The Contribution of HBCUS to the Preparation of African American Women for Stem Careers: A Case Study (original) (raw)
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This study uses case study analysis to explore the ways that Spelman College, a historically Black women’s college, promotes the attainment of African American women in STEM fields. Although limited to one institution, the findings shed light on the ways that institutional characteristics, policies, and practices may mitigate the barriers that limit attainment of African American women in STEM fields. Drawing on the findings, the paper concludes with recommendations for improving policy and practice as well as recommendations for additional fruitful research.
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Department of chemistry and biochemistry; principal investigator, Women of Color Legacy Project, Spelman College "African American women are standing in a room skewed by stereotypes that deny their humanity and distort them into ugly caricatures of their true selves. As they struggle to find the upright in this crooked room, they are beset by the emotional, physiological, and political consequences of race and gender shaming. This shaming has tangible, even disastrous consequence…"
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The U.S. became a global leader during the twentieth century, due in part to the creativity and enterprise of its engineers, scientists and inventors. Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) professions were essential to America's past and are critical to the country's future. Currently, the U.S. has lost its competitive edge, and is no longer the world's technological leader. Our once prominent position has diminished, in part, by disparities in STEM education, primarily due to the comparatively small number of students currently pursuing STEM education and their associated careers. By increasing the number of STEM graduates, especially among under-represented groups, the federal government aspires to harness America's full potential. In 2007, President Bush signed the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science Act (American COMPETRES Act) into law. While, the American COMPETES Act (2007) covered a wide range of activities, it had little direct impact on minority STEM education opportunities. This article explores various policy issues needed to alleviate the barriers that limit the success of minority students, specifically African American women, at all levels of STEM education; and identifies specific higher education strategies that directly determine the academic success of female minority STEM college students.
African American Women STEM Majors' Lived Experiences in Community College
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African American Women STEM Majors’ Lived Experiences in Community College by Loretta Diane Westry MA, Auburn University at Montgomery, 2005 BS, University of Montevallo, 2000 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Education Walden University August 2016 Abstract The United States economy has an accelerating demand for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related degrees and programs that makes it essential for members of minority populations to achieve degrees in these fields. African American women are underrepresented in STEM fields, suggesting a need to better understand their development and needs while attending community college. This hermeneutical, phenomenological research study investigated the lived experiences and perspectives of African American women enrolled in STEM majors at community colleges. The conceptual framework used to interpret data for this study was derived from Maslow, E...
International Journal of STEM Education, 2022
Background Repeated calls to diversify the population of students earning undergraduate degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields have noted the greater diversity of community college students and their potential to thus have an impact on the racial/ethnic composition of 4-year degree earners. In this paper, we investigate barriers and supports to Black women’s success in STEM, using longitudinal interview data with seven Black women who were enrolled at community colleges and stated an interest in majoring in STEM at 4-year institutions. Results Our findings highlight a contrast between community colleges and universities. At community colleges, Black women were able to form supportive relationships with professors and peers, downplayed the potential of racism and sexism to derail their STEM ambitions, and saw little to no impact of bias on their educational experiences. Those students who transferred characterized university climates very different...
Information Sheet: Increasing Diversity in STEM by Attracting Community College Women of Color
Attracting more women of color to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from students attending community colleges is a practical and expeditious route to diversifying STEM. To attract women of color, a focused effort at recruitment and retention, informed by an understanding of the challenges and obstacles, is required; however, little research has explored the experiences of women-ofcolor STEM students while enrolled in community colleges or after they transfer to a university. This review presents research about STEM experiences in higher education for women, students of color, and transfer students, affirming the need for more research on women of color at community colleges for diversifying the U.S. STEM workforce.
Beyond the Numbers: An Analysis of the Under-representation of Black Women in STEM fields
This paper examines the lack of Black women in STEM fields and how systemic racism contributes to it. Education is intended to be a way to develop and nurture young minds and lives. For many students of color, specifically Black girls, due to their socioeconomic status they attend schools with little resources. The systemic racism that causes Black girls to attend underfunded and under resourced schools, also causes them to face educator bias, and have a lack of confidence fueled by lack of representation. Educator bias limits Black girls from opportunities that could expose them to STEM like gifted education and Algebra 1. Lack of representation causes Black girls to experience stereotype threat, lack of self-efficacy. Introduction “African-American students are gifted and brilliant. They do not have a culture of poverty but a culture of richness that can be brought into classrooms to facilitate learning” (Delpit 5). Education is a stepping stone in the lives of many Americans, but...