed that ?when no one assumes you?re the dean, you understand that you?re managing a lot more than just being the dean. I just think that?s a tookit that women and people of color develop in terms of how we have to put people at ease, have to assure people that we are credentialed ? because they ask ? and we often have to talk their talk.? Daphne has to balance speaking in the manner they expect deans to speak, as well as equipping herself with a set of skills that her White peers may not have to employ. Daphne is one of two Black deans on campus; Danielle is the other. In the past few years, the university has witnessed and confronted several racial incidents such as the placement of confederate flag posters with cotton stalks attached. Both are actively involved on task forces and initiatives to support the campus through these racial incidents. As a critical race theorist, Daphne described political dynamics and sociological realities in great detail. She envisions her role as a dean as a ?leader amongst leaders? rather than a boss or manager. In both of her deanships she did not ?grow up in the faculty.? Instead, she was hired to become dean from another institution. She acknowledged that ?sometimes you get to choose your team initially, and sometimes you 92 inherit your team, and then you have to transition your team.? She mentioned the significance of this because: . . . those types of personnel matters take on added currency when you?re the dean because ? and I think it?s even more so when you?re a person of color, and a woman, and a woman of color ? there?s such hyper-scrutiny. I mean I think appropriately there?s a lot of scrutiny, but I think when you?re a woman and a person of color there?s hyper-scrutiny of the office and the way you interact and engage. Daphne?s narrative suggests that she is deliberate with her words and in speaking to her team. She must be careful as everything she says is scrutinized, and her team represents her so she is careful to ensure her message is not easily misunderstood. Daphne takes pride in her innovative approach to management and aims for transparency in her administration. Darlene Darlene is a social science dean at a medium sized, mid-Atlantic, private institution named Queens University. Approximately half of the student body is composed of women and seven percent of the student population is Black. Thirty-one percent of the faculty are women, twenty-one percent of the faculty are from minoritized populations, and three percent are Black. Darlene has spent her entire academic career at her current institution. She did leave to serve as an advisor to a US President, but eventually returned to her academic home. 93 Darlene is fond of her role as dean, and will likely agree to serve for a second term. She transitioned into her deanship after completing her role with the federal government. When comparing the two roles she found, ?one advantage of being a dean, at least where I am, is that there are very few people whose calendars I?m beholden to,? whereas in public service, her calendar could be commandeered by the President or an emergency situation. Darlene did not plan to transition into academic administration, and she is not sure if she will remain an administrator. She believes, ?being a faculty member is a fantastic job, at least with tenure.? Darlene likes the ?fluidity? of academia and knowing she could go back to faculty with ease. Her experience as dean is different than her institutional peers because she is in the professional school on campus. They also have a ?very large endowment,? which allows her school to operate more independently than any other unit. Family is extremely important to Darlene. She cited her family as a reason to not pursue a provost position or a presidential post. Either role would likely require her to ?disrupt other people?s lives,? such as her family. She has children in high school and cannot see herself uprooting her family at such a pivotal time. Yet, she is confident that if she wanted a presidency, she would be able to secure one because she would apply to enough positions. While her own family is prominent in Darlene?s life, her parents were also influential. It became apparent to me that her broad worldview is shaped by her childhood exposures, particularly as we began to discuss race, gender, class, and service. Darlene was expected to go to graduate school. Her father was one of the first Blacks to 94 earn a PhD from his university, and her mother has two Master?s degrees. Her parents came from humble backgrounds, but made sacrifices to prioritize traveling when they had children. As a child, Darlene took family vacations across the United States and Europe. Diana Diana is an Associate Provost and Full Professor at a large, urban, private, university named Starbucks College. Five percent of 43,000 students are Black. Two percent of tenured faculty are Black and 4% are assistant professors. Women comprise 26% of tenured faculty and 42% of tenure track faculty. The institution is dedicated to its history of playing a ?major role in the development? of its region. Diana worked in the private sector for about five years, and decided to follow her gut instinct by going into academia. She was hired as one of four Black junior faculty, and two were dismissed prior to receiving tenure. Diana was the first Black woman to attain tenure in her current school?s 100-year history. Because of this she holds onto a ?sense of obligation to sort of understand why that [it took so long for a Black woman to receive tenure] happened and how that happened.? Diana aims to understand ?how to prevent that from happening again and to create a healthy environment for people, faculty of color, who are here,? making the Associate Provost role attractive when presented by the Provost. Diana?s current role was not clearly defined when she began. The Provost's idea was to have three Associate Provosts who would cover the entire university: Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences, and Science and Engineering. Diana was the Associate Provost of the Social Sciences. All three Associate Provosts are women and work closely 95 with the Deans under their purview to design student initiatives. Diana likes to ?create things,? and relished in characterizing the role for herself. She presented her program ideas to the Provost?s cabinet. Some found value in her proposal, others thought her plans were ?too big.? The Provost seemed to like that she was ?project-based? and her concepts were ?transformative.? Another trait the provost appeared to value in her was her na?vet? about ?institutional barriers.? Because Diana was not always aware of what she could or could not do, she would suggest things without fear of reprisal. When others complained about her approach, the provost asked her to ?slow down,? but he would never tell her to stop. So she is empowered by her provost to think broadly and freely. In the past year, she designed two new programs. The first was a ?university wide diversity and inclusion week with 30 events,? where 700 faculty participated in a diversity training. The second was a ?think tank? that pulled faculty and students from different schools within the university to work on ?social problems of the surrounding community.? People were ?very surprised? that she was able to complete both programs so quickly. Diana has already surpassed the productivity of her two predecessors in the same period of time. She has also developed a program for first generation professional students. The program is research based, and addresses issues of stereotype threat through workshops and trainings. Considering the strong record of success Diana has amassed and her desire to get active in fundraising, I asked if her next goal is to become a dean of her school. It is not, and she noted that ?as some of these fields have become more diverse, the positions [law deans] become less attractive.? She explained how the role has less perks and protections 96 than it did before. The ?old gentleman?s approach? to understanding the role has changed. Now being a dean in her discipline includes ?raising money, benchmarks, and accountability.? Of the three, Diana felt raising money would be the most difficult for people ?who look like her? as most of the donors would be old, White men. She is not sure if she will remain faculty, pursue a provost role, or a presidency in future years. Felicity Felicity is a social science dean at Porsche University. Her university is classified as private, more selective, Southern, and at the highest level of research activity (Carnegie classifications). Women comprise 41% of the faculty and 58% of the student population. The university did not list the demographic breakdown of their faculty online, but did list 17% of faculty are of color. Institutional data shows 37% of their students are from minoritized backgrounds, 9% are Black. Felicity knew at a ?very early age? that she would study psychology. She had a psychologist in her family and was always ?intrigued? by how ?people think.? One of her professors suggested academia to her during her graduate studies. Felicity was a professor at three similar institutions, including her current institution, prior to accepting her first deanship. Becoming a dean was not her initial goal, but it is unlikely that she will return to the faculty ranks. Felicity understands that her trajectory is ?preparing? her to become a college president, but she also believes she has ?developed some skill sets? to do a ?number of other things as well.? She is not limiting herself to one specific path. When Felicity accepted this role, some of the faculty still remembered her as an assistant professor. She was ?very anxious? about how they would receive her. To 97 circumvent that, she was transparent about her concern at the first faculty meeting. Felicity stated, ?they recognized that I was aware of this kind of unusual set of circumstances.? Overall the faculty were ?very disengaged? and operated as ?free agents? without a deep connection to the school. Felicity has made it her mission to change the culture of her school. She has since helped build a sense of community and trust, and the faculty see that she takes their ideas into consideration. As a wife and mother, Felicity is intentional about involving her children in her work. They are familiar with her staff, sometimes walk to her office after school, and travel with her when possible. Felicity recalled when someone approached while she was out to dinner with her family. The person mentioned that they read about her and was excited about new role. Her children then understood that their mother?s role was different and more public than other mothers. Kate ?I?ve served on so many different committees ? so it?s ?have melanin, will travel, and serve on your committee.? ?Diversity R Us, you need diversity on your committee? Call me? That?s how I was feeling.? Kate is a Vice Provost and Dean at Mighty State University, a large, public, mid- Atlantic, high research activity institution. The student body is 45% female and 16% Black. This university was also recently designated as a Minority Serving Institution by the US Department of Education. Kate?s background is in STEM and her institution is well known for their STEM programs and affiliations with NSF and NASA. 98 Kate began her career as an assistant professor and went on leave for a position at a government agency. Her dean cautioned that if she left, she would not receive tenure. Ultimately Kate did not receive tenure, and she left her faculty role for her current institution, where she could continue her work at the agency and remain an assistant professor. In this time, she got married, became a mother, and took time off of work. Kate eventually started to look for a position that was half faculty and half administrative, because she found that she enjoyed administration. The position that matched her standards was Associate Dean of the Graduate School at her current institution. Over time, her administrative work consumed more of her time and she became more of an administrator than faculty member. This gave her more time to focus on her passions. One aspect that is dear to her is having the ability to ?think about what the needs are of graduate students, and how to get more minorities and women in STEM disciplines.? Kate loves her job, and she always knew she wanted to be in ?central administration.? Part of the reason she enjoys administration is, that to some extent, she has always done it. She was a student leader in organizations, directed a program in graduate school, and had an administrative role at a government agency. Kate particularly revels in administration at her current institution because she is ?so aligned with the values of the university. . . I feel like everything that I?m doing is contributing to the mission and vision.? This was a stark contrast to her description of her role as an assistant professor and her first institution?s environment. As an assistant professor she was asked to direct a program designed to increase student diversity; however she learned her program work was ?not valued.? It was disheartening to realize she was asked to manage 99 that program, but her hours worked had to be above and beyond her regular faculty duties. Lynn ?The group I?m in is not the standard, we are the exception. I get that and I don?t want to lose that point, because then people are like, ?Oh, Black women are doing it, Black women are taking over the world.? We?re not taking over the world. We?re still underrepresented? Lynn is a social science dean at Poway University. Poway is a medium-sized, selective, private, doctoral granting university on the west coast. She is responsible for the fiscal management of her school, personnel, fundraising, as well as serving as the face of her college and institution to internal and external constituents. Lynn began her career as faculty and has been promoted through the rank of full professor. This is Lynn?s second year as dean, and she reports directly to the provost. The university at which she is employed is residential and is considered a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI). In 2016, there were approximately 8,000 students enrolled: 44.5% Latinx, 19.5% White, 5.8% Black, 4.3% Asian/Pacific Islander, and 0.3% American Indian. The majority of students are women (60.1%), which mirrors current trends for women in postsecondary education. The 275-person faculty is equitably split at 50-50% male and female, and 58 faculty comprise her school. Approximately six percent of administrators and faculty are Black. Diversity is a core value of the institution, and their diversity strategic plan places particular importance on increasing participation among faculty, staff, and students. The 100 institution is currently in the midst of redefining itself from its predominately White past and their more diverse present. Lynn entered academe ?accidentally.? As a first generation student who grew up in foster care, her college counselor initially tried to steer her into cosmetology. Fortunately, she had a friend who taught her about the college application process. Lynn decided to pursue her undergraduate education at the most selective public university in her state because it was the furthest from home. She minored in African American studies, and a professor served as her mentor. He was so influential that Lynn now believes ?every person of color should have a co-major or a minor in an affinity major or minor.? She credits her minor with teaching her how to network, providing her with mentors, and not seeing her background as an impediment to her success. Lynn was the first person of African decent to receive tenure at her prior institution, which was a mid-sized, wealthy, private institution. A White male colleague commented that while Lynn may have attended some of the most prestigious universities in the country, she would not receive tenure there because due to her race. Once Lynn found out that in the 150 years of the university?s existence not one Black person received tenure in her college she made it her ?mission? to make sure she received it. This example illustrates her sense of fortitude and strength to not retreat from challenges. Madison Madison is a Director and social science Professor at Sandy State University. She did not intend to move into administration. Her initial plans were to remain in the professoriate and take care of her family, which includes three sons and her husband. Her 101 husband was a professor at the same institution and his goals included becoming one of the most prestigious professors on campus. Unfortunately, he passed away before he could achieve his benchmark. Madison was then encouraged by a Division Director to assume his role after he stepped down. She doubted she would be successful in the role because she was not proficient in managing budgets. He assured her and said, ?that?s what your business manager is for?administration is 90 percent people, and you?re great at that.? Madison became the Division Director and remained in that role for seven years. Madison was courted to pursue a Vice Provost position. There were three finalists, two White men and her. Madison was offered the position, and soon after a new Provost was hired. Madison noted she ?was not very friendly to women, especially colored women.? The Provost then made the decision to remove the title of Vice Provost and Madison became an Associate Dean. She started to look for positions at other institutions because she thought her boss was ?encouraging? her to leave. Madison chose to stay due to one of her sons having health challenges. Instead she returned to the faculty ranks. However, the Provost ?blew up? her college and told her she no longer had a home. Madison was then charged with finding a new home somewhere else on campus, otherwise face termination. The Dean of one of the interdisciplinary schools on campus invited Madison to join their faculty, and a few years later she became the Director of the school. Madison accepted the Director role because she had a vision for the unit. She said she would not use it as a ?stepping stone to a deanship or a vice provost? because she had gone that route before. At this point she only sees retirement as her next step. One of her goals is to 102 increase the number of women at the full professor rank. She noted, ?I have too many women who?ve settled into being associate professors for too long. I want to promote more women faculty to full professor.? Megan Megan is the Interim Provost of a large, public, flagship university in the Rocky Mountains named Geyser State University. The student body of the university is 53% women and one percent Black. Institutional data has not been disaggregated on their website, but they list 10% of their faculty as coming from minoritized backgrounds. This is a stark contrast from Megan?s previous institutions, which were all HBCUs in Georgia. Megan described herself as an ?academic practitioner.? She began her career in the policy world and had a passion for public service. Megan was raised in Philadelphia by a single mother in the 1960s and was heavily influenced by Angela Davis and the Black Panther Movement. This nurtured her future in advocacy, as she saw how policies ?seemed to not be considerate of the issues for African Americans, and other people of color.? Her objective was to ?help shape those policies, to be more positively impactful on our community.? Megan?s motivation was a balance between desiring a leadership position and having the ability to help her ?community and people who look like her? in the private sector. She worked for the federal government for years and one of her promotions allowed her to run a program in Georgia. Then Megan had an opportunity to teach and pursue her Ph.D. while she managed her program. After the election of Ronald Reagan, the focus of her office shifted and the commitment to her area was decreased. Megan 103 decided to lobby for a full-time faculty position at the HBCU where her Ph.D. was conferred. She initially wanted to remain faculty, but her chair encouraged her to consider replacing him, which she did. Megan loved being a chair, and after eight years was asked to transition to the Provost?s office as an assistant provost. She figured she must have been ?doing something right.? In the Provost?s Office, she visualized herself becoming a provost herself. I inquired about her searches for provost positions and she stated that she thought her HBCU background might have been an impediment: ?I have applied for positions that are a number of PWIs I had gotten to the short list on a few, as provost, but I?ve never been picked, and I?ve always felt like, because I came with prior HBCU experience. I?ve always felt like if you work at a PWI as an administrator, you can find a leadership position at an HBCU?but if you come the opposite, you just don?t, it?s very, very rare, that you see a person who?ve spent a good portion or the majority of their career, at the minority serving institutions like an HBCU, be able to go to a PWI.? Megan contemplated the presidency, but she realized that the work meant more to her than a title. She will most likely remain retired after her term ends. Sabrina Sabrina is an Associate Vice President and Interim Chief Diversity Officer at Union College. Union is a large, urban, southeastern, public research university. She is also an associate professor in a STEM discipline with a joint appointment in education. Of all instructional faculty, 44% are women and 5% are Black. Sixteen percent of all administrative faculty are Black. The university is located in the state capital and prides itself on providing the ?cool? factor to the city. 104 Sabrina started as an adjunct professor until she finished her dissertation and moved into a tenure-eligible assistant professor line at her current institution. Sabrina thought about administration at the beginning of her career, but she was not sure she had the skills necessary to become an effective administrator. When asked what skills are required to become an effective administrator Sabrina said, ?There is a certain craftiness and knowledge of the capacities that certain opponents of your position might take . . . You have to be willing to deal with the ugly side of administration, and I?m not sure I have the skills to deal with the ugly side of administration.? Sabrina was an associate professor and associate dean of the graduate school before she accepted her joint appointment in her STEM discipline and an interdisciplinary school. Sabrina served in her associate dean role for three years before she was appointed to her current role in early 2017. She currently manages all cultural competency programming, five fellows, two staff, and three faculty. Sabina oversees all of their projects and programs. Sabrina is also the point person for diversity-based communication. Throughout her narrative, Sabrina repeatedly notes that she cares deeply about ensuring she makes the right decisions. Sabrina noted differences in faculty and administrative decision making, highlighting the power she had to affect lives. For example, some students ?have encountered some difficulty and trying situations, but they still earned the grade they earned in my class.? She said she did not make further accommodations ?to maintain a certain level of fairness across the board.? As an administrator ?it?s a little harder when you think about this is someone?s livelihood; this 105 is potentially someone?s career.? There were more factors for Sabrina to consider when making a decision affecting the future of staff or administrators. She believes she has ?difficulty making hard decisions about certain things.? Tamara Tamara is a humanities dean at Aquatic University, a large, private, urban university in the south. The student body is 54% women and 10% Black. Approximately 18% of the faculty are from minoritized populations. The university itself is fairly liberal, but her particular school is even more liberal in their positions. The school?s statement of commitments attracted Tamara to her position. She said, ?I?ve not seen too many schools ? and certainly not southern schools ? put in writing and put on the web a commitment to anti-racism, anti-sexism, anti-homo and trans sexism.? Before Tamara obtained her Ph.D., she was an adjunct professor at a seminary. The seminary had a cohort with a large number of Black women students. These women were vocal about their need for representation at the faculty level. Two faculty recruited Tamara to teach, which she had not done before. She had listened to her mother lecture, and found her to be a gifted teacher, but never received formal training in pedagogy. Tamara prayed and asked the students to join her in prayer. She then ?looked up and I started talking and within seconds, I knew this is what I was supposed to do with my life.? This also meant she had to pursue a Ph.D., even though she already had a doctorate of divinity. Tamara realized this would be an immense undertaking since she had gone to school from kindergarten through her divinity degree without ceasing. A mentor encouraged her to go back to graduate school because at the time there were only ?five 106 [Black] women with earned Ph.D.?s in theological education.? Tamara could not believe there were so few and saw it as her responsibility to help increase that number by going back to school. Tamara never intended to become an administrator. Both of her parents were academic administrators and her aunt was an administrator at a junior college. She saw administration as ?the family business? and wanted no part of it. Tamara eventually discovered, through working on projects, that she has ?an affinity? for and enjoys administration. She likes ?being able to move pieces around and get things done. Tamara described administration as the ability to ?see the big picture? and ?see the pieces and know what you need to do when, who, why, who you need to talk to.? Tamara characterized herself as a ?social ethicist.? Therefore, she looks at ?structures and how people are in those structures ? either creating them, dissenting from them, transforming them.? Her training as a social ethicist is a guiding principle in her role as dean. Tracy Tracy is a STEM dean at a medium-sized, selective, public, high research activity institution in the Mid-Atlantic region named Commodore University. The university is largely non-residential, and 55% of the student body is female. Black students comprise 26% of the total population. Six percent of the faculty are Black, and four percent are Black women, specifically. Tracy began her career in higher education administration and quickly realized that if she wanted to advance, she would need a Ph.D. Upon completing her STEM doctoral degree, she accepted a tenure track position at a Midwestern university, although 107 her goal was to return to her HBCU undergraduate institution. Tracy realized that she found more pleasure in teaching than research. In hindsight she thinks she ?would have been better suited at a teaching intensive school early on.? She continued to hold administrative responsibilities while teaching. Her peers were concerned that she might not receive tenure if she maintained her non-scholarly position. She did attain tenure, and decided she wanted to pursue administration full-time. Her dean told her to reach full status first. Tracy?s next step included a move to another institution where she became a department head. For Tracy, it is likely that she could ?go right to president or?go be a provost somewhere? as her next steps. She realized she had presidential aspirations at her undergraduate institution. Tracy mentioned it to the institution?s president, and asked how he reached his post. He said he ?fell? into it, and did not seem supportive of her goals. She took another opportunity to speak with a current president, who was also a Black woman. Tracy remembers that she had on a ?nice linen shirt and matching shirt and slack outfit.? When she asked about this woman?s path to the presidency, the response was an unfavorable gaze as if to say ?why would you think you could do this job?? Tracy was left wondering if she received such a response because she had on ?this linen outfit? or ?dreadlocks.? Still undeterred, Tracy had a chance meeting with one another Black woman president who was well known and had a strong reputation. This woman is now Tracy?s mentor. They are members of the same sorority, and she even affectionately nicknamed Tracy ?Shadow.? This example foreshadows the tenacity we will see from Tracy as she describes her career path. 108 Chapter 5: Findings This chapter is a presentation of the findings from the 15 participants. The first section outlines how the women first made their transition into administration, the factors influencing their decision, and the role of the department chair. A description of the department chair position includes the significance of faculty rank and the unique placement of the role as the first step into administration. The second half of the chapter focuses on support systems: what they are, who is included in them, and how they help the participants adjust and cope with the pressure of being a Black woman in senior administrative positions. Career Path One part of the first research question asks why Black women transition from faculty to administration, how the transition fits into their larger career goals, and how do they understand and perceive the presidential pipeline. There were two patterns observed when analyzing how and why each participant ascended to administration. Participants were either recruited out of their faculty roles or sought out advancement opportunities. For the nine participants who were recruited into administration, the roles were sometimes reluctantly accepted. Three participants sought out administrative roles. The section ends with a discussion of where the administrators see their careers going after their current roles. Table 5.1 Paths to Administration 109 Recruited into Reluctant to accept Did not intend to move Sought out administration administrative role into administration advancement Caitlin x Cora x Courtney x x Danielle x x Daphne x Darlene x x Diana x Felicity x Kate x Lynn x Madison x Megan x Sabrina x Tamara x x Tracy x Recruited to Administration from Faculty The majority of the participants (n = 9) were recruited to administration from the faculty and some (n = 3) had student affairs administrative experience before becoming faculty. A variety of tactics were used by senior administrators to encourage participants? 