Protect Black Women Teachers: Influencing Sustainability Through Mental Health Literacy

Abstract

Critical Black women teachers (BWTs) play a vital role in education. They employ pedagogies that are political in nature and effective in outcome, particularly for Black students in urban schools. However, despite their impact, BWTs leave the profession at rates higher than all other teachers. Therefore, this study engaged sista circle methodology to explore how post-service critical BWTs reflected on their teaching experiences, specifically regarding their mental health and the role it had on their decision to leave the profession. Based on the findings, recommendations are made to key stakeholders to support critical BWTs’ mental health and sustainability in urban schools.

Far-Right Misogynoir: A Critical Thematic Analysis of Black College Women's Experiences With White Male Supremacist Influences

“…This study thus contributes to psychology literature on gendered racism (e.g., Lewis et al, 2013) to specify Black women's experiences of far-right misogynoir by naming far-right ideologies as manifestations of white and male supremacy, examining far-right misogynoir in Black women's experiences at a predominately white selective liberal arts college, and analyzing how Black women made meaning of far-right misogynoir. Consistent with prior research on Black women's psychological experiences of gendered racism (Spates et al, 2020; Young, 2022) and on the connection between misogynoir and mental health concerns among Black women (Bailey, 2016; Lee & Thomas, 2022), our participants shared that their psychological wellness was at stake due to far-right misogynoir. This finding supports previous research that identified associations between far-right activity and psychological health risks among marginalized students (Albright & Hurd, 2020; Leath et al, 2022).…”

Black Educators’ Racial Identity Attitudes and Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: A Psychological Framework and Survey of Within-Race Diversity

“…D. Lee, 1992; Shockley & Cleveland, 2011) support the notion that Black educators who center history and culture of the African diaspora in their teaching are those whose racial identities are rooted in the uniqueness of Black people's lived experiences (i.e., higher nationalist ideology). Similarly, more recent work on Black educators who explicitly seek professional learning and support communities around the broader interests of Black people also suggests that these educators may already arrive ideologically disposed to integrate African American culture in the curriculum (S. J. Lee & Thomas, 2022).…”

“…Similarly, more recent work on Black educators who explicitly seek professional learning and support communities around the broader interests of Black people also suggests that these educators may already arrive ideologically disposed to integrate African American culture in the curriculum (S. J. Lee & Thomas, 2022).…”