It is bad enough that some Black college students who attend predominantly White institutions are made to feel inferior or “less than” during their higher education tenure, as identified by Idealist philosopher Georg Hegel in his analysis of the theory of “othering.” Despite battling practices and policies that contribute to continued marginalization, degree-seeking Black women have pushed forward.
According to the 2009 Census Bureau statistics, college participation rates of Black college women doubled between 1971 and 2005. While that is good news, the bad news is that this population continues to struggle with degree completion.
The Census also notes that only one in five black women over the age of 25 hold bachelor’s degrees. This fact alone should heighten awareness related to barriers that need to be identified and rectified. One of the best ways to learn more about what these barriers are should come from the women themselves.
Rachelle Winkle-Wagner, author of “Having Their Lives Narrowed Down? The State of Black Women’s College Success,” argues that program models that put emphasis on the personal stories, voices and experiences of the student have the potential to shed a better light on institutional deficiencies and other contributing factors that negatively impact the lives of college women. It also moves away from analyzing Black college women as one homogenous group, as she points out in her 2015 study that examines the impact of personal characteristics and organizational structures of colleges in determining the success of this group.
The potential of “purposeful connections” with other college women, student affairs practitioners and other professionals may be one way to assist Black college women in their efforts to understand degree-completion barriers so that they can burst through them instead of being suppressed by them.
Many would argue that college campuses currently possess numerous connection pathways and organizations in which Black college women can become involved or connected with others. This may be true, but many of these organizations are student-driven and may require monetary investments, rigorous membership application processes or specific affinities that may not necessarily focus on empowerment practices.
Dr. Lani V. Jones, an assistant professor at the University at Albany-SUNY and a licensed clinical social worker, suggests that institutions should be more intentional about creating spaces for Black college women that address aspects of their psychosocial experiences. These types of experiences should not only include empowerment techniques and practices, but skill development, competency training and personal interactions that integrate critical cultural conversations.