110 transitions from faculty to administration, including: asking participants to accept an administrative role; inviting participants to apply for an administrative role; inviting participants to assume a temporary administrative role; and direct appointment. Tracy, now Dean at Commodore University, was a STEM minority program director at a large university when she first transitioned to academic administration. The dean of the graduate school approached Tracy and asked her to accept a position to assist with their minority recruitment efforts based on her previous program director experience. Caitlin, Courtney, Darlene, Megan, and Tamara were recruited into department chair positions by senior administrators. Courtney and Megan were recruited into their chair positions prior to becoming full professors; Caitlin, Darlene, and Tamara were promoted to full professor before they became administrators. Senior administrators recruited Courtney into her role due to a lack of interest from her peers. Megan generally considers her path to her current role as Provost at Geyser State University ?atypical? and ?nontraditional.? Megan was recruited for a chairship shortly after she became a tenure track professor after years of serving as an adjunct. Megan?s professional goals always included a leadership position, but she never thought about higher education leadership. She stated: I went over, strictly to be a faculty member, I had no interest at that time of being a chair, a provost, any of that, you know? Things worked out differently. So I went over to the faculty, and ultimately, I wound up moving into administration?My mentor, who was so wonderful to me over the years, was 111 chair of the department, and he convinced me that I should be chair, he wanted to step down. Megan?s narrative embodies the ?unintentional administrator.? She enjoyed teaching and wanted to become faculty, yet she stumbled into administration when an opportunity was presented to her by her mentor. Tamara, Dean at Aquatic University, had a president call her to invite her to apply for a dean position. At first, she did not believe the university would select her based on her identity as a queer Black woman, but the president?s phone call and support from her peers encouraged Tamara to apply: I just could not see, to be honest, how [the institution] was going to appoint a Black lesbian as the dean of the [redacted]. I just could not see how that was gonna happen. But when the president called and asked me to be a candidate, I agreed because I knew many of my colleagues wanted me to pursue it. Tamara was not hesitant to apply for her deanship because she doubted her skills. Instead, Tamara was doubtful that the institution recruiting her, based on its location and reputation, would accept her and her identity. Caitlin accepted her role as chair after she was promoted to full professor. She was tapped by the outgoing chair and other senior administrators, who appreciated her leadership skills, to take on smaller projects and then department chair. Darlene was appointed dean, who also serves as department chair at her institution, after she was promoted to full professor and took some time to work for the federal government. 112 Inviting a participant to accept responsibility for a project or temporary position was another strategy that turned faculty into administrators. The provost solicited Lynn, currently Dean at Poway University, to redesign the undergraduate program at her former university. Her program redesign was successful and she was subsequently promoted to assistant dean. Danielle, Dean at Glory State, was asked to temporarily assume the role of department chair. Shortly after, she became the permanent chair. Madison was groomed by two deans to assume an administrative position. She said: I started quasi-administration as a Program Director in service of a dean who came to [redacted university] soon after I got promoted to Associate Professor. It happened to be a Black woman dean, and she wanted me to take over this unit. She was very confident that I was the one person in that program she could trust. Madison was on the hiring committee for the first dean, who was a Black woman, and was then tapped to serve as a Program Director. Through a reorganization, Madison was managed by someone who changed the scope of her director position. A new dean started and he began to mentor her and restored her administrative duties, though she ?still wasn?t interested in administration.? This dean invited her to apply for a Division Director position. He believed in her skills even when she doubted herself: . . . we could have heart to heart talks and would say, ?I?m terrible with budgets.? I said, ?how am I supposed to manage the budget for a unit like this?? He says, ?that?s why you have a business manager.? He says, ?you look at the numbers and make sure they look about right.? He says ? he says, ?that?s what your business 113 manager is for.? He says, ?Madison, administration is 90 percent people, and you?re great at it.? And he?s right. He was confidence-building in that regard. Madison?s dean took the time to review each concern she had when considering a newer role in administration. He had full confidence in her and wanted to encourage her, which helped her confidence in accepting the position. Some senior administrators appointed participants to administrative roles based on their observed skills and talents. Diana, Associate Provost at Starbucks University, did not intend to move into administration until she was asked to by her provost. She was on a job search committee with her provost at the time and the provost was impressed with how Diana was comfortable speaking up in executive meetings when she held the dissenting view. The provost appointed Diana to one of the three newly created vice- provost positions. While senior administrators initiated most recruitment efforts, executive search firms recruited some participants. Daphne, Dean at Glory State, was contacted by a search firm numerous times before she accepted the nomination for her current position. At first she did not accept the nomination because she did not think she would get the job, nor did she think her identity and appearance would be accepted. She reflected on the experience by saying, ?I?m not going to get this job because I?m like a Black woman with dreadlocks and I?m a race crit. They?re not going to hire me.? However, she decided to accept the nomination when the chairman of the board called her and encouraged her to apply. Thus, much like Tamara, personal communication and support from senior administrators was an important source of encouragement. 114 Similar to Daphne, Felicity was contacted by executive search firms to apply for her current role as dean. Felicity taught for three years at one institution before she relocated with her partner after they got married. She secured another faculty position where she was promoted and was given administrative tasks as part of her service work. She said she ?went from assistant to associate to full professor, and had a chance to do different committee assignments or administrative tasks, and apparently, those went really successfully because I kept getting asked to do more of those administrative jobs. Felicity helped start an executive education program, which led to the title of Senior Associate Dean for Executive Education. Her success in that position gave her the visibility necessary for search firms to find her and invite her to apply for her current deanship. One participant achieved her administrative role through two of the identified strategies, by invitation to accept a temporary role and direct appointment. Cora was a faculty member who ran a foundation-funded research center on her campus, which was her first brush with administrative experience. When she was recruited to her current university, Cora made it clear that she only wanted faculty responsibilities. She said, I would say, ?oh, I just want to be a scholar, I just want to work on my research,? but I'd always end up kind of doing some administrative thing, and partly because either people saw that in me and asked me to do it or because I enjoyed it and some combination of those things. 115 A few years later, Cora was involved with developing an interdisciplinary research consortium based on her previous experience with managing a successful research center. This experience paved the way for her to become a department chair, a position she held for eight years. Some of her colleagues and unit heads suggested she apply for the dean position, but she was not interested. The search failed and she received word that the provost wanted to speak with her. Cora had an inkling that the conversation would be about the role of dean. The provost offered Cora the job of dean as a two-year assignment. She has remained dean for the past nine years. Choosing Administration Kate, Sabrina, and Tracy were discrepant cases and the only three participants who knew early in their careers that they aspired to move into administration. Kate, Vice Provost at Mighty State University, wanted to transition from faculty to an administrative position when she was an assistant professor. She actively pursued positions that had equal parts faculty and administrative responsibilities. Kate accepted a role that was ?100 percent administration, but with a faculty appointment.? Soon Kate realized it was unrealistic to uphold her faculty responsibilities with the time constraints as Vice Provost. She preferred her administrative work because she believed she was ?making a difference on a broader level, in terms of enabling high-quality graduate education.? Administrative work provided her with a greater sense of accomplishment. Sabrina was involved with a mentoring program at her university when two positions opened within her school. Her assigned mentor was the university president and he attempted to coach her toward one of the positions in an effort to encourage her to 116 assume his position in the future. Sabrina did not think she had the mettle to become a president and she said she was ?too nice to sit in his chair.? Instead she elected to apply for her current associate dean position because it broadened her profile she thought it would provide her with ?additional credibility? if she chose to pursue additional administrative positions. Tracy, as stated earlier, began her career as an administrator, so she already possessed a level of familiarity with administration. She knew she wanted a position that allowed her to ?create programs and was student focused,? which at the time was as an associate dean for academic affairs. In order to achieve that position, she understood she had to become faculty first. She was fond of teaching but never had a ?burning desire? to become a faculty member. Tracy has presidential aspirations and has actively sought out administrative roles with increasing levels of responsibility throughout her career. Kate, Sabrina, and Tracy are fulfilling their original professional plans, whereas most participants found their paths to administration by happenstance and not intentionally. The Role of Faculty Rank in Transitioning and Department Chair Faculty rank is another significant aspect of the participants? career transitions and future path. Participants who became full professors prior to their move to administration had more flexibility than associate professors in the types of roles they could pursue in the future. Some positions required full professor status, such as a provost. Although these women could hold an administrative position as an associate professor, their trajectory might reach a ceiling and their ability to progress might be doubted more by other senior administrators. Therefore, when participants became 117 administrators as associate professors they found it challenging to apply for and attain full professorship and were limited in their future job searches. Sabrina is an associate professor who holds a dual appointment, while also serving as associate vice-president at Union College. Sabrina shared, ?I am an associate professor and some positions would not look at folks who have that academic rank. So that precludes me advancing in some positions.? When asked if she plans to pursue full professorship, she believed she could if she wanted. She questions whether she has the time to balance her administrative work, service, and research. Sabrina is not in a rush to advance more than she has. Kate is an Associate Professor, Vice Provost and Dean at Mighty State University. She moved to administration before she received full professor status. When I asked her about her advancement options she replied: . . . I have locked myself out of certain pathways. And so, there?s some positions that ? headhunters call ? and they say, ?Apply, apply, apply!? And I say, ?Well, I don?t want to apply,? because, I don?t want to tell them, ?I?m really not qualified for your position, because I don?t have [full professor status].? Kate acknowledges that because of her decision to move to administration before advancing to full professor her trajectory has a ceiling. She does not plan to work toward full professorship in order to advance. One way she said she could circumvent this ceiling is to seek out opportunities at teaching comprehensive institutions or other types of institutions where research is not the focus. 118 Commodore University dean, Tracy, was ?satisfied? in her program director role prior to earning her terminal degree. She ?very quickly figured out that without a PhD there was only so far you were gonna be able to go.? She realized to push past the ceiling placed upon her she had to get a doctorate. After Tracy received her PhD and became a professor, she wanted to accept an administrative role. She felt it was a ?perfect fit.? Tracy thought she was better suited for administration than faculty. She loved teaching and could handle service, but research was not her strength. However, she received counsel from her peers and mentors who attempted to discourage her from accepting the role. Tracy said she heard: Okay. But you?re on the tenure track. You?re in your year four. This could kill your career. Right? If you don?t get tenure, this will derail you,? and I?m like, ?Well, tenure was never the thing that I was really chasing.? For me, it was like I was more ? I wasn?t chasing tenure. And I probably was a middle of the road faculty member. My teaching was great. I did good service but the research stuff; I had to keep working at it. It was like the area I had to work hardest in. She did not see the extra responsibility of administration as a hindrance to receiving tenure because she was not as interested in tenure. Regardless of her interests, she eventually did receive tenure and was later promoted to full professor, then transitioned to her current institution. Faculty rank appeared to be an important factor particularly in transitioning to department chair. While a faculty member is not required to attain full professor status to accept the role, the administrative demands of the department chair job can make it 119 difficult to continue to do the work that would be necessary to be promoted from associate to full professor. Danielle described the responsibilities of a chair as ?on the fence? and ?on both sides;? in many cases chairs are still teaching faculty, but they also manage budgets, review faculty requests, and attend faculty and administrative meetings. These types of tasks can disrupt the work necessary to achieve promotion. However, if a person waits until they reach full professor status, they do not have the added burden of preparing for promotion in addition to administrative tasks that can prohibit their scholarly work. Danielle, Caitlin, and Courtney explain why it is beneficial to become a full professor prior to assuming a chairship. Danielle shared: I would not have taken even a department chair position if I had not been a full professor. I think it?s more important for us as women and as Black women to have achieved that status before thinking about going into an administrative role for a lot of reasons. Her statement introduced race and gender into her rationale. She alluded to the different expectations and requirements women, and Black women in particular, should achieve prior to moving to administration in comparison to their male and white counterparts. Danielle elaborated on this idea and went on to say: First of all, everyone?s challenging you anyway and thinking that ? questioning your authority and, if you?re not a full professor, then they?re really gonna ? you?ll get it even more. So, it?s important to at least have that and you?re done. 120 Danielle pointed out that Black women in academic administrative positions are broadly challenged by others, but when specifically challenged by faculty, it helps to have attained full professor status since that is the top of the faculty hierarchy. Caitlin also received full professor prior to becoming chair, and she was approached by her peers about assuming the role. She accepted the position without a full understanding of the responsibilities, but she was confident she could handle it. Caitlin said she ?had learned enough to know I?m not gonna become an administrator until I get full.? It was her understanding that ?I?d heard that you can forget about it, if you?re trying to finish your research and do an administrative role.? Caitlin reasoned that she would not have time to conduct the research necessary to apply for promotion to full professor status if she had accepted an administrative position. Courtney, an associate professor, was forced to become chair by her peers who did not want the role themselves. She described her process as: Yeah, I was appointed Chair. It wasn?t my turn. Meaning there were people senior to me, like, full professor, and people who had been here longer than me who should have done it. But, the politics and the gender of it meant that I was picked, you know? Yeah, the people are difficult to get along with or ? have offended some of the upper administration in various ways. So, administration didn?t want those people to be Chair. Courtney believed it was more appropriate for her full professor colleagues to serve as chair, but she accepted the role due to the political pressure from senior administrators who did not care for the personalities of her peers and because it was 121 assumed that as a woman she would be expected to perform more service in the academy. Courtney stated that she has ?good daughter syndrome,? which she described as her desire to make her parents proud and to not disappoint them. However, in this example, her parents would be the full professor colleagues pushing her to become chair. She does not want to do it, but her identity as a Black women with a penchant to serve and do what she is told put her in a positon she did not want. She is still able to publish books and maintain her research agenda; however, it is far more difficult than it was prior to becoming a chair, particularly given her responsibilities in her other department as she has a dual faculty appointment. Black Women as Administrators Participants were asked four questions pertaining to how their identities as Black women appears in their positions as administrators. The questions consisted of queries about interactions with faculty and other administrators, how they interrupt or resist racist and gender stereotypes, and how their identities materialize in their work. The themes from the respondents? answers included tokenism, how they perceive themselves in the role and how others view them. The tokenism theme permeated multiple sections in the findings, this section highlights a few additional instances. Cora noted that there are times where she is called upon to troubleshoot a situation because she is Black: It's taken me a while to feel supported, and I do recognize that there are certain things I get called on to do because I'm the black ? well, there's two black deans. I'm a black woman dean. There's some things that I don't get called on to do, and 122 it's hard sometimes to discern whether it's because this other person has this expertise and it's not my expertise, and if they see expertise beyond how much ? I mean, you're just always aware of that, you're always aware, and you ? now, I am happy to say that I have other colleagues who will make the case, other deans who are not African American, who will make the case about race and equity and gender and some of those other issues, but the other black dean and I who did not know each other when we started, have become close and allies over the years because we're the two black people. Cora described the difficulty of determining if she is asked to handle problems because of her skills or because of her identity, or if she is not sought out in certain situations due to her identity. She has colleagues who are able to help address diversity- driven needs as workplace allies. However, Cora and other other Black dean, who is male, have become close since they were both relied upon heavily to serve as the go-to administrators for racial issues. The friendship of the two Black deans was a pleasant unintended consequence of tokenization. Caitlin described a similar sentiment of not knowing if she was selected for tasks or committees because of her race, gender, or skills. She said: some of the expectations for me to be the voice for ? and especially in terms of race, but also in terms of gender, and also, it was hard to know of which one was it, so the idea that persists about different committees and groups and wanting, you know, quote-unquote ?diversity? on those groups, I would be called upon, and what I believe happened is that initially that might be the intention, and then 123 once I became part of any of these endeavors, they also learned that I?m really good at what I do, and I?m personable, and um, people like being in my company, but also I bring some of what Patricia Hill Collins describes about how many black women are socialized ? recognize not all of us, right, and it?s not just the domain of black women, and yet, that notion of the ethic of caring, the ideas of collaboration, etc. While Caitlin was unsure if her colleagues saw her identity before her skills, she decided that if it were the case she would make sure they now knew she was capable and personable. She also explained that some Black women, such as herself, were socialized to she is a product of the ethic of caring. The ethic of caring states that Black women can gain a sense of validation through expression and empathy, which can explain why Caitlin was good at dealing with personnel matters. Felicity had to contend with the added identity of age when considering if she was asked to assume certain service responsibilities. She stated: I think I do surprise people because I think I am relatively young for a dean, but I also do look young. And so, I think that works to my advantage because people are curious and when you?re curious about something, you want to learn more about it. And so, I think people have engaged me or wanted to learn more about me because I so don?t fit the profile of what a dean looks like, age, race or gender. And, what I had felt is if I demonstrate capability, then at the end of the