#Blacks in Education

[ausetkmt]

An exodus of Black women in academia hurts the workforce

The burden that Black people, particularly women, in academia carry is rarely recognized by the outside world.

But just weeks into 2024, it’s made national news. First, it was the resignation of former Harvard President Claudine Gay after a prolonged public campaign of harassment that culminated with plagiarism allegations. Now it’s the suicide of Lincoln University’s vice president of student affairs, Antoinette “Bonnie” Candia-Bailey, who alleged she was “intentionally harassed and bullied” by Lincoln University President John B. Moseley after disclosing her mental health struggles.

To be sure, Gay created some of her own problems with her legalistic congressional testimony on antisemitism, which was roundly critiqued. The plagiarism allegations, which she’s addressed, also hurt her. But we would be remiss if we discounted the extent to which racist and sexist undertones, rooted in antagonism of what her appointment represented, played a role.

The public experiences of Gay and Candia-Bailey have compelled other Black Americans in higher education to share their own stories. Take a scroll through social media, and you’ll see Ph.D. candidates and graduates sharing stories of feeling depressed, being passed up for tenure, and leaving programs because they were mistreated.

It’s no wonder why only about 6% of all faculty in colleges and universities are Black (it gets lower as you go up the ladder). And it’s no wonder the number hasn’t moved much since the early 1980s, when it was 4.2%. Black faculty navigate the typical academic hurdles and many invisible yet consequential ones, such as managing implicit and explicit messages about their belonging and bearing a disproportionate responsibility for supporting students of color. Add unprecedented levels of public scrutiny to the already high invisible costs of leadership, and as Zaire Z. Dinzey-Flores notes, “This is how Black women leaders do not survive.”

As businesses reconsider their commitment to diversity and look to colleges and universities as partners to develop and recruit diverse talent, these troubling trends jeopardize their aims.

Not only does seeing Black leaders on campuses affirm that Black students belong and are a source of inspiration for what they can aspire to. But for White and non-Black students of color, it helps counter the default belief that leadership can only be synonymous with whiteness. This is a subtle impression, of course, but an important one. College plays an outsize role in educating and mentoring the next generations of the workforce and shapes their workplace expectations.

And since many US students have never had a Black teacher — much less a principal — throughout elementary and high school, encountering them as leaders in higher education is an opportunity to challenge unconscious biases with exposure. Yet our paucity of Black leaders at present inhibits this aim, and we risk a new generation of leaders witnessing this moment and sitting leadership out.

We must figure out how to attract and keep Black leaders in academia. A good place to start is acknowledging that the adage, Black people work twice as hard to be recognized half as much, is not from a bygone era. Sexism, for Black women, and racism have kept that expectation alive and, unfortunately, well. If you need proof, I’d start by considering how many reports you’ve seen in recent years that still include “the first Black woman to…”

But recognizing the uneven playing field without actively working to level it is, to borrow loosely from biblical scripture, faith without works. After organizations shed a race- and gender-blind approach to a gender- and race-specific reality, they must be prepared to offer support and guidance to ensure the success of the candidates they recruit.

When it comes to bringing Black women into predominantly and traditionally White male spaces, this means anticipating challenges that may stem from the change and not treating biased attacks as an opportunity for them to demonstrate that they can do their job.

If not, in addition to Gay and Candia-Bailey, we’ll have more stories like Lesley Lokko, who called her decision to step down as dean of the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture at City College of New York “a profound act of self-preservation.”

In a public resignation letter, Lokko, who came from teaching in South Africa, wrote, “The lack of respect and empathy for Black people, especially Black women, caught me off guard, although it’s by no means unique to Spitzer.”

She left after only 10 months in 2020. Candia-Bailey’s passing was eight months into her role. Gay stepped down as Harvard’s president after six months — the shortest tenure in the university’s history.

But simply focusing on those who did not thrive in their roles would miss another crisis surrounding Black women’s leadership. Last year, JoAnne A. Epps of Temple University and Orinthia T. Montague of Volunteer State Community College died while in their roles. While their devastating deaths weren’t officially linked to the stress of their jobs, the untimeliness of their passing sparked conversations about the high cost of success.

