Mentor-shape: exploring the mentoring relationships of Black women in doctoral programs

Rasheem, S.; Alleman, Ali-Sha; Mushonga, Dawnsha R.; Anderson, David A.; Vakalahi, Halaevalu F. Ofahengaue

doi:10.1080/13611267.2018.1445443

Cited by 37 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Doctoral students value mentorship because it can help develop self-esteem, competence, and career efficacy (Carpenter et al, 2015). Several scholars have reported that students receive knowledge, advice, stimulation, and support from their advisors (Davidson & Foster-Johnson, 2001;Patton & Harper, 2003;Rasheem et al, 2018). Rutledge et al (2011) indicated graduate students wanted their advisors to display supportiveness, a high level of interaction, provide regular reviews of progress, and treat the students as junior colleagues.…”

Section: Advisor-advisee Relationshipmentioning

confidence: 99%

Black women in STEM graduate programs: The advisor selection process and the perception of the advisor/advisee relationship.

Bryson¹,

Kowalske²

2022

Journal of Diversity in Higher Education

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An advisor is often the most central and influential person influencing Black women's trajectory throughout graduate school. This study explored how and why Black women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) doctoral programs selected their advisors and their perceptions of the advisor/advisee relationship. Black Feminist Thought (BFT) was used to explore Black women's experiences at predominantly White institutions (PWIs) as it provides an in-depth understanding from the perspective of Black women and highlights often-ignored power dynamics. Data were collected using three unique semistructured interviews over a year and a half with each participant. The interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed with emergent coding. Findings suggest students selected their advisors for various reasons: compatibility, lab availability, research interest, funding, and faculty interest in working with a student. Notably, participants preferred advisors who provided a hands-on advising style over a hands-off advising style. In addition, students who developed a positive relationship with their advisor performed better academically and made better progress within their program compared to students who viewed their relationship as less compatible. This study's findings may help inform advisors, at PWIs, on how better to assist Black women advisees, thereby improving the degree completion rates and graduate program success for Black women in STEM.

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Section: Advisor-advisee Relationshipmentioning

confidence: 99%

Black women in STEM graduate programs: The advisor selection process and the perception of the advisor/advisee relationship.

Bryson¹,

Kowalske²

2022

Journal of Diversity in Higher Education

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“…Furthermore, Dr. Wilson and Dr. Mattis were instrumental in helping me navigate the sociohistorical context and my academic environment as a Black woman. The safety I felt in discarding my academic mask (Shavers & Moore, 2014) and being vulnerable in their classes was due in large part to our shared identities (Rasheem et al, 2018) and their attention to race, racism, and social justice in their courses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To navigate the various obstacles Black women may confront in their doctoral programs, scholars have emphasized the importance of Black women seeking and sustaining culturally responsive mentoring relationships (Bertrand Jones et al, 2013;Gooden et al, 2020;Rasheem et al, 2018). Bertrand Jones et al (2013) asserted that Black doctoral women benefit from relationships with mentors who are aware of the intersecting oppressions Black women encounter in their lived realities.…”

Section: Literature Review Black Women In Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Relatedly, in Gooden et al's (2020 autoethnographic study, the authors expressed the importance of connecting with critically conscious mentors who can help Black women navigate predominantly white institutional contexts. Black doctoral women participating in Rasheem et al's (2018) study reported benefitting from relationships with mentors who shared their identities and interests. These relationships provided Black women in the study with transformational growth and personal development, as their mentors offered encouragement and promoted mentees' success in their programs.…”

Section: Literature Review Black Women In Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unbroken

Morton

2021

JETHE

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In this critical autoethnography, I examine my lived experiences as a Black woman doctoral student during the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. Further, as I recount my academic journey in the wake of assaults to Black life and resulting Black resistance, I discuss the pedagogical interventions of Black women faculty members that made me feel as if my life and work mattered in their classrooms. I revisit spoken word poems and class assignments written between 2015 and 2017 along with news articles documenting national events occurring at the time as relevant texts to help me explore and understand my experiences. I utilize Critical Race Theory as an analytic lens, focusing on the following tenets: persistence of racism, critique of color-evasiveness, and counterstorytelling. I conclude with implications regarding how introducing graduate students to critical theory and methodologies can equip them with the tools to empirically explore and articulate their lived realities. Moreover, I discuss how such explorations can be validating and healing as students navigate particularly challenging academic and sociohistorical contexts. Additionally, I describe how providing students with creative outlets to express themselves in coursework can help them process their experiences and produce material that is humanizing, liberating, and life-giving.

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“…Mentoring relationships significantly provide Black women increased access to resources and opportunities for advancement (Rasheem, Alleman, Mushonga, Anderson, & Ofahengaue Vakalahi, 2018). Proximity in relationship to other Black women in leadership is an essential and effective tool to combat discrimination and unfair treatment concerning hiring and promotion of Black and African‐American women for chief executive roles (Lindsay, 1999).…”

Section: Black Female Leadership Development In Higher Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%