day, those other factors become less relevant. People don?t expect me to be able to lead or 124 make tough decisions or do what a dean needs to do. And so, when I do those things, it?s like they?re surprised, and that surprise works to my advantage. Felicity thinks that as a Black woman who presents and is young that she does not look like the prototypical dean. She believes her appearance intrigues and attracts people to her, even though her colleagues may not expect her to be able to lead or make difficult decisions. Felicity leverages their doubt and recognized that eventually her peers and faculty will see her capabilities rather than her appearance. Diana also mentioned age as a salient part of her identity, but in her instance it was driven more by the assumption that she is not taken seriously as she tried to acquire new skills. Diana is interested in gaining experience in fundraising because it will make her a more competitive candidate should she choose to pursue a presidency, or a more advanced administrative role. When she asked her superior about fundraising, she was told to focus on programming and not to worry about fundraising. Diana joined a private club seeking to gain entrance to wealthy donors who might help her learn the mechanics of fundraising. Instead of receiving assistance, Diana was sexually harassed. She said of the situation: I have to figure out if I think it?s worth the hassle. [long pause] I may be aging out of this problem anyway. It?ll be a different problem in terms of gender hostility. People thinking women have less capacity, less confidence. I?ll age into that group soon enough. Perhaps I?ll be able to handle that better. This one was kind of really a kick in the chest. Because I feel like I?ve achieved a lot, and to still be considered the aging Kewpie doll is really hard. 125 Diana described how she is treated because of her looks. She is trying to determine how important it is to her to continue to seek out fundraising experience if she is not going to be treated as an equal. She noted the conundrum Black women, and women in general, can face as they age: getting older means others will see you as less capable and confident. One participant was aware that she was often one of a few Black women administrators on her campus, and that awareness came with a responsibility to bring more Black women into the administrative ranks. Danielle described herself as an ?anomaly? because her staff and colleagues ?never had anyone in the Provost?s office on the academic side of the house be a person of color.? She wanted use her influential position to support and assist in the recruitment of other Black women to become administrators. Danielle said, ?I just became totally immersed in the need for more people that look like me because I shouldn?t have to answer every question about being Black at a predominately White institution.? Danielle proactively found a solution to her issue with being tokenized by her institution to respond to racist incidents. She developed a program to identify and retain minoritized talent in administration. Cora was in a position to hire three associate deans. Two of the three new hires happened to be Black. Cora found an unlikely critic in her colleagues when it came to her hiring decisions: I hired three associate deans, two of whom were Black. But I know that while people would not pay any attention to the fact that the dean's office had a bunch 126 of white men in it if it was a white man, I knew that with all these Black people in the dean's office, people would pay attention to it?? but this is also one of the things you learn, we did some moving of people around or whatever and word got back to me that one of my black women colleagues was saying that I was preferencing Black people. She observed that office managed and staffed by white men is considered the norm and it not questioned. However, the presence of multiple Black staff led a Black female colleague to notice the optics and question the motives of Cora hiring Black employees, rather than assuming they were the most qualified. The system of white supremacy, which makes whiteness the norm, can be upheld by those who are not white. Finding ways to challenge an oppressive system like white supremacy can be a difficult task for the participants. Kate said when she walked in a room at work she felt as if people assumed she did not belong there. She said: And, that?s how I?d feel. Because, I?d be in a room full of older, white guys in gray suits. And, I started being rebellious, saying, ?Okay, well, since I look different, I?m gonna go in in a red suit, and be really different.? I?m not even gonna try to align with the gray room, with the gray hair, the gray suits. I?m gonna be bold. So, I had purple suits, I had red suits, I would, just, go in, and, just, embrace that difference. So, I have one of my theories that I used to talk about; still now, still believe in it. It?s called the ?mutual muse?. So, they were, clearly, using me. I served a function. I was their showcase for diversity. 127 Kate believed she stood out when she walked in white spaces where everyone appeared similar. She realized that she could not change her appearance based on race and gender, but what she could do was change her narrative. If she was going to look different, then she was going to do it on her own terms by wearing bold colors and diversifying the aesthetic. Moving Forward When respondents were queried about their thoughts on advancement, the majority were not interested in a promotion to the next level. Table 5.2 illustrates the next steps for each participant. Although ten are in the traditional presidential pipeline, only one (Tracy) participant desires a presidency and one would consider a presidency (Lynn). Three want to return to the faculty after they complete their current roles (Courtney, Tamara, Darlene), four plan to retire (Caitlin, Cora, Madison, Megan), or move out of academia into something else, such as consulting (Danielle). Five are undecided about their next steps (Daphne, Diana, Felicity, Kate, Sabrina). A lack of interest in advancement was due to a dissatisfaction in their current role, indifference toward the next promotional level, disinterest in being tokenized by more senior administrators, longing to return to a position that better suits their skills, the presence of children, or life stage/age. There were a variety of reasons why participants may not want to pursue a presidency. Table 5.2 Future Plans 128 Plan to pursue Open to Retirement Return to Out of Undecided a presidency pursuing a faculty academia presidency Caitlin x Cora x Courtney x Danielle x Daphne x Darlene x Diana x Felicity x Kate x Lynn x Madison x Megan x Sabrina x Tamara x Tracy x Courtney plans to return to her faculty post even though she thinks she is ?being groomed to be ? to go further in administration, but I?m not interested in it.? She does not want to pursue the next administrative role past her chairship, even though she understands she has the backing from her university to do so. Courtney expressed that her institution would like to have more diversity in their administrative ranks, but she did not want to be tokenized and serve as the diverse face without the university actively working to make themselves more inclusive. Darlene was satisfied with her current role but is more interested in returning to the faculty than advancing within administration. She declared her stance as, ?I'm happy doing what I'm doing . . . I think I'm being treated well, there's nothing I need to change. . . I'll probably do another term and probably call it good. I didn't necessarily set out to do academic administration, and I don't know that I'll continue to be an administrator. Being a faculty member is a fantastic job.? Darlene was a 129 happy faculty member who did not plan to become an administrator, and therefore she plans to return to her faculty role. For some participants, advancement meant accepting a role that required more time and energy than they wanted to give, or kept them further removed from the constituents they prefer to impact. Kate thought she wanted to become a president earlier in her career, but now she is unsure. She questioned: ?What do I want to do, in 15 years? Do I want to be a president? Do I want a job that is 24/7? And, the answer used to be, ?Yes!? And, the answer is, now, ?I don?t know.?? Kate said she needed flexibility in her job because she has to take care of her son and mother. She illustrated the idea that to be effective as a president, a person has to readily available at all times. She noted that: ?the job is big enough, that there?s, just, not enough time. Because, if you are being effective at networking, you?re probably going to breakfast meetings, and dinner meetings, most days of the week. And, having weekend activities in the community, or on-campus, with the student groups. And, at some point, you have to do all your personal stuff. And so, it?s a 24/7 job. Kate was not interested in pursuing a position that required more time and was all consuming. Tamara explained why a provost position, the next administrative step, was not in her future: I think it?s important to know your level of competence. I can hold onto all the pieces as a dean. A provost has much more to hold onto because you now have to know things about stuff you know nothing about. 130 Tamara is confident and comfortable that she understands her current role as dean of her school. However, as provost, a person is expected to have knowledge of multiple colleges, schools, and disciplines. That is not something Tamara wants to do. She used the example of her current provost, who is a cell biologist by trade, but had to learn ?all the humanities? and ?a good bit of the social sciences.? Tamara is at a point in her life and career where she does not want to expend energy to acquire that type of additional information. Cora expressed a similar sentiment when asked about advancement: I don't want to be a provost. I like being a dean, I like being a dean because I'm close enough to faculty. I'm already kind of more removed from students than I would like to be, but I'm close enough to faculty and what's going on on the ground, and the academic enterprise that ? I enjoy that. I don't want to be a provost ? now, it's true ? I mean, one of the things I like about being a dean, is being able to make things happen and have an impact and kind of facilitate some of the things that people are trying to do, and certainly you can do that at the level of provost, but you're just a lot more removed. Cora enjoys the challenges and influence she has as a dean. Although as a provost she would have more authority, she would also have more degrees of separation from the constituents she prefers to work with. For Cora and Tamara, their current roles are a better match for their skills than the next step in the presidential pipeline. Danielle is not considering subsequent administrative roles, but did describe what her next role should entail. 131 I?m not thinking about a provost position or a president?s position. I don't know if I want to be ? My next step will be to be in a center or ? I want to get back to the research. So, it would be nice to work in a place where I could write and do research, so a nonprofit or someplace where I could be creative and not necessarily have to be bombarded with the administrative stuff. Between administrative work, service, and scholarship, Danielle has prioritized research as the focus for her next post. Participants who expressed uncertainty in their future roles were more likely to describe the characteristics the next role should have. Diana is open to opportunities and taking advantage of them as they?ve appeared. I am entering a period now where I am sort of taking a deep breath and sort of thinking about how I want to shape opportunities to address my needs, my goals [her emphasis]. She has not thought deeply about what she would like to do after her current role, but she does know that whatever position she takes has to align with her personal goals. Daphne ?loves being a dean,? but said the following when considering a promotion: If it was the right school at the right time I would think about it, but I think you know it?s one of those things like the constellation has to come together in terms of, for me what?s the city like or place like? Is it diverse? Is it interesting? Do I see myself here as a good place for my family, which those are sort of huge foundational questions. And then also, what?s the type of support there? What are the expectations? 132 There is a list of personal, professional, and environmental variables that have to line up before Daphne would contemplate accepting a promotion or another leadership position at a different institution. Felicity knows she is equipped to become a provost or president, but also thinks those same desirable skills could open other doors as well. She declared: I never expected to be a dean first of all. So, I didn?t think that I would be here so it?s hard for me to imagine what?s next. But, what has become clear is that I?m clearly on a trajectory that is preparing me to be a college or university president. But, I think I?ve also learned and developed some skill sets here that might prepare me to do a number of other things as well. So, it?s hard for me to say yes I?m going to be here and strive to be a provost or a president one day when there are lots of things that now I could do [within her industry]. It was difficult for Felicity to think about future roles because she did not imagine she would ascend to the position of dean. Instead of thinking about specific positions, she is assessing her transferable skills and how they can lead to a broader range of opportunities. Respondents who were closer to retirement age were less likely to entertain a promotion. Madison is sure that her next step will be retirement. After her husband died, Madison was no longer interested in becoming a Governor?s Professor. The significance of that status became less important without her partner, and at the time when she developed that aspiration, her priorities were more focused on her children than career. Now her priorities are herself, and she shares, 133 What I do know is that, I think I?ve earned the opportunity to call the shots for me, without interference from my children or the university . . . I?ve been doing stuff for them and the university seems all my adult life.? Madison gave her full self to her children and her career for decades. She is ready to make decisions for the benefit of herself, alone. She mused that she has done enough for others, she is not complaining, but merely stating that she earned the right to take care of herself. Caitlin plans to retire, but is also open to opportunities. When reflecting on how she was often tapped to assume positions because a senior administrator ?saw something in her? and she may have wanted to collaborate with them, so it became a ?mutual fit? to accept a position working for someone she admired. Caitlin said a mutual fit would be the only way she would consider a promotion rather than retiring. Megan?s decision to retire after her current term is different than the other participants because she was already retired and is serving in an interim appointment. The outliers in this study were those who wanted or would be open to becoming a college president. When Tracy realized she wanted to become a president, she actively pursued positions along the traditional pipeline. She illustrated her thought process by stating: So when I sort of accepted that as a goal for myself, then the rest of the jobs kinda followed suit because it?s like, ?Okay. If you wanna be a president, then you probably need to either be a department chair, become a dean, maybe be a provost, et cetera.? . . . a lot of deans have gone straight to presidencies, deans of 134 [STEM]. Because the dean?s job is more externally focused, like fundraising, working with constituents. So I can see some similarities between president and dean and why a [dean in her field] would be attractive because [STEM] is one of the fields that does raise a lot of money. Tracy observed that in her field, it is possible to bypass the provost step and ascend directly to a presidential post. Particularly since her discipline is one of the more lucrative schools on campus and presidents are highly fundraising driven. Lynn was not sure if she planned to pursue the presidency, but was clear that her skills and experience were better suited to that more than a provost. She said: ?everybody has a particular skill set, and ? the provost position has to deal with the minutia. It has to deal with the colleges and school budgets, has to deal with curriculum, has to deal with faculty governance, has to deal with all of these aspects which I do not love.?to be quite honest with you, the things that I like doing are more aligned to what a president of a university does. I wouldn?t take that off the table in the future, but definitely not provost. Similar to Tracy, Lynn thought the dean position was more externally focused and fundraising-centered than the provost role, which is more internal by nature. Therefore, they both thought their experience better prepared them for a presidency than provost as a next step. The Role of Children in Career Decision-making and Progression Respondents frequently shared the presence of young children as one important factor in their consideration of accepting an administrative position in the future. Eleven 135 of the participants in this study are mothers, and they were mindful of the disruptive effects a physical move or career change could have on school age children. It was important to each mother that a new position made sense with their lives and maintained their priorities as mothers. Diana credits her daughter with keeping her focused on what was important to her before she considered any career moves, saying, ?she?s six, but I think she?s critical in the sense of getting me to really focus on my values.? Darlene and Felicity both discussed how their children shaped their career progression and whether pursuing opportunities at other institutions made sense for their situations. Darlene noted that while she is satisfied in her current position, she would not consider a role that required her to move because she would not want to uproot her high school-aged children. For Felicity to consider another position at a different institution, it would have to include the level of comfort she and her children currently experience. She has young children who attend school five minutes away from her university. This convenience allows her the opportunity to have her children walk to her office after school. Felicity also brings her children on work trips, she shares: Occasionally, when I have to travel, if it works with their schedule, I might take a kid with me so they know I?m going to give a talk. So, when I?m not with you, here?s what I?m doing. And so, they might come to California with me and sit in the back of the room while I?m giving a talk to someone or some group. So, they get it because I involve them in my work. The ability to include her children on work trips is particularly important to her since she does not live in the same city as her husband to help with child care. 136 Children who were young adults also could influence participants? decision- making. Madison?s three children were all over 18 years old. She was considering accepting an offer for an administrative position on the east coast to escape the hostile work environment at her current university. One of her children had difficulties managing his mental illness while in graduate school. Madison did not think it was in her best interest to move across the country, which would leave her child alone. She made the decision to remain at her institution and decline the east coast administrative position. Two participants, Megan and Cora, had grandchildren, which was a consideration when participants were considering retiring or moving. Megan accepted her current provost position to fulfil a professional goal of reaching a senior level position at an R1 institution. She is now looking forward to the end of her term so she can move closer to her grandchildren. She would not serve another term as provost, nor would she pursue a presidential position. She said: I feel obligated to teach them about their roots, to teach them about the Black experience, to make them both sensitive to their history, but strong enough to know they can do anything they want, not particularly obvious, you might imagine, as young African American males, I want to make sure that they understand the biases and the systematic issues, but I don?t want them wearing it into their sleeves, I don?t want them going around ? thinking that every nonblack person is an enemy, as much as I don?t want them to fall asleep, thanks to them, thinking that Black person is different. So, anyway, that?s my ? I got to get home and get busy. 137 Megan wants to be instrumental in the upbringing of her grandsons and share her values with them. She does not want to be time zones away from her family anymore. Cora cites her grandchildren as keeping her ?centered? and that is why she makes it a ?priority to see them grow up.? She would not accept a future position that kept her away from her grandchildren. For Cora and Megan, their grandchildren shaped how they saw their future career opportunities and how flexible or inflexible they would be regarding another change in location. Transitioning from Faculty to Administration Respondents had to contend with an anticipated shift in their responsibilities from faculty to administration, but also a shift in their identities when they became administrators. The women described the difference in treatment they experienced from colleagues after the transition to administration and how their transition fit into their larger career goals. This section begins by discussing the perceptions of the department chair role?an important transitional position into administration. Next, the individuals explain how they learned the rules of or received training for their new roles. Then participants share how service continues to remain a significant portion of their work. Squeeze Position The first step into administration for ten of the interviewees (Caitlin, Cora, Courtney, Danielle, Daphne, Darlene, Lynn, Madison, Megan, and Tamara) was department chair. Participants said department chairs were uniquely positioned, straddling the fence between faculty and administration. Cora reflected on her views on the department head/chair position: 138 A department head is probably one of the toughest jobs in the university because their faculty sees them as working for them. And the administration sees them as working to carry out and make sure the administrative expectations and demands are met, so they're kind of in a squeeze position. This straddling between two very different and conflicting worlds created a ?squeeze? position, which occurs when the department chair has to uphold the standards of the administration while simultaneously balancing the expectations from faculty. Participants noted that this was particularly difficult because in many cases they still identified as faculty, even though they now had administrative power. When Danielle transitioned to the department chair, her dissertation chair and mentor was the first to tell her she was ?going to the dark side.? The ?dark side? is a common euphemism because the faculty-turned-administrator is now responsible for making demands of their former faculty colleagues. Danielle said, ?When I was a department chair, I still felt like I was faculty. I mean I was teaching.? She still identified as faculty because she had faculty responsibilities but her role as chair is administrative, therefore her job did not fully align with who she felt like she was (faculty). Although Caitlin described the role as undervalued and unappreciated, the power of the role that appealed to her: I also appreciated the power that I could have. Even though department chair is one of the most thankless roles, because you?re really sandwiched between these people up here and these people here, and these people here ? that still for me was intriguing, as someone who studies organizational communication, and one ? as 139 one who?s interested in power dynamics and so forth, as one who?s interested in, wherever you are, what kind of change can you effect. Caitlin explained her interest in the political power she could have as department chair, even though the appointment is in perpetual limbo trying to serve two entities: faculty and administration. Limited Training for Administrative Responsibilities One issue identified by multiple participants is department chairs receive little-to- no training, and many did not know what to expect when they took on the role. Most training was on the job, or ?baptism by fire? as Diana called it. The shift was a challenge for some participants who were used to complete or nearly complete autonomy as faculty. For example, turning over one?s calendar to an assistant to manage was particularly difficult for Cora: ...you have to give up your calendar, you have to give it to your administrative assistant, and you have to physically give it up and you have to know that you're giving up control over your time because as a faculty member you have control over your time to a large extent. Cora explained she was used to more freedom with her schedule, which she took pleasure in as faculty. Kate also described how it was a ?big transition? to go from ?having the complete freedom of faculty to punching a clock,? figuratively speaking. Meetings Aside from scheduling control and freedom, understanding which meetings were important to attend and how to prepare properly for them was not necessarily intuitive. 