If we want to turn the tide, we can no longer stand by and watch Black women suffer in silence — at the cost of their own well-being. We must acknowledge the load they bear and provide meaningful support to manage it. If we do not, an exodus of Black leaders is coming, and that will shape the lives of students — and, by default, our future workforce.

[scentednerdkingdom]

[blackcentric]

[blackwomenrule]

[alaa-pales]

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[losttimpactt]

A new viewpoint on antlers reveals the evolutionary history of deer (Cervidae, Mammalia)

fullview recommended!

something i've wanted to do for a while now. i've scoured the internet for something like this and can't find anything that compares all the different types of antlers together. except one recent study on their evolution, which is also very interesting on its own! i simplified it to provide a visual reference, while still trying to be scientifically accurate. some things differ between this and trophy scoring terminology like where the beam is and whatnot, so if something looks weird that's why.

small additional note, this study and others provide a lot of evidence that eld's deer should be in their own genus as it doesn't appear similar enough to barasingha and schomburgk's deer. however this doesn't seem to be adapted anywhere yet, so they're still in Rucervus for this guide.

🔴 KO-FI

⚫ COMMISSION INFO

[reality-detective]

* * * News Interruption * * *

[pilloclock]

FREE CONGO 🇨🇩

We have to talk about Congo as well, they are so in need of our awareness that they’re setting themselves on fire because no one cares enough !

[disease]

MOVING X-RAYS [1938]

[tuttle-did-it]

“We’re trained to be like, ‘If I’m not exceptional, I won’t be loved.’ Certainly, I think that was my thing,” Gatwa shared. “So, yeah, I think I’m just learning now like, ‘Oh, you are allowed to be loved.’ You don’t have to be excellent or aspire to that term, ‘Black excellence’. What the hell?”

He continued, “There’s so much white mediocrity that gets celebrated, and Black people, we have to be absolutely flawless to get half of [that] anyway. So, I’m slowly training myself out of that and being like, ‘No shit. You deserve love just for existing.’ And that has taught me to be a lot more loving as well, in a weird way.”

No lies detected

edit - adding link to original article here.

[alwaysbewoke]

[mimi-0007]

Here is a little history for individuals who are fans of the movies Top Gun and Top Gun: Maverick.

The first Top Gun competition was held in 1949.

The caucasian pilots competed with the latest state of art aircraft, while the African-American pilots were forced to compete with the much older, obsolete planes.

After 3 days of competition, the Tuskegee Airmen team of : Captain Alva Temple, 1st Lieutenant Harry Stewart, 1st Lieutenant James Harvey, and 1st Lieutenant Halbert Alexander (alternate) were announced the winners.

There was dead silence in the room.

Not one of their (hypocritical) colleagues applauded this accomplishment.

The victory was swept under the rug, and the trophy was not seen by the public for 55 years.

Introducing the real Top Guns

[diana-andraste]

Sex Education (How to Feel), vintage Japanese illustration, c. 1960s

[blackwomenrule]

[alaa-pales]

Stop Torturing our Children💔‼‼

Gaza is experiencing a catastrophic spread of skin diseases due to harsh living conditions. Overcrowding in tents, high temperatures, water shortages, and the lack of essential nutritious food contribute to the worsening situation. The press photos reflect the suffering of residents from skin diseases caused by environmental pollution and poor sanitation, which exacerbates their hardship and further endangers their health and daily lives. 😥

وتشهد غزة انتشاراً كارثياً للأمراض الجلدية نتيجة الظروف المعيشية القاسية، حيث تساهم الاكتظاظ في الخيام وارتفاع درجات الحرارة ونقص المياه ونقص الأغذية المغذية الأساسية في تفاقم الوضع. وتعكس الصور الصحفية معاناة السكان من الأمراض الجلدية الناجمة عن التلوث البيئي وسوء الصرف الصحي، مما يفاقم معاناتهم ويعرض صحتهم وحياتهم اليومية للخطر

Save our children from this war. Link for donation 👇🔗🍉

[queerism1969]