Tired of Always Grinding: Black Womxn Faculty’s Experiences During COVID-19

Abstract

The dueling pandemics of COVID-19 and racism brought to light the inequities Black womxn face in higher education in regard to service burdens. We argue Black womxn are overextended and suffering in their careers and lives as a result of this taxation. Methods. A sample of 191 faculty at a predominantly White university (PWI) in the Midwest United States responded to a survey about attitudes towards service obligations, sense of belonging, and community culture, centering on race, ethnicity, and gender as well as the impact of COVID on service obligations. Due to the limited number of Black womxn participants, their characteristics are only reported in the overall data based on their identity or race. Findings. Gender, race, and feeling a part of the community were found to be significant predictors of voluntarily taking on student-centered service related to identity and being asked to take on service related to identity. Black womxn faculty were approximately 78 times more likely than White male faculty to volunteer for identity-based service. Black womxn faculty were approximately 473 times more likely than White male faculty to be asked to participate in identity-based service. The COVID-19 pandemic and racism have had a significant impact on everyone's lives, but it has been especially difficult for BIPOC and Black women. They have faced emotional, spiritual, and physical challenges. Therefore, it is crucial for higher education institutions to create safe spaces where Black women can live their best and most productive lives.