140 Courtney discussed how she had to ?figure out when the meetings are and what you're supposed to do in the meetings.? She described a situation where her school had annual meetings and each chair was supposed to present their needs for the upcoming year. Courtney ?was asked to do a presentation on what [discipline] is doing next year and what our budget request is, and I was like I had no idea you were going to ask me this, I haven't done the budget request, I don't know what you're talking about.? She was expected to attend and present the needs of her department, but no one told her what to have prepared or the significance of the annual meeting. Kate learned to have ?pre- meetings before the real meetings? which served as the ?real meetings? where pressing issues were negotiated. She said: what I didn?t realize ? and, you can?t always know this, from watching the dynamics in the room ? is that, most of the decisions are made before you walk into a big meeting. And so, if you want your agenda to happen, you need to have pre-meetings, so that you get everyone on board. Kate was fortunate to have a mentor inform her about the importance of pre- meetings, which allowed her colleagues to have their questions answered prior to the actual meeting. This was a consideration she was not aware of until her mentor told her. Management and Relationships Another issue identified by participants was managing staffing issues and balancing the politics of the program/department/college/school, which could be difficult because their peers might not respect them in their new roles. Courtney described the difficulty of managing a challenging colleague: 141 I have one colleague that loves conflict, and when I wasn't chair, that person didn't have to come to me with requests or demands, but now that I'm chair, that person is coming to me with all of these demands that are just ridiculous, and that has changed our relationship because it's like you can't do that. You're doing all these things that you can't do, like the rules apply to you and because I'm chair, I have to remind you of that. In this instance, Courtney knew her colleague enjoyed conflict. And as peers, she did not have to deal with managing her colleague?s expectations. As chair, Courtney is in a position of authority and has to engage with her former peers differently. She has to hold them accountable for their actions. Danielle had a similar situation when she reflected on her altered relationships with her peers. So, when you?re in a position of having to talk budgets and make big decisions and trying to make decisions that affect your colleagues, yes it?s very difficult and dealing with difficult people. I didn?t realize how difficult some of my colleagues were until I was a department chair. So, as a result of some of the tension that came out of some of those decisions, yes the relationship changes and people start to see you in a very different way. Danielle saw new facets of her colleagues? personalities once she became chair. This illustrates how authority can reshape leaders? perspectives of their colleagues. Danielle also understood her role, the power it held, and how this power forced her colleagues to see her differently. 142 Those who became chair or dean at an institution where they ?grew up,? or had previously been a faculty member, had to find ways to redefine their relationships and cope with isolation. Felicity found that her friendships with her colleagues are a ?bit more challenging? as dean because ?relationships are different when you?re the boss.? Darlene stated that when she sees her former colleagues, for many she was their junior colleague, they will joke, ?well, she's my boss,? which is not really true, but being a dean or administrator, it's like herding cats. Faculty do what faculty are going to do. I think that's the biggest thing is that I'm not sitting in the group of faculty that I used to sit with, and I miss that, but I don't sit with them, so I just don't see them as often. Felicity and Darlene had to approach their relationships with faculty differently because they now ?supervised? their former colleagues who might remember them as junior faculty Cultivating buy-in from peers and new subordinates was important to the participants, but it was not always easy to achieve. Sabrina did not have the support of her colleagues during her first transition to administration. In the past, with my first move into administration, my colleagues did not treat me very well. They did not think I was necessarily deserving of the position. They saw me as a servant, not as leader but as someone who was there to serve them. So they did not see me as having any type of authority. When asked why her colleagues judged her in that manner, Sabrina opined: 143 Gender and race and youth. More gender than anything though. I can only say that because I now see someone else who is of the same race who?s in the position I was in. And they?re treated differently and they happen to be male. Sabrina illustrated how the perception of her three intersecting identities influenced how her colleagues treated her in her new administrative role. As a Black, young, woman, Sabrina?s colleagues saw her as a servant more than a leader, and they did not deem her worthy of the role. Black women in administrative roles often challenge culturally accepted ideas of who is a leader and who deserves respect (Ortega-Liston & Rodriguez Soto, 2014; Pittman, 2010). Daphne voiced her thoughts on how Black women have to prove they deserve their roles in ways others do not: ?when it?s like no one assumes you?re the dean you understand that you?re managing a lot more than just being the dean. I just think that?s a toolkit that women and people of color develop in terms of how we have put people at ease, have to assure people that we are credentialed ? because they ask ? and we often have to talk their talk. Daphne shared how women and minoritized persons in positions of authority have to learn how to perform in a way that placates and mimics white men. She has to know the responsibilities of her position, be prepared to defend her credentials, and codeswitch to ensure she is heard. Training and Mentoring Seeking help is paramount to the success of becoming a successful administrator. Peer mentoring was one form of assistance participants used to receive counsel in their 144 new roles. Danielle said, ?we [Danielle and another Black female colleague] did a lot of peer mentoring. We mentored each other and just kind of shared information." Her colleague was an administrator prior to serving as faculty, so she had access to information about the university that Danielle did not. Danielle was also able to provide helpful information to her colleague and said: So, I consider myself very fortunate to have had that [Black female colleague peer mentor]. So, for that reason, it?s just important to do the mentoring? to give back to do this because I don?t think you can make it in higher ed at very rigorous research R1 institutions without someone telling you what the expectations are and guiding you. You have to have some type of social capital to make it through. Danielle benefitted from having a peer to lean on for guidance and understood that everyone was not as lucky. Lynn turned to her network of Black women who were good friends and also administrators for help because she realized ?just because someone is a phenomenal teacher and a really good faculty member, does not make them a good administrator.? She asked her friends how they made the transition effectively and they mentioned a training through a professional organization. Lynn acknowledged that without her network she would not have known about and attended the training opportunity, and consequently may not have been as successful as an administrator. Tamara also described her peer mentoring group: And these are Black women I?m thinking of ? two in particular just in the last two weeks. ? both will be deans, actually: academic deans of sorts in their respective institutions. And neither one of them had seen themselves in that role until 145 recently. So, there?s a growing network. I?m very clear that I don?t do this by myself ? have not done it by myself, won?t do it by myself, and can?t do it by myself; that I need a very good constructive network around me. Tamara asserted that her ?growing network? of friends lift each other up and support each other as they reach their respective positions as dean. Danielle, Lynn, and Tamara all had peer mentoring networks consisting of Black women administrators. While some participants described their experiences with peer mentors, others had more traditional mentors and spoke favorably of them. Darlene described the significance of her mentors during her career trajectory and assistance in her current role as dean: I have been fortunate to have fabulous mentors all along the way, and I think that ? I am not someone who believes that I did it all by myself, and that I pulled myself up by my bootstraps. ?what draws me to them is that they're willing to be supportive of me, and they're generally nice, generous people who I can go to, and who I trust who give good advice who I feel have got my back. Darlene has a network of mentors who protect her and have her best interest in mind. She acknowledges that she would not be where she is today without them, and without their support she would not be as successful as she is in her position. Caitlin found a training specifically for department chairs through her professional organization and attended to gain a better understanding of the role. Caitlin sought advice from others and did not receive the information she needed, so she found an opportunity for enrichment on her own. Her department chair training taught her how to manage with empathy, and in addition she attended an emerging leaders program 146 where she learned how to be an effective leader and not a manager. Caitlin was also invited to participate in a residential leadership development program for women who aspired to become chancellors, presidents, and other senior administrators. The participants who had careers, such as Megan, Caitlin, and Tracy, before academia discussed how their occupations propelled them into higher education. The practice-oriented side of their careers provided them with valuable transferable skills that helped them as faculty and even more so as administrators. Whereas the participants who began their professional lives as faculty, like Madison, Danielle, and Sabrina had to learn personnel and fiscal management as administrators, the women who were practitioners first gained some of those skills outside of academia. However, they still had to learn how to navigate the structure of their universities through trial and error. Isolation and Identity The department chair level of management often led to isolation, and the isolation only gets more pronounced as they advance. For example, Diana described administration as ?profoundly isolating.? Visiting another institution where she could discuss her research and ideas reminded her of what she gave up to be an administrator at her home institution ?in order to make some progress on the diversity front in terms of changing the culture.? In her mind, she had to give up the aspects of faculty life that she enjoyed to become an administrator who colleagues did not want to speak to because she wanted to challenge the university?s traditional culture and push a diversity agenda forward. Danielle echoed Diana?s sentiments: 147 . . . at each level it got lonelier and lonelier because I?d started looking around and I was the only Black. Well, when I became a department chair, I was the only Black department chair. There was another woman that was a department chair, but it was just two of us. Danielle described an isolation caused by the lack of presence of other Black women, as opposed to Diana who experienced isolation caused by the nature of her position. Both encountered isolation as faculty and as administrators, but the isolation manifested itself differently as they advanced and acquired more power. Kate explained how she found herself in a ?self-imposed? isolation at work. She did not think she was aligned or engaged with her department and institution. She confronted her feelings and looked inward for a solution: ?You have to step back and evaluate, and, understand, what is the source of the isolation. So, is the isolation self- imposed, because there?s something going on with you that you?re not paying attention to, and, you?re, slowly, shutting down?? Kate was frustrated with her position at her last institution. She did not realize she started to look and act withdrawn until a colleague pointed it out to her. Kate became introspective and took inventory of her actions. Once she realized her position was upsetting her to the extent that she looked physically unhappy, she knew it was time to move to another institution. Kate?s isolation was due to her displeasure in her position rather than the faculty position itself. Lynn discussed how isolation affected her as she could not share sensitive information with her former colleagues. She noted, ?for confidentiality reasons, you can?t 148 discuss some things. And it does put distance between you and your peers that you are now supervising.? Lynn?s isolation was caused by the shift in how she had to interact with her colleagues. Madison concluded the distance could be interpreted as a form of deference and dislike: It?s a kind of distance. And it?s a distance born of, I?m not sure what. I just sometimes project things onto the distance ? seems like deference. Seems like dislike, they don?t like administrators, you know, like that. Madison shared how the professional distance from faculty she had to uphold as an administrator reflects on the idea that faculty do not see administrators as one of them. Tracy defined her isolation as a result of being an administrator rather than her race and/or gender. She said, ?I don't know if it?s because I?m a Black woman or not. The isolation, I think I feel is because I?m an administrator.? She said as dean and ?the boss,? it can be hard for people to separate her from ?Dean [last name] and simply Tracy.? Service Faculty and administrators engage in service differently. Service as administrators includes the charge to represent the university. The data showed that the participants were expected to complete additional administrative service that was both racialized and gendered. Daphne described how some of her service is unrelated to her role as dean of her school, but she is asked to assume certain tasks because she is a Black woman, and was frustrated that her white and male peers did not have to serve in the same capacity. 149 . . .the service dynamic also manifests because sometimes the university leadership asks you to do things that are not in your job description. I know there are ways in which, no doubt me and my colleague who I mentioned earlier and whom I adore, have been asked to take on things or to be involved in things or to review things or to draft things, do you know what I mean, that the previous deans as sort of majority or senior people were not asked to do. This type of service can slow career advancement and is time-consuming. Courtney noted her experience with extra service as a chair. So, in terms of me progressing that kind of service stuff, it is an obstacle in the sense that it just takes up time that I would want to devote to self care or writing or research, all of those kinds of things. So, those kinds of demands become ? I guess they're in the way. I mean, if the Black students could be validated and healthy on this campus, that would change, but I'm not trying to move the students out of my way when they need help, in order for me to have two more hours to work on my stuff. But it's natural for me to help, I suppose, but mothering is something I've opted out of in my personal life, but I guess I end up doing a lot of that kind of helping here. As an associate professor, Courtney understands that for the sake of her career and health, she needs time to write, research, and take care of herself. However, she also remarked how her university does not meet the needs of Black students and she steps in the gap to support them. She finds herself in the role of surrogate mother to Black students, even if she did not plan to become a mother in her personal life. 150 This type of service was different than what their other administrator peers were doing in that it was more time consuming and personal. Danielle illustrated how women are expected to serve. There?s this perception that men can lead, right? Then women, we tend to think that we have to look after everyone. So, we do all of the service type of activities. We take on and then at home for our own families we feel like we have to be there for everyone at home. The gendered idea that women are compelled to take care of those around them extends to the workplace and home.These additional service activities, though fulfilling, can be prohibitive and stressful. This is particularly difficult for those who sit at the intersection of race and gender, like Black women, who are expected to carry a heavier load than their peers. Darlene, social science dean at Queens University, was unbothered by the additional demands. Darlene acknowledged that her university seeks her input on racially charged crises or events in her administrative capacity, but she does not see it as service above and beyond what is expected of her. Instead, she views it as she has a unique set of skills and perspectives she brings to her role: ?let's face it, we did have better insight into what was going on with these kids, so why not use it. I think that's part of the beauty of it, and why we need Blacks and Asians and gays and conservatives at the upper levels, is so that those voices, especially for the students and other people, can be heard and have some empathy, right, isn't that the whole point? ...if the deans were all white men and 151 they were trying to craft a statement, we all would have said, well, that was kind of insensitive, right? I mean, you can?t have it both ways. So, don?t get me wrong that I don?t think there?s discrimination or that I don?t think that we have to be ten times better than everybody else, but these are just hard jobs, and we all bring something unique. That?s part of what we want to bring to it is the racial sensitivity, and that?s just part of the package. Darlene understands and supports senior administrators seeking her out for her racial and gendered expertise when situations arise and does not see it as extra work or taxing. Support Systems The decision to pursue these administrative roles are not made in a vacuum, they are determined collaboratively with and in consideration of their close networks. Megan considered her grandchildren when she thought about her next move. When Danielle accepted her current position as Dean at Glory State, she discussed the relocation with her husband and children. Daphne made a statement regarding ?communities of caring? that echoed the sentiments of other participants as they recounted their support systems: ?you have to get the buy-in of whoever that community of caring is and those who are closest to you. It?s because the work is, one, demanding; but two, it doesn?t really have time limits.? This section will explore how the participants define and experience their support systems. Building a personal and professional community with people who share identities and histories can help mitigate the stressors in academia that Black women are 152 particularly sensitive to such as isolation, racism, sexism, hypervisibility, and invisibility (ACE, 2018). Support systems can provide an outlet to vent, space for honest feedback, fun, relaxation, and a plethora of other beneficial activities. Who comprises these support systems can vary from person to person. They can include partners, children, parents, friends, and colleagues. Partners were cited as the most central supportive figures who provided helpful support, friends and peers were able to provide the most position- relevant and socioemotional support, their own parents could serve as role models, and children were grounding forces. Partners Romantic partnerships repeatedly emerged as a primary source of support. Nine participants were married, one was widowed, one was divorced and remarried. Two participants did not share their relationship status and two were single. For the ten who were in committed relationships, partners could serve many supportive functions. Caitlin said her partner was a huge part of her support system because he ?allows me to be fully me?. She stated that: I made some interesting choices when I was younger, being straight, being a Black woman who really prefers Black men, ? and the notion of the proportion?of people kind of judging me more for ?Are you seeing anybody? Are you dating anybody?? rather than I?m achieving all these wonderful things. So I made some bad choices, and it wasn?t until much later in life that I met him, and decided at that point that ? you know, people said, ?Well, you?re going to intimidate people,? and 153 I just decided, ?What you see is what you get. This is who I am,? and I just decided to be that person, and he is just always supportive. As she described her experiences as a younger woman, Caitlin alluded to the pressures some women describe in finding a partner as they achieve professionally. Caitlin noted her perception that there are more eligible Black women than Black men, leading her to date men whose professional goals were divergent from hers nor shared her values. When Caitlin met her husband, he acknowledged and validated her in ways consistent with how she saw herself. Caitlin explained that her ?presence? and ?personality? are unforgettable, and some might say intimidating. Her husband accepting her as is means she does not have to alter who she is around him, whereas others attempted to dictate how she carried herself. Courtney?s husband encourages her independence and values her interests that do not include him. She recounted that: ?we respect each other's space, we love being together, and I have an office and he has an office at home. We respect that there are things that we need to do separately, and it's not about I need a break from you at all. Creativity is the cornerstone of Courtney?s discipline, so she said it is helpful that her partner understands and promotes her to have her own space. Her husband said she was a ?low maintenance wife,? and they have a great deal of respect for each other. She recounted that: 154 ?he would not want to be the one that keeps me back or say ?I don't want her to go, or if I'm not going, she's not going.? So, that's healthy and that's self care, like having a healthy relationship with someone that loves you. Similar to Caitlin, Courtney?s husband validated and valued the fullness of her personality. Participants with partners who also worked in academia described how they were supportive professionally, helping them navigate job offers and encouraging them to pursue higher positions. They shared a level of understanding about what administrative jobs required, what the university would expect, and how the moves to administration would affect their families. When Tamara was first approached to pursue her current deanship, she and her partner worked at different universities in different cities. Tamara recalled her partner encouraging her to accept the offer to interview in a city to which they would both be open to moving, by saying, ?Maybe you need to look at this? and ?you know, I?d like to see you every day.? During the interviews, the university allowed Tamara?s partner to participate to further illustrate their commitment to hiring her and her partner as a spousal hire. The provost conveyed to them that their university ?has no ocean and has no mountains, all we have is hospitality? so to ensure they can hire the most talented people, they supported her wife?s presence in the interview process. Tamara?s wife, as an academic, possessed an understanding of higher education dynamics. Her partner was trying to be protective of Tamara and ?had 20 questions? for the interviewer. partner?s first question was, ?Do you all know what you?re getting into with a Black lesbian who?s married in the South, the dean of the 155 [humanities]. How?s that gonna work?? Tamara?s partner saw an opportunity for them to live in the same city but also wanted to make sure it was a good fit for their family and that the university would support them as a couple. Cora?s former husband motivated her to obtain a terminal degree. He was an academic administrator while they were married and knew a doctorate was necessary for her to receive the level of credibility she desired. He said to her ?if you're going to be in higher education, you've got to get a Ph.D., don't just settle for a Master's degree.? Cora also benefitted from his capital and connections. She stated that ?I think the fact that he was an administrator when I started out as an assistant professor at [former university] was another thing that gave me access to people all over the campus and at all kinds of levels.? She credits his access with providing her with a more nuanced layer of understanding how the pieces of an institution come together. Cora had the benefit of understanding administration from an insider before she made the transition herself. And because she was already on the faculty, she knew how the academic and administrative arms could support each other rather than seeing the factions as adversaries as some do. Madison and Kate had partners who actively shared home responsibilities, so they could achieve in the workplace. Madison and her husband were both academics and they worked together to ensure they both reached the highest level of professor at their institution, which was a Governor?s Professor. They employed a division of labor strategy; they would alternate who would care for the children, freeing the other partner to place more energy into working on their research and publishing: 156 . . . what we do is ? one of us would take the kids while the other worked really, really, hard to make the next step, and then that person would take the kids, and so the other parent could work really, really, hard to make the major move. Madison?s husband did reach his goal of full professor and chair; however, he got ill and passed away before he could realize the ultimate goal of Governor?s Professor and then presidency. Madison also reached full professor, and then moved into administration. Kate and her partner also work together to share household duties to ensure they have time to focus on their careers. Kate and her husband split their tasks by skill and talent instead of dividing them equally. For example, she is the better cook, so her husband handles the grocery shopping and she will take a day to cook enough food for the week. Participants with spouses outside of academia also described how they could be helpful in their career development and choices. These partners provided helpful insights and tips for handling tough situations. Although Danielle?s husband does not work in academia, he still provided relevant counsel and tools she needed to succeed in her role. As Danielle explained: I talk to my husband a lot. So, he?s like my coach and he?s really good. So, he?s in finance and his world is much more cutthroat than ours. . . Now that I moved into administration, I can see some of the similarities. So, it feels more and more corporate as you get closer to the President?s position and so I see the similarities. So, I?ve had to lean on him to help me understand things sometimes with dynamics and what they mean, particularly with men and how to manage some of this. He also taught me how to negotiate. 