“Brother Where Art Thou?” African American Male Instructors' Perceptions of the Counselor Education Profession

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of African American male counselor educators regarding the limited number of African American male faculty members in counselor education. Implications and suggestions on how universities can recruit and retain African American male faculty members are provided.El propósito de este estudio fue investigar las percepciones de educadores en consejería afroamericanos con respecto al limitado número de miembros afroamericanos entre el profesorado para la educación de consejeros. Se proporcionan implicaciones y sugerencias sobre cómo las universidades pueden contratar y retener profesores varones afroamericanos.

Contributing Factors to Earning Tenure Among Black Male Counselor Educators

“…This finding also articulates how these Black male counselor educators feel pressure to work harder than their counterparts to achieve comparable success, making clear the influence of differential power and privilege in academic and other workplaces (Cavounidis & Lang, ; Crenshaw et al, ). Although resilience and persistence are necessary dispositions as faculty, the experiences of Black male counselor educators underscore the need for a specific kind of persistence (Bradley & Holcomb‐McCoy, ; Brooks & Steen, ; Johnson & Bryan, ). Their narratives serve as learning opportunities for counselor educators about how persistence, resilience, and clarity of purpose are required to navigate faculty careers when race, power, privilege, sociohistorical climate, and institutional norms are influences consistently found to work against Black male faculty.…”

“…Black counselor educators have reported race‐related experiences similar to those of other faculty of color in other disciplines pursuing tenure. Black counseling faculty report institutional and situational bias, unequal treatment, racial microaggressions, and limited mentorship opportunities, all of which can impede the earning of tenure (Bradley & Holcomb‐McCoy, ; Brooks & Steen, ; Holcomb‐McCoy & Addison‐Bradley, ). Black counselor educators have also reported feeling isolated within their universities and departments (Bradley & Holcomb‐McCoy, ; Brooks & Steen, ).…”

“…Despite these struggles, many Black counselor educators express pride and fulfillment in their work. Brooks and Steen () reported that some Black counselor educators relish the opportunity to serve their community and enjoy the freedom to work effectively within the profession. Researchers have found that academic cultural norms can be unwelcoming, discouraging, and oppressive for Black faculty in broader institutional contexts (Wells & Olson, ; Whitfield‐Harris & Lockhart, ; Wingfield, & Wingfield, ) and in counseling programs, where race is a permanent influencing factor (Bradley & Holcomb‐McCoy, ).…”

“…Researchers have associated these difficulties with race‐related issues, particularly at predominantly White institutions (PWIs; Allison, ; Griffin, Pifer, Humphrey, & Hazelwood, ; Griffin, Ward, & Phillips, ; Jackson & Crawley, ; Johnson & Bryan, ). Researchers have documented that Black male faculty face difficulties in occupying spaces that can be disaffirming and psychologically unsafe and that these difficulties may negatively affect their success (Bradley & Holcomb‐McCoy, ; Brooks & Steen, ). Unfortunately, little research exists that amplifies the voices of successful Black male scholars in counselor education who are navigating the tenure process.…”

A Phenomenological Investigation of African American Counselor Education Students' Challenging Experiences

“…Another implication for CE programs with respect to the retention of African American doctoral students is the proactive recruitment and retention of African American CE faculty members. The inability to consistently attract and retain African American faculty is believed to compromise a program's ability to retain African American students because of the role these faculty members play in supporting and mentoring African American doctoral students (Brooks & Steen, 2010; Henfield et al, 2011). This requires that CE and university personnel address the barriers—limited mentorship by senior faculty, for instance—found to be detrimental to recruitment and retention efforts aimed at African American CE applicants and faculty members (Bradley & Holcomb‐McCoy, 2004; Brooks & Steen, 2010).…”