Addressing Gender Issues in the Historically Black College and University Community: A Challenge and Call to Action

Abstract

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. This content downloaded from 128.235.251.160 on TueBlack women have long struggledfor parity with men and White women in the U.S. academy. They continue to experience a pattern of location at the bottom of the employment, rank, and tenure ladders. This article's focus on gender issues at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) is driven by data revealing a pattern of gender inequity and discrimination at HBCUsdisparities made more challenging because they are confounded by and in conflict with issues of race. It addresses the consequences of the lack of attention paid to gender concerns at HBCUs for those institutions and for the wider academy.Howard University, in conjunction with the Ford Foundation and the National Science Foundation, sponsored the conference, "Black Women in the Academy II: Service and Leadership," in Washington, D.C., in 1999. The four-day, multifaceted meeting was designed to foster discussion and research aimed at improving Black women's preparation for and participation in careers in the sciences, and improve their leadership and advancement in higher education overall. The plenary addresses, panels, workshops, and research presentations provided a wide range of opportunities for Black women scholars and administrators. They allowed the conference participants-over 1,000 women from disciplines across the academy-to work with other women as well as men to find solutions to their identified needs. Among those identified were the needs for more mentors in the sciences; for targeted research dollars to support more lab experiences, fieldwork, and publication opportunities; and for parity in income and status with other groups within the academy. Structured evaluations completed by the participants as well as informal comments gleaned from conversations overheard during the conference suggested that the four days were productive-that is, most of those needs were addressed. Noticeably absent from the dialogue, however, was a focus on the conditions and concerns of women at the nation's historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). This article is an attempt to begin that discussion.Using National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) data, Knopp (1996) highlighted the following statistics: * 55% of all college students are women. * One-fourth of those are women of color. * 45% are over age 24. * Only 13% earned degrees in engineering, while 31% earned degrees in the physical sciences as well as increased numbers in professional degrees.Knopp also pointed out in this mid-1990s study that the degrees earned by women were concentrated at the undergraduate level and in fields traditionally dominated by women. Her observations about women facult...

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“…For example, the research echoes findings by multiple scholars indicating that African American women experience marginalization on HBCU campuses both inside and outside the classroom (see, for example, Bonner, 2001;Geiger, 2007;Gurin and Epps, 1975). In general, the research suggests African American women at HBCUs are more likely to feel dominated in the classroom and in extracurricular activities, are less likely to engage with faculty members, and often choose academic majors that fit gender stereotypes (Allen, 1992;Fleming, 1984;Bonner, 2001). Interestingly, most larger studies of gender at HBCUs were conducted before the mid-1990s, and thus the nature of these gender-related experiences at HBCUs appears to be changing.…”

“…A subset of HBCU literature explores the role of gender in these environments (see Bonner, 2001;Cokley, 2001;Gasman, 2007b;Geiger, 2007;Harper, Carini, Bridges, and Hayek, 2004;Peters and others, 2005;Tabbye and others, 2004;Wang, Browne, Storr, and Wagner, 2005). In fact, although some documents provide descriptive statistics on gender at HBCUs with little analysis of the disparity (see, for example, Geiger, 2007;Nettles, Perna, Edelin, and Robertson, 1996;Provasnik, Shafer, and Snyder, 2004), some empirically based publications explicitly consider gender at HBCUs.…”

“…Although the review sheds light on black male-dominated administration of HBCUs, it does little to consider African American male students (Gasman, 2007b). In effect, a steadily growing body of literature on gender at HBCUs essentially highlights the African American female experience (for example, Bonner, 2001;Ferguson, Quinn, Eng, and Sandelowski, 2006;Gasman, 2007b;Lent and others, 2005;Watt, 2006).…”

“…Bonner (2001) attempts to inspire dialogue on gender at HBCUs; however, a review of the research questions reveals black women are the focal point. In addition, Gasman's historiography of gender and black colleges (2007b) effectively reviews and critiques the systematic exclusion of African American women in HBCU history, leadership, and longevity.…”

“…In fact, although some documents provide descriptive statistics on gender at HBCUs with little analysis of the disparity (see, for example, Geiger, 2007;Nettles, Perna, Edelin, and Robertson, 1996;Provasnik, Shafer, and Snyder, 2004), some empirically based publications explicitly consider gender at HBCUs. Interestingly, this literature is often titled without a specific focus on men or women in the research design, thereby implying consideration of both gender groups (for example, Bonner, 2001;Cokley, 2001;Harper, Carini, Bridges, and Hayek, 2004;Watt, 2006).…”