157 Danielle noted that as she ascended closer to a presidency, academia began to mirror corporate environments. Her husband helped her process what she was experiencing and gave her tools to guide her through this new administrative landscape. He also served as a teacher by instructing her on how to negotiate, as ?negotiating a Dean?s position is very different from negotiating just a faculty position.? Similarly, despite being in a long- distance marriage that is ?80 percent of the time over the phone,? Felicity counts on her husband as an ?important sounding board.? She can debrief about the happenings of her day and he provides a safe space to speak freely. Partners could be career counselors and confidants, simultaneously. Parents The majority of participants described supportive parental relationships, with many participants highlighting their relationship with their mothers as highly significant. Those who had parents, particularly mothers, in academia or administration were particularly benefitted given that their advice came from their own past experiences. Tamara and Cora gained navigational and social capital through the early exposure to academia by their parents. Both of Tamara?s parents were professors and her aunt was a college administrator, but she credits her mother for having the largest influence on her career. Her mother was a biology professor, and she recalled the impact watching her mother teach had on her: When I was a little kid I would walk from my grade school to the biology building where my mother taught at [redacted university] and I would sit outside her 158 classroom and listen to her teach. She did not realize I did that until I was a full grown adult and told the story in a lecture that she was attending. Tamara?s mother had no idea that Tamara observed her teaching and how that influenced Tamara?s future career path. She thought her mother was a ?marvelous lecturer? and considered those observations to be the early formation of her own teaching style. Her mother and aunt still provide Tamara with a level of support that displays some understanding for what she experiences at work since they worked in higher education, even though they were in different disciplines. Like Tamara, Cora was also exposed to academia at an early age by her parents, but they were not academics. Cora attended a private laboratory school on one of the most prestigious campuses in the country. She realized that by attending that school she acquired a level of capital that she could draw upon as she progressed through her career. I also have had the privilege in my own life of operating in higher education settings for a long time. I did not realize until later in life that having gone there gave me a level of comfort in higher education that a lot of our people don't have. And so, even to some of the little silly references that people make to things, because I had gone to that school and grown up with kids who were professor's kids, my parents were not, I had some level of comfort in higher ed, and I think that has benefited me, and as I said, it's not something I really was that conscious of until more recently. Cora and Tamara?s exposure to university life as children influenced them in ways they did not realize until they were adults. The ability to understand academic jargon, navigate 159 physical campus landscapes, and to observe lectures as children are all experiences they can reflect on as administrators. Mothers who were not formally educated, including a range of no education past elementary school all the way to no college degree, were also highly valued for their insights and served as early role models. Caitlin?s mother ?doesn?t fully understand? all that she does in her role, ?but that is not as important as how she has always supported me.? Caitlin recalled being a highly inquisitive child and her mother encouraging her curiosities. For example, she noted that: ?when I was younger and really curious about religion, I just wanted to go to different places of worship. She never seemed to question any of that? and the kind of home environment she created of valuing reading and learning and music. Caitlin?s mother placed a high value on education and the acquisition of knowledge. Those values nurtured Caitlin?s investigative spirit, which continue to serve her well as an academic and administrator. Madison?s mother is a central and supportive figure, defining how Madison views herself and approaches her work. My mother could be around the house in the country with a rag on her head, or rows in her hair, canning and so forth, but when she left the house to go to the store, to church, to a meeting, whatever, she looked like a million bucks. Because she said people see you before they hear you. Madison said she is still teased by her friends because, like her mother, it is important to her to be well-dressed and put together before anyone saw her. She mentioned that she 160 could be seen on campus with her ?purse and parasol? and while some might say she does style herself to be impressive, Madison sees it as simply ?doing what mama taught me.? Her mother also told her that ?the dumbest person in the world can teach the smartest person something.? Madison holds on to that advice to remind her that everyone has some skills and experiences that are valuable to the position they hold. She manages her team by respecting each person?s humanity. Both Caitlin and Madison hold childhood lessons they learned from their mothers to shape and guide how they govern themselves professionally. Darlene, Tracy, and Megan described how their parents, with their aspirational capital, supported their academic quests and encouraged them to persist regardless of how the world might perceive them. Darlene?s mother ?has a couple of Master's degrees? and her father has a PhD. Although they are not in academia, Darlene credits them as providing her and her sister, who also teaches at the same institution, with the template to pursue advanced degrees and making sure they understood that their race was not an obstacle to their success. Both of Tracy?s parents had PhDs and grew up in the segregated south. They ?always instilled in [her], you can do and be anything you and there?s no limitations.? Although her parents were denied experiences due to their race and gender, they raised her to think that ?if something doesn?t happen for you, it doesn?t have to be about race and gender. It could be you weren?t the most qualified or you weren?t ready.? Her parents encouraged Tracy to look beyond the perceived obstacles of race and gender to see opportunities. 161 Megan shared how her maternal and paternal sides were very different, though they both placed a high value on education and humility. On her father?s side of the family, she is a fourth generation college graduate. Conversely, her maternal grandparents were domestics for a very rich, white family in New Jersey. Her grandparents had to make accommodations for their children because they were not allowed at work, so Megan?s mother attended a boarding school. This background shapes how she approaches her work: I do value, and I?m guided by wanting to be seen as a professional, who serves our discipline and our profession at the highest levels of excellence; that everything I do is try to make an institution, or an organization that I?m privileged to work with, better off than it was when I got there. I am what I call a servant leader. I am here to serve. Therefore, is not about me, it?s about how we can make things go. Megan?s background and close relationship with her family illustrates how she utilizes familial and navigational capital to shape her work persona. The juxtaposition of the two sides of her family (highly educated and domestics) influences how she views herself as a servant leader. Families and parents offered support that shaped how participants thought about themselves throughout their lives and the support translated into their work personas. Spouses and partners helped interviewees negotiate the day-to-day issues of daily life as an administrator. Sister Circles Black female friends were an integral part of participants? support systems. In this study, I call this group of friends/colleagues, sister circles or ?sister friends.? Danielle 162 shared, ?So, I?ve leaned on ? I call them my sister friends? heavily. I couldn?t make it without them.? Sister circles are groups of Black women who form close friendships with each other. Sister circles include other academics, women who hold similar roles at different institutions, friends from graduate school, and/or childhood friends. All participants valued their sister friends and tended to use terms such as ?brilliant? or ?so smart? to describe the women within them. Some activities of these circles included conference calls, shopping together, and sharing experiences. Sister circles allowed the participants to display a different level of transparency than other friend groups, or as Megan elucidated, ?they [sister circles] see you, as you are.? Megan considered herself ?blessed? to have a core of seven sisters, who I have met; these are not biological sisters, these are black women who I have met, who have been my rock. We have maintained the friendships over more than 50 years. Megan described the sisterhood she has through her friends and how their friendship has sustained her. The shared identities of race and gender enhances the connection within these sister circles, because they can share details of their experiences without justification through the use of dialogue. These friendships served as counterspaces for participants to troubleshoot and get affirmation that their feelings as Black women were real. Danielle provided the most detailed description of the significance of sister circles. A lunch near campus with her sister friend at work, Daphne, begins by first: ?looking around to see who?s here and then just a lot of laughing, a lot of sharing of stories. It?s a lot of venting, just finally having a place that you can just let it out, 163 and then there?s good conversation ? a lot of sharing about our families and that kind of thing, lots of hugging. Given the visibility of their positions, Danielle alluded to being aware of their surroundings and who might be in earshot of their conversations before they could shed their professional personas. Once the Black women were comfortable, they could share their experiences freely and honestly. They discuss the politics of the academic side of administration, which in Danielle?s opinion is more political than higher education in general. Danielle shared one of her conversations with Daphne: You have to feel okay with people not liking you for whatever reason. That comes up often and I think for Black women, we?re accustomed to sometimes being the brunt of no one liking us. But in this job, I have to know it and still I can?t react like I would want to sometimes. Danielle described how administrators have to accept that everyone may not like them, and that Black women are more familiar with that reality due to their shared racial and gendered identities. She is aware that it comes with the territory of administration, but she has to manage her reactions to others at work. Danielle and Daphne?s monthly lunches allow both of them to feel seen in a loving way. This intimacy in turn was similar to a sisterhood. Danielle recalled seeing a Black sister friend (who is also an academic) at her child?s predominately white school, which is a similar environment to both of their work environments and said, ?Girl, I?m just so happy for you,? because ?she?s doing her thing and it?s really nice to see ? like I said ? a sister friend doing her thing.? Danielle took the time to recognize her peer in a white space and communicated with her in their own 164 language. She noted that it ?feels good? to have that ?reaffirming and affirming? between Black women who are so close and do not often receive that level of validation in the workplace. Participants had to be creative when staying connected with their sister circles, who were often dispersed across the country. Kate and her graduate school friends accepted their first faculty or industry positions in various locations across the country. As professionals, they worked to maintain their friendship from afar. Kate named her sister circle, ?Sisters of the Yam1?, as a nod to a bell hooks book. Kate recalled: . . . before the internet was really big, we would just have conference calls. And, sometimes, during the calls, we would have catalogs, and look through catalogs, and shop together, online, saying, ?Look at page 7, do you like this?? So, sometimes, that was part of our Sisters of the Yam conversations. Other times, we?d talk about, ?How do you deal with this?? These conference calls allowed Kate and her friends to recreate the environment and activities they used to do in person, which helped maintain a sense of community. Felicity?s sister circle included her best friend from graduate school, who coincidentally had the same position at a different institution. Three to four days a week, they spoke on the phone on their way to work to ?commiserate - wallow in all of the good and bad that?s happening? in their lives. 1 ?Sisters of the Yam? is a book written by bell hooks about the necessity of sisterhood between Black women to combat the daily assaults of racism and sexism. 165 Lynn?s sister circle consisted of deans and associate deans from different institutions, who advanced together through the years. She described her sister circle as a ?crisis management? tool. The women in this circle coached each other through the challenges they faced at their own universities. They stay connected ?via Facebook, email, and phone calls,? and meet regularly at conferences. To make the conferences more entertaining, Lynn and her friends planned social events that coincided with the conference (i.e., planning a group trip to the National Museum of African American History while at a convening in Washington, DC). As a junior faculty member, Diana created her own sister circle of early faculty scholars. They all achieved tenure and continue to achieve together, as evidenced by one of Diana?s friends currently serving as a dean. She outlined how her circle began: . . . when I was trying to get tenure ? I decided I was gonna form a mentorship group with three other Black women who were attempting to get tenure as well at other places across the university. So, we would talk periodically and trade favors and try to do things for one another. I think it?s important to have those. Courtney?s sister circle is comprised of academics and practitioners. She said: So, I have a community of professional friends and colleagues that I see once every two or three years at conferences, and those relationships are really important to me because we read each other's work, we teach each other's work, we give each other feedback. We recommend each other for different opportunities. Courtney?s sister circle pushed and Diana?s sister circles encouraged each other to higher levels of success. In their eyes, everyone in their circle wins through reciprocating 166 support and affirmation. The sisters served as peer reviewers, ensured each other?s work was assigned to their courses, and nominated each other for awards. These activities helped to the advance Black women in the academy. Danielle described her various sister circles as fellow deans, friends from her faculty years, and colleagues from other institutions. She stated: I?ve had really great allies ? that have been Black women primarily ? that have really been critical. We help each other but I can say that those low moments where you?re like, ?What is this? Am I crazy?? It?s them that come in and say, ?No, you?re not.? It really does help to lift you back up. Her circle validated her and she could not see her career thriving without them. It helped that Danielle had the support of her Black female friends in academia who could understand and empathize with her. When racist situations arise on campus, sister friends can help participants decompress and review the hidden, emotional injuries of incidents after they provide solutions for the campus community at large. Typically, campuses troubleshoot problems from a white male perspective, as they comprise most university leadership, and their solutions can alienate minoritized students and staff. Though some events may affect administrators differently based on their identities. As Black women, they might interpret events in the workplace differently because of their identities as Black women. Their unique perspectives can add value to the institution, but it can become taxing as it requires Black women to engage with their identities in ways that other administrators do not. Danielle and Daphne work at the same institution and meet once a month to debrief 167 about why they ?shouldn?t have to answer every question about being Black at a predominantly white institution? and other university matters. It is frustrating to Danielle and Daphne to be tokenized while also understanding the necessity of being present when administration discusses racial issues. Daphne called her friends in advocacy and critical race work her ?intellectual and heart people? who ?keep each other sane.? While they live all over the country, she said it was necessary to ?come together? to build a ?little space of healing.? Sister circles provide a level of identity affirmation for Black women by fulfilling a need to be accepted when their environments may not reflect or accept their all of their identities. Tamara noted that some of her friends identified as queer and are not local to her. She proclaimed, ?I have a varied social network but I think it?s primarily Black women, both straight and queer.? At her current institution she said ?it is easier to be queer here than Black,? even though ?there are so many closeted faculty in general on this campus.? Tamara looks to her sister circle for support because: anybody could pick one piece of who I am and decide they don?t want me there. So, in some ways being a woman in the academy does that to you, or being a Black person in the academy does that to you, or being queer does that to you. You put the whole package together, and you got three ways that people could say, ?No.? Tamara made a point to identify three main aspects of her identity and made the determination that she can only designate so much ?energy and breath? to people who do not accept her entire self, choosing instead to show her full self to those who are truly invested in her. 168 Tracy stated that in her field, there are only 130 Black women in academic positions. And of those 130, only 30 are full professors. She said: We all know each other so if I really feel ? and I don?t even think I feel isolated. I just need to talk to a sister girl, let me call [name], let me call [name], let me call whoever. So I know them. I?ve never been on an island by myself. Tracy placed a high value on her ability to cultivate and maintain relationships with her sister friends. She credits her status as an only child along with the necessity of the Black women in her field being acquainted with each other as why they are as close as they are. Because I?m an only child, I have really good friends. I?ve created really good friend networks. So that?s a huge source of support. But our relationships have transitioned from friendship to like sisterhood. Right? So it?s funny because a number of us are only kids. Right? Tracy also shared an example of how the women in her circle support each other. She received an invitation to attend a workshop for those with presidential aspirations. Tracy shared the invitation with a friend so they could both attend. Later, Tracy learned it was invitation only and realized she made a mistake, but her intention was to ensure her friend had the same exposure and opportunity as she did. Self-Care Support systems went beyond friends and family to include participants? investment in their own wellness. Self-care was a way for participants to take care of their minds, bodies, and souls. As a professor, Daphne conducted research on healthcare disparities for Black women, and discovered that stress is one of the factors that ?causes 169 us to have disparate health outcomes along just about every trajectory.? Daphne exclaimed that it is particularly important for Black women to practice self-care because the benefits can improve their physical health. Self-care could mean protecting durations of time, as it does for Courtney, Kate, Darlene, and Felicity. Courtney set boundaries by not checking professional email after a certain time. She made it clear that her evenings were her time and responses would not be sent after a certain time in the day. Tamara ensured weekends were off-limits to work. Tamara used her weekends to savor her time at home, which she described as a ?retirement home with a water view? where she can ?enjoy sitting and doing nothing.? Kate and Darlene blocked chunks of time in their schedule for personal activities. Darlene and Felicity were selective with the types of academic events they chose to participate in on weekends and evenings. This ensured they would be free for their children?s activities. Caitlin?s self care also followed the theme of protecting time, but she used the term ?radical self-care? to describe her commitment to taking time for herself. She facilitated workshops for Black women where she discussed how ?we get so socialized to be selfless? and ?we?ve got to stop that.? Caitlin models this by utilizing her vacation days to ?stay home and do a Netflix binge,? partake in some ?retail therapy,? or whatever she would like to do. Travel was another form of self-care. Vacation travel could be alone, with family, or with friends. Tracy is a proponent of regular vacations, ?So my dad sort of instilled in me this notion of, ?You should go on vacation regularly.? So almost every quarter, I take 170 a break. So in 24 days, I?m going to Aruba for a week.? Tracy?s excitement leading up to her trip provided the motivation necessary to remain focused on her work. More indulgent forms of self-care, where participants were catered to and pampered, were mentioned as well. Kate proclaimed that: I get my hair done once a week. And, I found a place where they give you Hershey Kisses, and, when you get your hair washed you sit in a massage chair. And I said, ?You know what? This is important.? So, I would go. And I don?t change that appointment. I just tell people, ?I have an appointment, a previous engagement, I?m not available,? and, that?s what I do. She, along with other participants, were intentional about including their hair or other pampering appointments on their calendar as a time that should not be interrupted by staff. Spa days also appeared as an activity for participants. Courtney, Daphne, and Felicity counted massages as their form of self-care. Daphne gets massages monthly and included daily meditation. She found that those activities help her release stress, which she said: ?you can?t let that live in your body.? Courtney considered herself fortunate because her university offered massage therapy and other spa services as a part of their benefits package. Participants were candid about if and how they practiced self-care. All acknowledged the importance of it, but also explained that it could be difficult to find time to include it in their schedules. Participants were either religious about or wished they had more time to include exercise into their schedules. As an ?athlete all through high school and college?, Felicity ?always enjoyed and needed to work out. And, I have 171 found in the three years that I?ve been dean, I have not yet found a way to consistently keep that practice going. So, that?s been really frustrating.? Felicity recognizes the importance of exercise, and is used to being physically fit. In her new role there is little time to balance family, her responsibilities, and fitness so exercise is the first thing to be removed from her schedule. Tamara counted golf and cycling as her forms of exercise. Finding time to exercise was challenging and often had to occur first thing in the morning. Participants woke up early to exercise, participated in group classes, played golf on the weekends, or walked around campus when time permitted. Darlene goes to ?spinning class at 6 a.m. on Tuesdays and then boot camp 6 a.m. Thursday? Group classes provided an additional benefit, aside from exercise, it also forged a sense of kinship among strangers within the class. These strangers could be loosely identified as friends, particularly if they saw each other regularly. Eating healthy was another cited form of self-care, but it sometimes contributed to a ?second shift? because cooking for the family was often their responsibility. Second shift is a concept defined by Arlie Hochschild (Hochchild & Machung, 2012) to describe how women tended to work a full day of paid career work, only to return home and have to complete the duties of the home. Kate illustrated this second shift by describing how her and her partner split duties: So, my husband and I divvied up the duties. So, there?s no such thing as ?equal? duties, but, there?s ?equitable? duties. And so, I do the cooking, he does the shopping. So, on the days that I do cook, I make a lot of food, and, we deal with healthy leftovers. 