Black women faculty members at institutions of higher education in the United States are rare. By examining the unique experiences Black women faculty members in community colleges endure, this project aims to acknowledge, assess, and affirm the distinctive experiences of this cadre. Its intent is to disseminate the findings and advocate for…

While community colleges benefit from an increase in African American (AA) male students enrolling at their institutions, a disproportionate number of AA males enroll in college and do not complete a certificate or degree compared to those who earn a certificate or degree. This qualitative study explored how AA male students at community colleges…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how Black faculty describe their experiences of belonging and how those experiences influence employee engagement and intention to stay at the community college. The theoretical framework focused on the belongingness theory and used a conceptual framework of belonging and the Black…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived work experiences of African American/Black male full-time faculty at Midwestern community colleges. Narrative inquiry was used as the design in this study. The data reflects the national statistics indicating the low number of African/American Black male full-time faculty employed at…

This exploratory study sought to gain a better understanding of the nature and extent to which Black, Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) faculty at community college institutions experience racial battle fatigue. This study examined the implications of racial battle fatigue on burnout and the retention of BIPOC faculty at community college…

Despite consistent evidence on the benefits of same-race instructor matching in K-12 settings and developing work in higher education, research has yet to conceptualize and document the incidence of same-race matching. That is, even if same-race matching produces positive effects, how likely are racially minoritized students to ever experience an…

Representation matters and is the center of many conversations about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging today. Representation is not just another trend, and an overwhelming amount of literature and data indicate a need for increased cultural representation, particularly in academia. This Action Research study aimed to understand the…

In this OCCRL Community College Context feature brief, Dr. Francena F.L. Turner calls attention to the need for additional historical study of community college educators, particularly Black women who teach at these institutions.

Objective/Research Question: Critical race theory (CRT) was used with a basic qualitative study to interrogate how racism unfolds at community colleges and how Black community college presidents enact antiracism. The purpose of this study is to enhance understandings about how community college presidents of African descent construct antiracism,…

The purpose of this qualitative, post-intentional phenomenological study was to examine and interrogate the experiences of Black women faculty surrounding promotion and tenure, wage/pay equity, and inclusivity as a reflection of race and gender equity within public two-year community colleges. Ten individuals from various community colleges in the…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore the lived experiences of African American female faculty members within the organizational culture at community colleges in the south. Three research questions that provided guidance for this study: How do African American female faculty members describe their lived experiences…

The increased diversity of students at community colleges makes support and retention of Black women instructional faculty critical. Black women instructional faculty may feel like imposters, receiving messages of inadequacy, despite their achievements. If so, such feelings may impede their ability to serve students and to thrive more generally in…

For years now, reports by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) on local and national community colleges consistently show how the number of Black faculty employed at community colleges is relatively lower than the number of White faculty. Recent data show that Black faculty represent only 7.4% of all instructional staff in community…

Much of the research and discussion of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) focuses on four-year institutions, impeding the significance of their two-year counterparts. Using extant literature and data from the National Center for Education Statistics' "Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System" (IPEDS), this paper…

The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the lived experiences of African American male faculty at community colleges in the Pacific Northwest. Regional data mirrors national statistics denoting the low number of faculty of color working at state-funded community colleges. The literature reviewed for this study suggests that African…