172 In Kate?s example, cooking is more labor-intensive and time-consuming than grocery shopping so the tasks are not equal but they are equitable, and possibly divided by skill. Much like exercise, healthy eating is understood to be important by all participants, yet is not always easy to incorporate into their hectic schedules. However, for some participants, health-related issues due to stress necessitate the need to make a concerted effort to eat healthier foods. For Caitlin, she is the only person in her immediate family who does not have diabetes. She stated that I try to be relatively healthy, in terms of food. I?m the last one standing in my fam[ily] ? in my primary family, my mom, my brother, my sister have diabetes. My grandparents did. I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, I mean, I think seven years ago, and I said, ?I?m not getting it. Not gonna do it,? and it?s because those who know better can do better, so I strive to be, again, relatively healthy for nutrition. Caitlin sees the effects of diabetes on her family and has the benefit of early awareness to prevent a diagnosis of diabetes. She makes heathy eating a priority as a form of self-care. Participants who regularly participated in self-care activities were conscious of the effects it had on them. Tamara thought she was a better partner when she had time to golf and make jewelry. Kate could focus on work and her family more after she took the time to get her hair done. Darlene was more energized during her work day when she exercised first. The key to self-care was finding time and an activity that suited the personalities of each participant. Mentorship and Preparing Future Leaders 173 As the participants reflected on their own careers, training (or lack thereof), and support systems, it became clear how passionate they were about preparing the next group of leaders. Participants were open to mentoring anyone who displayed promise or needed assistance, but some participants took a special interest in helping Black women in administration. This section will highlight ways the women in this study mentor and guide others along their path. Mentorship is ?very important? to Darlene. She described her mentorship style as ?one-on-one.? As faculty, Darlene tended to adopt the PhD students who were ?hard luck cases who would come to me where I'm nurturing them, you know, feeding the little baby bird with the eyedropper and helping them get through their dissertation.? Darlene did not seek students out, but instead she made herself available to those who reached out to her. As dean, she lets everyone in her school know that she has weekly office hours open to anyone who would like to speak with her. She employs this strategy because she does not see herself as the ?type who walks the halls,? but she does try to help and talk to anyone who wants her time. Most of Kate?s mentees are Black women in her STEM field, and academics. Her dedication to mentorship comes from her work with a STEM retention program and being introduced to social science research on mentoring and community building. She said: ?one of the concepts of psychological sense of community, there?s a point of, people?s need to have something that they can give back, and that is of value ? I can talk all kinds of things about that ? but, being able to mentor people, and, help 174 them navigate their pathways, is really important. And, often, it takes very little effort; it takes time, but, it?s not like, I have to go read stuff, and look up stuff. It?s things that I?ve learned as a process of being on this planet for 56 years. But, the perspective is, I think, it?s important; and, I didn?t realize how much I knew until I?m mentoring, and talking to people. Kate applied the theoretical concept of creating a community to support retention in a practical way by sharing the knowledge she obtained through her own trajectory with other Black women. Tracy and Sabrina are friends, are in the same STEM field, and are both passionate about mentoring the next generation because they were the beneficiaries of strong mentorship. Sabrina was closely mentored by her president and Tracy by other STEM senior administrators and presidents. They are aware that as women in a male- dominated discipline it is important to have ?somebody [mentors] validate you.? Tracy noted that in her STEM field, there are less than ?60 women deans and four of them are African American women.? The four Black women ?kinda know who?s in the pipeline? already so they work together and communicate with each other to ensure the next group are ready and positioned well to also become deans. Caitlin and Cora are both ?intentional? about how they cultivate and connect with their mentees. Cora has a few former students and other Black women who approached her after she spoke at conferences to be her mentees. The women will call Cora for career advice or how to approach certain opportunities. Cora tends to reach out to them ?every 175 few months or every six months? to check in and see how they are doing. Caitlin stated that: anyone who reports to me has the option of meeting with me once a month as a coaching, mentoring, etc., and ? and for each one of them, my approach is, ?Help me know how I can help you succeed in this job, as well as prepare you to where are you going next. She makes herself accessible and available, but then places the accountability on the mentee to let her know how she can best help them along their path. Caitlin stated that she was open to mentoring anyone, but acknowledged her staff was primarily minoritized and therefore she mostly mentors those from underrepresented backgrounds. Summary This chapter illuminated the two primary ways Black women transitioned to administration from faculty positions: recruitment by a senior administrator or sought out advancement opportunities. The participants who were recruited into their roles were directly asked to accept an administrative role, invited to apply for an administrative role, invited to assume a temporary administrative role, and directly appointed. When respondents were recruited into their roles they were more likely to describe their transition as unintentional or they accepted the roles reluctantly, and were not interested in pursuing a presidency. In those cases, the women were either satisfied to remain faculty or had not considered administration. Interviewees who sought out administrative positions did so because they thought their skills were better suited in administration or they had presidential aspirations at some point. For Black women, recruitment is an 176 effective strategy to provide access and exposure to the presidential pipeline, however the data shows that it does not translate to more Black women wanting to be a college president. The first transition to administration for some participants was the department chair role, which placed the participants in a squeeze position. Black women had to reconcile their new identities as administrators, yet remain and identify as faculty even if it is not always comfortable in addition to continuing to navigate their race, gender, and sometimes age. Black women often found themselves having to split attention between two stakeholders: their faculty colleagues and the administration. Participants often accepted these roles with limited to no training and had to find ways to ensure their success when a path was not clearly outlined. The new roles led to new forms isolation based on how their peers viewed them and new demands on how they performed service on campus due to their status as Black women. Having robust support systems were integral to the success of Black women in senior administrative positions. These support systems included partners, parents (specifically, mothers), fellowship with Black female friends known as ?sister circles,? and self-care. Partners, whether or not they were academics, could provide tangible career advice and socioemotional support. Parents of the respondents were integral in providing aspirational, navigational, and social capital for their children through early exposure to academia or through reminding them that their race and gender were not unsurmountable obstacles. Sister circles allowed participants with shared identities to be transparent without explanation. Self-care provided physical and mental health benefits. 177 Lastly, interviewees rarely had Black women as mentors, but did benefit from having strong mentors. The Black women in this study took a special interest in serving as mentors for up-and-coming Black women. Participants know that in order to increase the numbers of Black women in senior administration they need to be intentional with imparting their wisdom to the next generation. They are uniquely positioned to share information they learned along the way as Black women to future Black women. Chapter 6: Conclusion This qualitative study examined the experiences and career paths of Black women in academic administration. This chapter includes a brief summary of the background for this inquiry, a review of themes from extant literature on Black women in academia, an overview of my conceptual frameworks (Black Feminist Thought and Community Cultural Wealth), a summary of the methods, and interpretation of the findings through the lenses of my conceptual frameworks, and implications for future research, theory, and practice. Overview of the Study Institutions have implemented a variety of strategies to recruit and retain a steadily changing student population, but they have not been as aggressive in their recruitment and retention of faculty and administrators. If institutions of higher education wish to remain relevant and serve as bastions of free thought and advancing future leaders they must diversify their senior administrative ranks (Harvey, 1999). Increased diversity in the senior faculty and administrative ranks lends to better outcomes for students of color (Hurtado et al., 1999). Diversifying higher education leadership is one way to help dispel stereotypes and encourage a more inclusive university environment to meet the needs of a changing student population (Cook, 2012). A diverse body of higher education employees that reflects the populations it serves makes for better experiences for all students and a stronger campus climate altogether by preparing students for a global economy, providing perspectives from multiple cultures and identities (Newton, Rorer, Stillwell, Wang, & Matsuo, 2014). 180 Despite what we know about the importance of diversity in leadership, the numbers have not changed for Black women. Between 2006 and 2011, the number of minoritized college presidents decreased from 13.6% to 12.6% (ACE, 2012). When community colleges and schools that target specific populations (such as women?s colleges) are removed, only nine percent of college presidents are of color (ACE, 2011; Cook, 2012). Six percent of college presidents were Black and only 2% were Black women (ACE, 2015). In 2009, there were eight Black women at the helm of predominately white, four-year institutions (Bower & Wolverton, 2009). Women, and Black women in particular, outnumber men on college campuses and have higher rates of degree attainment. Among Black Americans, Black women earn the majority of degrees at every educational level (AAUW, 2013). Of the six percent of Black college presidents at all institutions, Black men hold 70% of the positions and Black women are 30% (NCES, 2012). If the system was equitable, given the data on Black undergraduate and graduate degree attainment, Black faculty, and Black administrators, one would anticipate a larger representation of Black women in college presidential posts. I wanted to understand why Black women were underrepresented in presidential appointments by examining the path to the presidency. All women are underrepresented along the academic administration path to the presidency at research institutions, but the size of the pool of Black women in the senior administrative position that serve as feeders to the presidency is even smaller (Holmes, 2004; Turner, 2003). When Black women are in senior leadership roles, they are more likely to be employed by community colleges or 181 special focus institutions than research-intensive and doctoral granting universities (Cook, 2012). Allan (2011) suggested that when women are in senior positions at research universities, they are more present in positions outside of the presidential pipeline such as external affairs, student affairs, and chief diversity officer roles. Therefore, the most prestigious, well-resourced, and doctoral-degree institutions are least likely to have a Black woman at the helm (Williams, 2015). To understand why it is uncommon to see a Black woman in a college presidency, I wanted to understand the career paths of Black women in senior administrative positions, how they experience administration, and what factors affect their desire to stay in administration to possibly become presidents. There is little literature about Black women in senior administrative academic positions that serve as stepping stones to the presidency, particularly as it relates to their aspirations. Further, little is known about the personal lives of Black women in senior administrative positions and how factors outside of academia can influence their career decisions. The scant literature on Black women in senior administration has not been updated in over a decade (e.g., Benjamin, 1997; Patitu & Hinton, 2003), and even less examines the transition from faculty to administration. This study addresses these gaps in the literature and provides an understanding of their motivation, challenges, and sources of support using the following research questions to guide this investigation: 1) Why do Black women transition from the faculty to academic administration? How do they understand and perceive the ?traditional? pathway to 182 the presidency? How does administrative work fit into their larger career goals and the process of reaching them? 2) How do Black women describe their experiences with racism and/or sexism in administration? How are these experiences similar or distinctive from what they encountered as faculty? 3) How do Black women understand the role of various internal and external factors in their career aspirations and decision-making? Summary of the Literature Review The experiences of Black women faculty are important to review because academic administrators are often selected from the faculty ranks. Therefore, when generating a pool of administrators, it is essential to first retain Black women as faculty. Black women, and women in general, leave academia more than men at every level resulting in fewer women available on the path to move to administrative positions (ACE, 2015; Anders, 2004; Blickenstaff, 2005; Touchton, Musil, & Campbell, 2008). A few reasons why women vacate their faculty posts include salary inequity, chilly work environment, family responsibilities, and for advancement opportunities in industry (ACE, 2015, Arnst, 2016; Eagly, 2004; Laursen et al., 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). Black women faculty experience the academy differently than their white peers because the marginalization of their racial identities. Several factors negatively influence the experiences and retention of Black women faculty including tokenism, marginality, isolation, alienation, hypervisibility and invisibility (Butner, Burley, & Marbley, 2000; Turner, 2003; Turner, Myers, & Creswell, 1997; McGowan, 2000). Racism and sexism 183 can negatively influence how faculty are viewed by students and other faculty (Ford, 2011). For example, Black female faculty are more likely to be disrespected and have their authority and credentials challenged by white students than their white peers (Lazos, 2012; Pittman, 2010). In addition to facing challenges as faculty, women experience challenges as they enter senior administrative positions. When women advance to administration, they must adapt to a shift in their job responsibilities, gain new leadership and managerial skills, and negotiate their work/life balance. In order for women to achieve success in administration, they often have to adopt male attitudes and values toward work/life balance and leadership and that can lead to attrition and dissatisfaction in their roles (Armenti, 2004; Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; Mason & Goulden, 2002; Ward & Wolf- Wendel, 2004; Wolf-Wendel et al., 2006). The acquisition of social capital is imperative when advancing in administration. For women to obtain senior academic administrative positions they must cultivate and leverage social capital differently than men, which can sometimes be more important to promotion and advancement than skill (Sanchez-Hucles & Davis, 2010; Smith, 2007; Eagly & Carli, 2007). Social capital can be developed by attending after hours networking events; however, after hours outings can place women in a precarious position of choosing to focus on their career or personal life, particularly if they are mothers or caregivers (Eagly & Carli, 2007). Institutional policies and mores have not kept up with the needs of women in the senior academic administrative positions. Women in administration have to make lifestyle adjustments that are not asked of men such as 184 making sure they are perceived as likable and competent (Eagly & Carli, 2007), whereas men are not required to be viewed as likeable to be seen as effective. Factors that affect the retention of women in faculty and administrative positions are amplified for Black women who have to contend with race along with gender biases. Black women have to be mindful of how they perform in informal and formal situations through identity shifting. Identity shifting is the idea that Black women have to change their appearance, actions and or speech to appear palatable to the dominant culture (Jackson, 2002; Jones & Shorter-Gooden, 2004). For example, Black women have to be seen as likable, similar to white women, but also have to be mindful of the negative stereotypes of Black women like appearing angry or aggressive. Theoretical Frameworks I make use of Black Feminist Thought (BFT) and Community Cultural Wealth (CCW) to explore how Black women described their transition to administration and their aspirations. Racism, sexism, and classism are systemic oppressions that affect Black women in distinctive ways (Collins, 1989). Black Feminist Thought celebrates the diversity of experience within the community of Black women, while acknowledging that they similarly have to navigate systems of oppression (Patton, Njoku, Rogers, 2009). There are four dimensions comprising BFT and two of them guide this study. The four dimensions are: (1) lived experience as a criterion of meaning; (2) the use of dialogue in assessing knowledge claims; (3) an ethic of caring, and; (4) the ethic of personal accountability (Collins, 2000). The ethic of caring and the ethic of personal accountability are the two dimensions employed in my investigation. 185 The ethic of caring incorporates the development of empathy and places emphasis on individual uniqueness. Black women know their strengths and are not afraid to express or utilize them as necessary. It is important to note the use of ?as necessary? because in BFT the recognition of power dynamics is imperative (Bertrand Jones, Wilder, & Osborne-Lampkin, 2013). Participants were willing to accept positions and additional service responsibilities when asked by those in more senior positions. The ethic of personal accountability in BFT is the idea that Black women have to be responsible for their own knowledge claims. The ethic of personal accountability also includes the notion that Black women believe they are responsible to uplift their communities (Collins, 2000). For participants, the ethic of accountability included their personal values and what knowledge the women believed they needed to possess and employ to advance in the academy. Community Cultural Wealth (CCW) is the other framework that guided this study. CCW was developed in response to Bourdieu?s definition of capital, which privileges the dominant culture, and expands what counts as valuable capital. Yosso (2005) shifted the center from Whiteness to the lens of the minoritized. Yosso (2005) proposes six forms of capital possessed by marginalized groups: aspirational, linguisitic, familial, social, navigational, and resistant. Aspirational capital is the ability to look beyond obstacles and can be passed on to participants by their parents. Linguisitic capital includes the idea that minoritized persons have multiple modes of communication. Familial capital is the community of immediate and extended bonds, which can include family and close friendships. Navigational capital is a person?s ability to maneuver 186 through social or professional situations. Social capital is a network of people who provide participants with connections to their community. Resistant capital includes skills gained by confronting and understanding systems of oppression. Together, the frameworks provide a lens to look beyond the curriculum vitae of academic administrators and delve deeper into their personal lives, and how these Black women reached their positions. BFT and CCW are useful frameworks because they helped me zero in on the unique ways Black women utilize their networks and identities to build their own capital and advance in the academy. By incorporating BFT with CCW, I was also able to capture how Black women cultivated and leveraged the capital around them to reach senior positions, where it is relatively uncommon to see other Black women. Summary of the Methods This study was guided by narrative inquiry methodology (Clandinin & Connelly, 1990), and I conducted 15 semi-structured interviews with Black women who were faculty turned administrators at research-intensive, predominately white universities across the country. I identified participants by reviewing university websites for photos of their senior administrators, reading higher education periodicals for promotion/position announcements, and snowball sampling. I emailed and made follow up calls to those who presented as Black women and confirmed their identities and interests. Each participant was interviewed for approximately 90 minutes in person or by video-conference. Interview questions were open ended to allow for collection of rich, thick descriptions necessary to restory the participants? narratives (Merriam, 2002). The topics of the 187 interview questions included career path, relationships, institutional support and context, and identity. Data analysis, or reconstructing field text to research texts, occurred in three stages as guided by Clandinin and Connelly (2000). First, I transcribed every semi- structured interview verbatim and took notes as I reviewed each transcript. Then I forwarded the transcribed transcript to each participant for their review as a member checking strategy and to ensure accuracy. After reading and re-reading my field text and field notes, I employed an open coding process to help me identify emerging themes. Open coding techniques allowed me to examine the participant voices and create a chronological timeline through a storymap (Clandinin & Connelly, 1990). Storymaps allowed me to form narratives of each respondent, presented in chapter four. Then I re- read each transcript and field text, or what Clandinin and Connelly called ?back and forthing? (p. 138) to move between participants? narratives, which helped uncover the emerging themes across the group, described in chapter five. The third step required me to listen to each interview again, paying special attention to the tone of the women as they spoke to capture voice inflections and emotion. Once the narratives were drafted, each participant had an opportunity to review their story. I employed my peers and remained in regular contact with my advisor to ensure the validity and trustworthiness of my analysis. The scope of this study was intentionally small because the goal was to capture the rich, thick descriptions from Black women in senior administration (Lincoln & Guba, 1985). The purpose of this study was not to identify broad generalizations, but instead to 188 illuminate what a group of Black women experienced as they transitioned to senior leadership positions. My goal was to conduct this study in a way that empowered Black women and did not rely on deficit models to highlight their experiences. Key Findings This investigation contributes to the emerging research in higher education on Black women administrators, particularly those in academic administration. Scholars have identified three factors that can positively or negatively influence the career trajectories of Black women in the academy: campus climate, mentors, and opportunities for professional development (Jayakumar, Howard, Allen, & Han, 2009; Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Sol?rzano, Ceja, & Yosso, 2002; Turner, 2002, Hinton, 2009; Hurtado, Clayton- Peterson, Allen, Milem, 1998; Maranto & Griffin, 2010; Turner et al., 1999). This study expands the conversation on how Black women reach senior administrative positions and what support they receive along their progression. Specifically, it shows the importance of examining how Black women perceive the presidential pipeline as it relates to their current position, how they make use of various support systems to persist, and the factors that influence their career decisions. Recruitment into Administration In this section, I will engage the themes from my findings in relation to the theoretical frameworks and existing literature. The use of Black Feminist Thought (BFT) allowed me to center the identity of Black women and their perspectives as Black women (Collins, 1985). I am using BFT as a frame to legitimize the unique truth of my participants in their career decision-making and in their own words. While all of the 189 participants in my study are Black women, examining how they got into administration and their differing decisions about whether to advance, stay or leave highlights the diversity within the community of Black women administrators. Participants entered administration by recruitment or by choice. For the nine participants who were recruited into administration from their faculty positions, one or more of the following tactics were used by senior administrators: asking participants to accept an administrative role, inviting them to apply, asking them to accept a position on a temporary basis, and direct appointment. The expectation that Black women faculty should accept positions or additional service requirements is not a new phenomenon. Cultural taxation was defined by Padilla (1994) as the assumption that minoritized faculty should engage in service related to diversity. Though accepting an administrative role is not necessarily racially related service, it speaks to the premise that Black women are often expected to accept roles and responsibilities they may not have wanted or pursued. The burden of being responsible was observed in participants who were asked to assume an administrative role, particularly before they were promoted to full professor. The women were asked by senior administrators who knew they would accept. The ethic of caring provided a lens to help understand why Black women would accept a position they may not want and might not be of benefit to them. Participants explained that they wanted to be of service to their departments and institutions. When someone in power asked them to move into administration, they accepted out of a sense of responsibility and service. Participants who were not full professors knew that transitioning to administration meant it would be difficult to obtain promotion to full 190 professor. The associate professors in this study planned to either return to the faculty after their appointment or decided not to pursue promotion to full professor. The Importance of Rank For many women in this study, the first step into administration was as a department chair. Participants became chair in one of several ways: recruited into their chairship, asked to assume the role temporarily, it was their turn, or they accepted the role because no one else wanted it. Participants seldom chose to become department chairs, which is consistent with the literature on Black women and additional service (James, 2010; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001; Harley, 2007). The participants faced a conundrum in that they were asked to accept a position they did not necessarily want. Yet they accepted roles, which is consistent with the larger literature that suggest Black women are more likely to give more of their time and accept extra responsibilities in the name of service than their peers (Davis, Reynolds, & Jones, 2011; Henry & Glenn, 2009; Mobley, 1992). While it is unclear whether the women in this study used this reasoning, research suggests Black women can recognize the need for increased diversity in administrative roles and that can fuel their acceptance of a position they do not necessarily want (Hirshfield & Joseph, 2011). In many cases, department chairs did not have to be full professors, but when participants were not full professors they knew they had limited influence and opportunities for advancement. Full professors can lead search committees and their voices carry more weight in departmental meetings than associate or assistant professors (Croom & Davis, 2012). Full professors are regarded as the most qualified based on their 191 accomplishments and promotion through the advancement process (Croom & Davis, 2012). For participants who became chair prior to their promotion to full professor, their department chair title could wield power, but it was muted as compared to their full professor colleagues. For participants who considered advancement in administration, they knew their options had limits until they attained promotion to full professor. Especially since dean, provost, and presidential positions often require full professor status. Similar to extant research, participants highlighted how their relationships with their colleagues changed once they became administrators. The department chair position was seen as a ?squeeze position;? participants found themselves trying to support the interests of faculty and the administration at the same time. This squeeze position was particularly complicated since the women largely still saw themselves as faculty first. This finding is similar to the work of Thomas and Schuh (2004), who categorized the shift from faculty to administration as one of socialization and of managing distinct personal and professional roles and relationships with students, faculty, and staff. Participants also said their peers described the move as going to the ?dark side,? alluding to a distrust faculty have for administrators, similar to the findings of a study done by Glick (2006). Glick argued that faculty and administration lack an understanding each other?s roles, and faculty who become administrators find themselves as ?opponents and proponents with the same people on different issues? (p. 90). The women noted that it was difficult to know what to expect from their new roles because the training was ?baptism by fire,? which White (2004) described as a cause of stress and feeling 192 overwhelmed. For Black women department chairs, the squeeze position along with learning the nuances of administration might be more of a challenge than they would like to assume in their careers. In addition, scholars have argued that Black women are more likely to have their authority and credentials challenged by faculty, staff, senior administrators, and students (Ford, 2011; Lazos, 2012; Pittman, 2010) at any rank. Therefore, it is to the advantage of Black women to have the highest credentials to help build legitimacy and mitigate questions from others. Consistent with this literature, interviewees knew that they would encounter some degree of provocation from faculty as they were now considered administrators. However, they also knew that as Black women they would have faculty and administrators assuming they did not deserve or earn their role, and they would be questioned more than their white and male counterparts. Therefore, the participants knew it was in their best interest to have the highest credentials to be better prepared to combat any objections and earn respect. Participants knew they needed to perform differently than their peers to succeed. The realization of participants that they needed to prove themselves appears to be similar to the proving process Black students experience (Fries-Britt, 2000; Fries-Britt, 2002; Fries-Britt & Griffin, 2007; Fries-Britt, 2017). Fries-Britt (2000) described how high achieving Black students felt the need to prove themselves to their white peers as worthy of their academic accolades. Black women administrators fought to prove they earned and were qualified for their positions. For Black women to be aware that they are presumed incompetent and perceived to be hired due to affirmative action or their 193 identity traits, rather than their skills and talents, is a level of pressure white men do not have. There is a collection of studies in a book called Presumed Incompetent, which suggests Black women faculty have similar experiences in the classroom. Participants were clear that their identity as Black women required them to be full professors to gain the level of legitimacy most valued in the academy (Ford, 2011; Stanley, 2006; Smith, 2012). Participants understood that objectively they could advance without being promoted to full professor, but subjectively knew as Black women that faculty rank was significant in their future career moves. Engagement in Service The literature points to diversity-based service to the institution as the extra workload Black women face on their path to and through senior administration (Davis et al, 2011; Henry & Glenn, 2009; Jayakumar et al, 2009; Mobley, 1992; Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Stanley, 2006; Tack & Patitu, 1992). Research suggests that Black women spend more time engaging in service, often in regard to minoritized students, to their universities as a way to give back, serve as role models, and ensure the diversity voice does not get lost (Stanley, 2006; Harley, 2007; Griffin, Bennett, & Harris, 2013; Baez, 2000). Participants discussed how their service was often race and gender based, but the service did not appear to be in addition to their regular service requirements. Participants? service often looked different than their peers because it included troubleshooting racial issues, but the women did not express the expectation to complete more or extra service than their peers. Participants did not view their service as prohibitive to their advancement, however the amount of diversity related service work contributed to their 194 overall fatigue, need for self-care, and took time away from their other administrative duties. Therefore, the findings in this study complicate the extant literature stating the extra workload of race and gender based service being prohibitive to the career trajectories of Black women. These women did not describe feeling that they had too much service like extant literature, but instead noted the nature of racially based service as linked to fatigue. Because there are so few Black women in senior administrative positions, universities often task them with troubleshooting racial issues on campus and serving as a diversity token on committees (Hirshfield & Joseph, 2011). Respondents acknowledged that it was difficult to discern whether they were asked to address racial problems on campus because of their skills or because of their identities. Participants knew it was possible that their institutions tokenized them by asking them to handle racial situations because of their lived experience as Black women. In some cases, the women believed their identities meant they were in fact the best positioned to address certain situations. The ethic of caring in BFT allows us to understand this finding as a responsibility for Black women to step into service that leaves little option for alternatives. The literature shows that Black women tend to perform more service in the academy and that service is undervalued in consideration for promotion and tenure (Turner Kelly & Winkle-Wagner, 2017; Gregory, 1999). The academy is structured to award those who follow the patriarchal norms of individualism, which is often counter to the values of Black women who are socialized to be responsible for and take care of others (Healy, Bradley, & Mukherjee, 2004; Turner Kelly & Winkle-Wagner, 2017). Each participant 195 viewed their service requests differently; yet, they all felt a responsibility to assist students and the university as a whole. The service itself is not burdensome but instead the type of service work is an issue. There is a lack of peers who share in the responsibilities of racial and gender based service at these higher administrative levels (Patitu & Hinton, 2003; Stanley, 2006; Tack & Patitu, 1992). Career Aspirations and Trajectory It is interesting to note that every participant was professionally positioned to one day apply for a presidency, but for most the desire was not present. Only one participant was actively interested in pursuing a presidency and another was open to the possibility. Even if participants thought they had the backing of their institution, it would take more than positioning alone to encourage the women to desire a presidency. Studies point to the perceived time constraints of college presidents and work/life balance as a reason why there are not more female presidents (Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; Mason & Goulden, 2002; Leonard & Malina, 1994; Sanchez-Hucles & Davis, 2010; Tack & Patitu, 1992). The findings of this study support that assertion; participants discussed their lack of interest in assuming a role that required nonstop access and travel. Some of the women did not want to expand their skillset beyond what is necessary for their current roles. Other participants considered how a presidency or a different position would affect their children. My findings illuminated how Black women viewed their next steps and provided explanations for why Black women may not want to advance further in administration. Participants listed the following as their next steps: returning to their faculty post, moving 196 into consulting, retirement, or were undecided. The majority of the participants did not necessarily want to pursue more senior administrative roles or aspire to a presidency. Research has shown that women often leave academic administrative positions due to salary inequity, unfriendly work environments, family responsibilities, or for positions outside of academia (ACE, 2015; Arnst, 2016; Eagly, 2004; Laursen et al., 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). The reasons why the participants in this study did not want to advance in administration were somewhat different from the extant literature, and included indifference toward the next promotional level, disinterest in being tokenized by administration, a desire to return to a role better suited to their skills, or age/life stage. Using BFT as a lens illuminates why these participants? reasons were different than the literature. The Black women in this study accepted roles out of a sense of duty rather than desire, which could contribute to their reasons for not wanting to advance. Participants? experiences in their roles were not necessarily bad. The participants questioned what was expected of them as Black women in these roles and were unsure if they wanted to continue to participate in these patriarchal systems. Additionally, some participants were not in a stage in their lives where they were open to seeking different opportunities. What differentiates my findings from the studies above is I provide a hypothesis about how Black women entered administration and how that translated to their aspirations. When some participants were not interested in advancement, one reason was their satisfaction in their current roles. The three participants who were STEM or business deans were more likely to acknowledge a presidency could be their next step because of 197 the evolution of the dean position and the fundraising value of their colleges, but that did not mean they wanted to become presidents. Provost and/or presidential positions require a broader overview of the campus and a deeper knowledge of a plethora of disciplines than participants are required to know as dean, which many found unappealing. Department chairs who did not want to advance were more interested in returning to their faculty posts, which coincided with their professional preferences and identities. Department chairs wanted to return to what was more comfortable to them rather than remaining in unfamiliar territory. The desire of chair and dean participants to return to their faculty positions or remain in at their current level illuminates the fallacy in defining the path to the presidency as a ?pipeline?. Scholars have described the pipeline to the presidency as be leaky because there are not enough qualified women in faculty positions to transition to administration (Anders, 2004; Blickenstaff, 2005). In reality, there may be women (like those participating in this study) who have the qualifications to advance, but do not aspire to follow a linear path to the presidency. Participants often learned that they preferred the narrow scope of the faculty positions that brought them to academia in the first place. The literature points to full professors as having the full rights of the title ?professor? (Croom & Davis, 2012). So, while a return to faculty might be seen as a loss of one type of administrative prestige or power, they return to the faculty without losing their standing. Black women are more likely to describe experiencing tokenization because of their dual marginalized identities (Hirshfield & Joseph, 2011). Some women in this study were reluctant to accept an additional senior administrative position because they saw the 198 recruitment effort as a way to tokenize them to improve the diversity on their campuses. Particularly when the women could not tell if they were sought out to troubleshoot based on their expertise or identity. Participants wanted their universities to be invested in the work of inclusion in addition to ensuring they have individuals with minoritized in senior roles. The women who were close to retirement age wanted to make sure they prioritized themselves first in their next steps. These participants gave much of their lives in service to their universities and families, so for them, retirement meant choosing themselves and living on their own terms. The level of responsibility, empathy and time these Black women devoted over the years is embodied by the ethic of caring (Collins, 2000). Participants were in touch with and respectful of their own feelings and desires after spending a lifetime of demomstrating the capacity for empathy toward others. The women saw retirement as a way to honor themselves. Geronimus (2001) argued that Black women age faster biologically, like exposure to health issues, than their white peers because of constant exposure to stressors and maintaining coping mechanisms in the workplace. Black women serve, give, and weather so much in the academy that their health can be adversely affected and lead to disorders such as hypertension and early death (Geronimus, Hicken, Pearson, Seashols, Brown, & Cruz, 2010; Dickens & Chavez, 2017). The women in this study have chosen to empower themselves and not work themselves to death by enjoying their remaining years in retirement. Participants stated that they might have been more open to becoming a college president earlier in their career than now. Time became an important commodity. 199 Administrative schedules are not flexible nor is the administrative workplace designed with women in mind, especially at the senior level where they are expected to work long hours, travel, and handle student emergencies (Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; Mason & Goulden, 2002). Did the women want to assume a job that was perceived to be 24 hours a day and 7 days a week at the same time they were raising their own families, tending to aging parents, or nearing retirement? The answer for most participants was no. These findings suggest that participants understood the role of a college president, but did not want the position. To the extent the women participating in this study thought being an effective and successful president meant enduring constant networking meetings, community outreach, and fundraising, which placed them even further away from students, research, and faculty, the role was less or unappealing. It is possible that the combination of the knowns and unknowns of the presidency are as elusive and disinteresting to these women as administration was them before they moved from their faculty positions. But for these women it might not be worth the risk of finding out. Supporting the Journey Research on Black women faculty and administrators describe how racism and sexism can appear as tokenism, isolation, invisibility, lack of mentorship, and a negative campus racial climate (Butner, Burley, & Marbley, 2000; Milem, Chang, & antonio, 2005; Turner, 2003; Turner, Myers, & Creswell, 1997). Those symptoms of racism and sexism are factors that can shape the experiences of Black women in administration. Based on extant research, Black women are less likely to report satisfaction with their racial climates than white men, and more likely to describe their campus environment as 200 a chilly climate (Harley, 2007; Mayhew et al., 2006; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001; Trower & Chalt, 2002). My findings complicate the literature on Black women in the academy and their encounters with racism and sexism. A prime tenet of BFT celebrates the similarities along with the diversity within Black women. While literature has highlighted how racism and sexism can negatively affect the job satisfaction of Black women, the women in this study did not describe their experiences in that manner. Participants did not deny the presence of racism or sexism in their careers; however, they did not describe racism or sexism as an impediment to their career trajectory. Participants were not impervious to the effects of racism or sexism; however, the women appeared to lean into their identities as Black women and focused on their own definition of Black femininity as a strength. That form of self-definition provided them with lens they needed to concentrate on their work rather than on how they are perceived by their peers. Stanton-Salazar and Spina (2000) defined resilience as the resources, cultural competencies and strategies that allow minoritized students to thrive and employ their past experiences to overcome barriers. The Black women participating in my study demonstrated this form of resilience and recounted the numerous forms of capital they acquired and cultivated from their parents, partners, and peers as buffers to sustain them when faced with racism and sexism. Strong support systems serve as a protective factor for Black women as they defend themselves in environments that could serve to impede their success, though the participants did not see racism and sexism as impediments (McGee & Bentley, 2017; Williams & Portman, 2014). Community Cultural Wealth 201 provided the lens necessary to understand capital the women in this study possessed and utilized which included aspirational, social, navigational, familial, and resistant capital. Parents. Parents were significant benefactors of capital for the women in this study. Participants described how they acquired aspirational, navigational, and resistant capital from their parents. Parents provided the participants with values and experiences in their childhoods that helped shape their career paths. For example, some of the participants had parents who obtained advanced degrees, and it could be argued that because of that exposure the children (participants) remained on a high-achieving path and also pursued advanced degrees. The children (participants) knew what they had to do to achieve and to push beyond institutional barriers, such as having teachers who had low expectations of them, because of the aspirational and navigational capital from their parents. Conversely, when participants had parents who were not formally educated, their parents still instilled the importance of pursuing higher education. When participants discussed the aspirational capital they received from their parents, they described how their parents found ways to travel with them as children. Participants described cultivating aspirational capital in their children by making sure their children travel with them to build their exposure to other worldviews and perspectives. Participants understood that exposure to the lifestyles of others could build empathy and make it easier for their children to work with colleagues they will encounter from multiple backgrounds. Collins (2000) suggested that Black mothers are instrumental in teaching their Black children about their place in society. Mothers could either be complicit in the 202 oppression of Black children by teaching them to believe in their societal ?inferiority? or can ?serve as a private sphere in which cultures of resistance and everyday forms of resistance are learned? (Collins, 2000, p. 51). The participants had parents, and mothers in particular, who embodied the latter. Some participants had parents who instilled a belief, or resistant capital, acknowledging that although racism and sexism exist, race and gender did not have to be impediments to their success or access to opportunities. As adults and administrators, they did not view racism or sexism as obstacles in their career decision-making. Parents taught the participants to value themselves and trust their own self-definition (Collins, 2000). By understanding how to resist being defined by others and preserve their self-value, parents gifted the participants with a substantial tool of resistant capital to counter oppression. Parents have an integral role in nurturing their children?s attitude toward higher education (Hossler & Gallagher, 1987), and in Black families it is the mother figure who is primarily influential (Freeman, 1999; Hurtado, Inkelas, Briggs, & Rhee, 1997). As Freeman (2005) noted, when parents are college graduates (or higher) they are more likely to automatically support their children?s educational goals and expect them to pursue higher education. The women who had parents with advanced degrees discussed their own educational attainment as an expectation rather than a significant feat. Interviewees who had parents who worked on campuses or provided college campus experiences while participants were children gained the ability to maneuver university campuses before they were aware that they would work at one. Early exposure to college campuses and parental degree attainment cultivated the navigational capital their parents 203 created opportunities that allowed these Black women to see campuses as less intimidating. These findings complicate the literature on Black faculty and administrators that focuses on the chilly climate and unfriendly environments as a reason why Black women do not advance or leave the academy. The extant literature does not include the familial backgrounds of Black administrators, and therefore there is no appreciation of how early exposure to higher education from parents can influence career decisions. The current literature also did not account for the ways parents encouraged the participants to define themselves for themselves, and how to create a space for themselves in environments that are not made for Black women. My findings are more closely aligned with the literature on the degree aspiration and predisposition in Black collegians (Cabrera & La Nasa, 200; Smith & Fleming, 2006), as the participants were motivated to pursue advanced degrees and career promotions because of their parents? educational attainment or their early exposure to higher education. The impact of parents exceed college and continues into career decision making. Partners. When participants were partnered, they described the types of assistance and capital they received from them. The literature does discuss women and their partners, but it is mostly negative, highlighting how men in heterosexual couples engage in less household labor, leaving many women with a ?second shift? and a time disparity in upholding family responsibilities (Eagly, 2004; Eagly & Carli, 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). My findings shift attention away from the division of labor to forms of 204 socioemotional support a partner can offer, focusing on how they cultivate participants? navigational and social capital. Whether they worked in academia or not, partners were able to provide the Black women participating in this study with day-to-day advice. Universities rarely provided training for faculty as they become administrators, and participants found their partners to be formidable informal donors of navigational, social and political capital and training. For example, interviewees? partners helped them negotiate and handle political situations since administration mirrored some industry careers more than their experiences as faculty. Male partners provided insights on the unspoken rules of management, such as the fact that decisions are often made prior to meetings. When partners worked as higher education administrators, they introduced the women to other administrators and could provide guidance on how universities work. Partners who worked in academia could also commiserate with the participants because of their shared experiences. This navigational capital allowed participants to maneuver more successfully in what might otherwise be difficult situations. Sister Circles. Black women talk about their negative experiences with racism and sexism in the academy (Dixon, 2013; Griffin et al., 2011; Mayhew et al., 2006; Jayakumar et al., 2009), and extant research suggests Black women often experience isolation in their home departments and institutions. Therefore, many increase their social and professional networks outside of their institution (Constantine, Smith, Redington, & Owens, 2008; Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001). In this study, participants described their experiences 205 with isolation, but more often attribute it to their role and lack of peers with similar backgrounds than the campus culture and their identity. Like many other generations of Black women, participants in this study developed and leaned on their sister circles, comprised of other Black women, to mitigate a lack of relationships within their departments and institutions. Back women fostered these relationships for survival and as a mechanism to gain access to affirmation and validation. Individuals in the networks were not blood relations, but functioned in ways consistent with chosen family. The Black women in these sister circles were sometimes graduate school friends, faculty from other universities, or administrators in similar roles at different universities. Some participants had longstanding sister circles that helped retain them from graduate school through present day. As Fries-Britt and Turner Kelly (2005) observed, Black women ?have connected informally and formally in communities in the workplace? through ?webs of personal and professional connection? (p. 236). Sister circle relationships were deepened because of the shared identities of race and gender, but also because they were committed to seeing each other succeed. Participants supported their friends in a variety of ways to help them succeed in and out of their careers. The participants utilized their sister circles to share and pass along knowledge to each other (Larrotta & Yamamura, 2011). The activities they did together such as traveling, shopping, sharing meals, and hosting conference calls helped participants cultivate social and familial capital. Sister circles also supported the participants? advancement in the academy by citing each other?s work and coaching each other through professional crises. The women wanted to see and ensure that those in their 206 sister circles had the social and navigational capital necessary to succeed. Yosso?s (2005) framework provides an explanation for how the unique forms of navigational capital received by friends empowered participants. It was equally important for participants to create counter spaces or collectivist spaces where they could candidly discuss their work environments and seek validation of their experiences (Turner Kelley & Winkle-Wagner, 2017). The significance of these counter spaces supports the idea that only Black women can be the authors of the knowledge claims of the Black female experience in BFT (Collins, 2000). While women in general can support each other, BFT suggests that there is a unique phenomenon that occurs when Black women have the space to congregate and share their experiences. Mentors. Mentors, whether the present or not, have been highlighted as a tool to help Black women overcome institutional barriers, isolation, and improve persistence (Bova, 2000; Fries-Britt & Kelly, 2005; Henderson, 2010; Patton, 2009; Schwarz & Hill, 2010; Stanley & Lincoln, 2005). Participants mentioned mentors, but they did not describe them as being as instrumental as extant research on supporting new administrator or minoritized academics. When the women reported the level and type of assistance they received from others, they more often described the actions of sponsors than mentors. Mentors and sponsors are similar in that they develop their prot?g?s, but how they provide assistance differs. Mentors train and teach and sponsors open doors to opportunities. Searby, Ballenger, and Tripses (2015) defined a sponsor as a person who acts as a gatekeeper by nominating a prot?g? for positions, committees, and awards. Participants? mentors acted 207 as sponsors, suggesting they apply for certain roles, helping them prepare for the nuances of conducting business prior to meetings, and positioning them to assume their roles. These forms of assistance can be understood as navigational capital. Their sponsor/mentors were usually white men, which is consistent with the high number of white men in powerful positions who possessed the capital to perform these functions (Davis & Maldonado, 2015). The literature suggests that Black women often prefer to have Black women as mentors (Stanley & Lincoln, 2005), but are less likely to have mentors at all (Bertrand Jones et al, 2013; Grant, 2010; Grant & Simmons, 2008; Jackson, 2004). BFT suggests that Black women want Black women as mentors to ensure they have an advocate with an empathetic ear and a level of understanding of the political landscape and unspoken rules Black women need to know to thrive in white spaces. Which is not to say that others cannot mentor Black women, it is possible that because Black women have to perform in a manner that signals strength, others may not realize Black women need support. Fries-Britt and Turner Kelly (2005), Patton (2009) and Henderson (2010) found that Black women look to their peers as mentors when senior Black women are not available. Myers (2002) stated that minoritized faculty, tenured or not, would have few options for mentoring relationships if they did not mentor themselves. In many cases, participants used mentoring within their peer groups and sister circles as a means to mitigate isolation and overcome institutional barriers. As peers, they could help each other navigate difficult situations and figure out what resources they needed without seeking the help of others. This was especially important because participants did not 208 want to appear incompetent or unsure in the presence of their colleagues who might mistake their inquiries for incompetence. Peer-mentorship allowed the participants the opportunity to validate each other through storytelling and to bring value to their experiences as Black women in the academy, which supports the extant literature on Black women and mentoring. A BFT frame can help clarify what informed the actions and behaviors of the participants. The women described a sense of caring and a responsibility to the up-and- coming Black women in their field, which embodies the ethic of caring in BFT. Participants were passionate about serving as a mentor for the next generation, especially if they benefitted from having strong mentors. When participants had strong mentors, they adopted the helpful characteristics of their mentors to shape their own practice (Fries-Britt & Snider, 2015; Griffin, 2012). Black women can be dedicated to uplifting their communities and mentoring other Black faculty and administrators is one way to fulfill that desire (Baez, 2000). Interviewees know the social and navigational capital necessary to advance and want to ensure women after them face fewer challenges. Implications and Future Directions I have several recommendations for future practice, research, and theory. These recommendations are based on the findings from this study and geared toward increasing access and representation of Black women in administration, and academia more generally. However, the implications can also be leveraged to inform research and practice for other minoritized populations. Practice 209 The findings of this study suggest that to make progress in diversifying the future presidents of college and university campuses, institutions should do a better job of cultivating Black women?s interests in leadership. Participants were often recruited into administration without expressing an interest in administration. Universities could provide rotations or shadowing experiences for faculty to expose them to administration. This could cultivate interest in administration while allowing faculty to determine if they have the skillset needed or if they would like to obtain those extra skills. This work also has implications for how institutional leaders should think about the roles and responsibilities associated with various administrative positions, and how those responsibilities look different for Black women. Participants were asked to handle racial situations in ways their colleagues were not. While this type of service did not prohibit participants from accepting their current or future roles, it did keep them from performing other aspects of their roles. It would be more beneficial to the participants, and to those seeking to advance, to know their universities saw racial situations as serious matters that could be handled by more than the few minoritized administrators on campus. There should be an expectation that racial and gendered based service is important to all administrators. Universities should insist that all administrators engage in this type of service work. Universities should support Black women faculty and protect their time as they work toward promotion to full professor prior to tapping them for administration. Departments can do this by allowing Black women to use more of their time for research and teaching and less on serving on committees as diversity tokens. This will serve 210 institutions by having more diversity within their full faculty ranks and alleviate the time constraints assistant and associate professors experience as they attempt to conduct research and serve as administrators. Additionally, as the number of Black women full professors increase, so does the opportunity for Black women to bring their full professor status and decision-making power with them. Also, given that full professors often serve in the most senior and visible committees for hiring and policy development, more Black women in full professorships mean more diverse perspectives when policies are developed and more cultural sensitivity during hiring searches. Research The findings of this study helped to identify areas of future research on Black women senior administrators. Scholarship on Black women in the academy is growing, but there are still areas that are understudied. First, the underrepresentation of Black women in administration cannot be addressed without a better understanding of their experiences; however, this study is one of the few in the last decade to tackle the problem. Therefore, more studies should be conducted on Black women in administration, as they continue to be an understudied population. The existing literature on Black women administrators have not been updated in the past decade and primarily consists of dissertations, rather than peer reviewed articles. Black women are particularly underrepresented in research on academic administration. According to Black Feminist Thought, Black women are the best to serve as the authors and narrators of their own experiences. It is my hope that in the future, more Black women scholars will emerge and advance the scholarship on Black women in academic administration. 211 Next, there should be more attention focused on the distinctive roles of academic deans. The role of dean is changing based on market trends (Butin, 2016), and more deans are becoming presidents without serving as provosts first. Deans are becoming more and more responsible for fundraising, managing their college?s budget, and held accountable for their school?s rankings and innovation (Butin, 2016). Participants noted that their type of deanship was also sometimes more aligned with the position of president than the provost. In a 2017 study done by Deloitte?s Center for Higher Education Excellence and Georgia Tech, over 800 CVs from university presidents were reviewed. Sixty-four percent of college presidents at institutions with less than 5,000 students were deans as their last previous position was dean (Selingo, Chheng, & Clark, 2017). Deans at smaller institutions are more likely to function as ?mini-presidents.? Larger institutions are starting to see more deans bypass the provost position to become presidents as well. Currently, ten percent of presidents at institutions with over 20,000 students were deans (Selingo, Chheng, & Clark, 2017). The shift in the dean position complicates what we know as the ?traditional? path to the presidency, particularly as the dean position becomes more aligned with the president and provosts serve in a more complementary role. Some participants mentioned attending leadership training programs as a means to gain the skills necessary to be successful in administration. Little research has been conducted on the impact of these emerging leadership programs, such as the ACE Fellows or the ACE Spectrum Aspiring Leader Programs. These programs are designed to attract faculty and mid-level administrators and immerse them in the culture of higher 212 education leadership. There have been two dissertations (DeFrantz-Dufor, 2007; Navarro, 2015) that examined the impact of the ACE Fellows Program; one focused specifically on Black women and the other addressed women more generally. DeFrantz-Dufor (2007) found that Black women viewed their participation in the ACE Fellows program as improving their professional development and Navarro (2015) suggested these programs had a positive impact on the career advancement of women. There are three journal articles on such programs (Chibucos & Green, 1989; Green, 1984; Smith & Ross, 2005) and they found that women and minoritized persons did not advance into senior positions at the same rate as their white counterparts. And women and people of color were more likely to hold assistant and associate administrative titles rather than the more senior titles, even though the programs were beneficial to their professional development (Chibucos & Green, 1989, Green, 1984). The studies could stand to be updated. Therefore, we do not know if these programs have an influence on the aspirations and goals of today?s Black women in university administration. Participants in my study described sponsors more often and in more detail than they mentioned mentors. Future scholars should explore what sponsorship looks like for Black women and minoritized persons in general. There is a vast number of studies done on the importance of mentorship and how the lack of access to it can negatively affect the retention of Black faculty and administrators (Dixon, 2013; Griffin et al., 2011; Mayhew et al, 2006; Jayakumar et al., 2009). The research on sponsorship is primarily centered in business journals and on women, not Black women specifically (Mattis, 2001; Ibarra, Carter, & Silver, 2010; Desveaux, Devillard-Hoelligener, & Meaney, 2008), although it 213 is emerging in a higher education context. More scholarship should be done to determine how mentors and sponsors can work together to promote Black women throughout their careers, or how mentors can expand their roles to also serve as sponsors. There are several mentorship programs designed to help minoritized populations advance in the academy, but how effective are they? Should institutions encourage mentors to consider facilitating the creation of opportunities for their mentees in addition to career and socioemotional support? Yosso?s Community Cultural Wealth was a useful framework that fostered a deeper understanding of who was instrumental in cultivating capital and supporting Black women administrators in their lives. CCW should continue to be applied to other minoritized populations in faculty and administration to identify the unique ways they cultivate and find value in capital that other frameworks would miss. For example, familial capital was a prominent theme in this study. The findings of this study suggest that what constitutes as familial capital and family ties may be different for minoritized populations than the dominant culture and should be valued. For example, family included parents, partners, children, and sister like friends via ?sister circles.? Each entity influenced the career trajectories and experiences of the Black women in this study. Families also comprised the basis of aspirational capital in the participants. Using CCW allowed me to discern that parents were important figures to the participants, with mothers were highly instrumental in shaping their aspirations and pushing them to thrive in different environments. 214 The value of sister circles was amplified through the lens of CCW because it illuminated how these special friendships between Black women could also serve as a retention tool and a form of professional development. Affirmation of positive and negative experiences reminded the women in this study they were not alone. They felt that they could persist in the workplace knowing they have the power of their sisters behind them. As a professional development tool, sister circles showed how Black women could uplift each other by nominating their sisters for awards and citing their research in their own courses. These participants were able to move through a patriarchal system that values individuality in a very collective manner. Expanding Yosso?s framework led me to ask how Black women uniquely see social capital and social ties, and provided me with an even deeper understanding of how they understood their sister circles were more than just friends. Conclusion Women exit academia at every faculty and leadership level, leading up to the presidency, more than men (ACE, 2015; Anders, 2004; Blickenstaff, 2005; Touchton, Musil, & Campbell, 2008). According to extant research, reasons why women leave include salary inequity, unfriendly work environment, family responsibilities, and for advancement opportunities in industry (ACE, 2015, Arnst, 2016; Eagly, 2004; Laursen et al., 2007; Sandler & Hall, 1986). For Black women, these reasons are amplified. Black women experience a chilly climate, isolation, lacked mentorship, and fought for legitimacy in the academy. And as Black women transition from faculty to administrators, their experiences do not improve. There is more isolation, even less 215 mentorship, and the climate becomes even colder. As Black women advance to administration, they learned to navigate their new identities as administrators, adjust to a shift in their job responsibilities, gain new managerial and leadership skills, and negotiate their work/life balance in ways not asked of men (Armenti, 2004; Jackson & O?Callaghan, 2009; Mason & Goulden, 2002; Ward & Wolf-Wendel, 2004; Wolf- Wendel et al., 2006). While the reasons for attrition outlined in the literature are valuable, I still questioned how Black women saw their own career path. I wanted to know how Black women viewed the traditional path to the presidency and if they saw themselves on the path. This study illustrates some of the reasons why there is a lack of Black women in the senior administrative positions, traditionally on the path to the presidency, in light of a quickly diversifying student population. The topic was important to me because as a student at a research-intensive university, I wanted to know why I did not see many Black women in senior academic administrative positions and why was it so rare to see a Black woman at the helm of a research-intensive university. Especially since the student body is more female and more minoritized than ever before, university leadership should reflect its student population. The purpose of this study was to examine the career trajectories of Black women in academic administration to help determine why Black women are not better represented in the number of college presidencies. After interviewing 15 participants, it became clear that the women did not necessarily see themselves as on the track to a presidency. Only one participant was interested in a presidency, but all participants were 216 aware that their positions could serve as precursors to a presidential position. The majority of the women in this study were recruited into their roles, which could help explain their lack of enthusiasm about becoming a college president. Administration was not the goal for thirteen of the participants and therefore they did not see themselves in administration before they became administrators. Thus, while the term ?pipeline? denotes a direct path, it might be more beneficial to describe the positions leading to the presidency as a maze with multiple exits. Participants described a shift in their professional identities when they became administrators. It was difficult to adopt an administrative persona when they continued to see themselves as faculty. The role that embodied this struggle the most was the department chair. Department chairs personified the ?squeeze position? where participants described being torn because they were still faculty and also administrators, while also upholding the expectations of administration and attempting to manage their faculty peers. If universities want to cultivate administrative aspirations in Black women who become chairs, senior administrators should think about supporting Black women as they adjust to their new professional identities. Otherwise it becomes more likely that the chair will return to the faculty. Participants were aware of racism and sexism in their roles as faculty and administrators, but they did not see it as a hindrance to their advancement. Instead, the women leaned on the capital gained from their support networks to mitigate the impact of racism and sexism. My findings support the literature in that Black women feel a responsibility to do race and gender based service, but participants did not view the 217 service as an extra workload. Instead they internalized the service as them being subject matter experts. Universities must still be held accountable to promote an inclusive environment. Universities should not take for granted that Black women find external coping mechanisms to handle racist and sexist environments. Additionally, the volume of race and gender based service should not solely fall on the responsibility of minoritized administrators. The Black women in this study cultivated and relied on their reliable support systems, which were often dependent on off-campus and non-academic relationships. While the workplace does not have to function as a social entity, it often does and Black women are more likely to feel left out of the social aspects of their department and college cultures. If universities want to encourage more Black women to pursue administrative positions, they should ensure Black women have access to support systems within the university as faculty and at the administrative level. My study illustrated that although Black women can be positioned well to pursue a presidency, it does not mean they inherently desire a presidency. Universities have to take diversifying their senior administrative ranks as seriously as they do their student body. Until they do so, the few Black women institutions do have in senior roles will continue experience tokenism and have to question the intentions of their superiors. Universities must also consider when they approach faculty for administrative positions. If institutions are working in the best interest of faculty candidates, they should either wait until faculty are promoted to full professor or protect their time so they can continue 218 their research until promotion. Otherwise they are limiting the career prospects of Black women before they could even consider a presidency. There is a popular phrase on social media that is an applicable plea for universities to consider as they try to cultivate Black women as future presidents: ?When Black women win, we all win? (Thompson, 2019). The idea behind the statement is because Black women hold two marginalized identities, therefore when Black women are in charge everyone gets uplifted. Black women have the ability to shape policies with empathy for the most vulnerable populations in mind. Black women have to overcome racial and gendered challenges in ways whites do not, which means Black women possess the tools and creativity to help lead universities to success. 219 APPENDICES Recruitment Email Dear Dr. XX, I?m Candice Staples, a Ph.D candidate in the higher education concentration at the University of Maryland ? College Park. I am conducting a research study that will attempt to explore the career trajectory of Black women in senior level administrative positions. The objective of this inquiry is to understand the external and internal factors that affect Black women who move from faculty to administration, in addition to the forms of capital they acquire and cultivate throughout their careers. I am interested in interviewing you to gain a better understanding of your experience in the workplace because of your ethnic background and gender. The interview will last about 90 minutes and will focus on your career path, your institution, and your work environment. This project constitutes partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree at the University of Maryland within the Higher Education, Student Affairs, International Education Policy Program. There are no direct benefits to participants. However, possible benefits include a contribution to research on diversity hiring practices and retention. Your participation is voluntary and you can terminate your participation at any time. Your name will not be identified or linked to the data at any time unless you give your express consent to reveal these identities. The data you provide through your responses will not be shared with other participants. Only the principal investigator will have access to the participants? names. 220 If you have any questions related to this study, please feel free to contact me at 414-248-1074. The project is conducted with the supervision of my adviser, Dr. Kimberly Griffin, who can be reached at kgriff29@umd.edu. I appreciate your support and participation with this study. Sincerely, Candice L. Staples Ph.D. Candidate University of Maryland 221 Demographic Questionnaire 1. How would you classify your race/ethnicity? (Please check all that apply) a. American Indian/Alaskan Native b. Asian/Asian American c. Black/African American d. Caucasian/White e. Latinx/Hispanic f. Multiracial/Biracial 2. Please indicate your gender: a. Female b. Male c. Other 3. What is the highest level of education you have completed? a. Master?s Degree b. Ph.D c. Ed.D d. Professional Degree 4. What year did you receive your terminal degree? 5. How long have you worked at your current institution? 6. What is your academic discipline? 7. Is your current position permanent or temporary? 222 Interview Questions Career Development 1. Tell me about your career path. 2. Are you where you thought you would be at this stage in your career? How so? Why not? 3. Please describe how you first became involved in higher education administration. 4. Can you describe your transition from faculty to administrator? a. How did you prepare for your transition? b. If you could advise others making a similar transition what suggestions would you have? 5. Can you tell me about your current role - what are your responsibilities and title? Why did you want this job? 6. How did you feel about pursuing your current role? 223 7. Thinking back to the most significant positions you have held, what motivated you to pursue certain roles? 8. How did you select the particular institution where you are currently working? a. Some people choose to remain at the same type of institution. For example, moving from one flagship to another. Throughout your career did you remain at the same type of institutions as your current one? Why (the changes or the consistency)? 9. In your opinion, are there any obstacles stopping you from pursuing additional advancement opportunities? If so, what are they? Relationships 10. How have your interactions with colleagues changed as you transitioned from faculty to administration? 11. Can you describe the relationship between you and your faculty and administrative peers? 12. How would you define the relationship you have with your staff? 13. Can you describe the relationship between you and your supervisor? 224 14. Can you think of anyone who has influenced your career? a. What drew you to that person? b. How did they influence your career? What did they do that was helpful or not so helpful in your development? 15. Who, if anyone, do you currently mentor? 16. Can you describe or draw a map of the relationships that are the most important to you personally? c. Can you tell me why each person is significant? d. What you gain from those relationships? 17. 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