Women of Color in Higher Education: Literature Review

Research shows that women of color (WoC) in higher education are subjected to systemic barriers that hinder them from rising to top leadership positions. The number of WoC in leadership positions is disproportionate to the number of females graduates available for these positions compared to that of their male counterparts. This trend is worse for WoC in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) higher education. This literature review systematically analyzes data gathered from research studies published in academic journals. 

Factors that Influence the Representation of WoC in Higher Education 

Intersectionality of gender and race is one of the most influential factors in the leadership development of WoC in higher education. McChesney (2018) defined intersectionality as the blend of discrimination subjected to individuals with overlapping identities, where each identity faces discrimination on its own. Davis & Maldonado (2015) performed a qualitative phenomenological research study to analyze the effect of race and gender on higher education. Five WoC in senior leadership positions were sampled using convenience sampling. The study used telephone and in-person interviews to collect data. Family values and early childhood experiences are some of the racial aspects that affected the development of leadership in WoC. Sponsors, who were mostly white males, also connected women of color to career opportunities. The intersectionality of gender and race also affect leadership development among women of color. They are particularly vulnerable since individuals belonging to two underprivileged classes face greater inequalities than those in one class (McChesney, 2018). Kim (2008) also emphasized that women of color are under double jeopardy in terms of job availability and lower pay due to their race and gender. Race and gender discrimination hinder the potential of WoC to ascend to senior-level positions. Lastly, the absence of mentorship relationships among WoC acts as a barrier to their advancement (Davis & Maldonado, 2015). These factors lead to the meager representation of women of color in academia. 

WoC face social and structural barriers to ascend to top management positions in higher education. Institutions should commit to diversity at the executive level. Jean-Marie (2011) recommended that institutions should create value and policy statements that support diversity, build cultural capacity and competence, involve women of color in decision-making processes, and hire more women of color as role models for students. 

The intersectionality of race and gender also predicts the identity-safe cues for WoC in the STEM disciplines. Pietri et al. (2018) performed two qualitative experiments to determine how intersectionality predicts effective identity-safe cues for WoC. The study determined that black women were most likely to feel trust, comfort, and belonging towards STEM higher institutions when other black women were featured on the institution’s website. Additionally, a white woman who was seen to be championing issues was favored more by WoC (Pietri et al., 2018). Therefore, the intersection of race and gender does not only affect leadership development for women of color but also trust and belonging. 

A higher representation of WoC faculty is influenced by various factors, such as the diversity of the student population. Main et al. (2020) performed a correlational study to determine the correlation between a diverse student population and a higher representation of Black women faculty. The study found that in 2005, many engineering higher education institutions had not employed at least one woman of color faculty. Linear regression analysis and logit regression were used to analyze the collected data. The most significant factors that influenced the representation of women of color were institutional and departmental characteristics. For example, public non-research institutions located in suburban areas had the highest number of WoC in their faculties. The study also found that there is a positive relationship between women’s higher education completions and the representation of WoC faculty (Main et al., 2020). Therefore, institutional, departmental, and student characteristics influence the representation of WoC in higher education. 

Factors Influencing WoC Persistence in Higher Education 

The level of persistence of WoC also influences their presence in higher education. Ong et al. (2018) performed a qualitative research study where they used interviews as the main data collection method to analyze the effect of counterspaces on enhancing women’s persistence in STEM higher education. The study also examined the struggles that WoC face in higher education that adversely impact their persistence. Some of the research questions addressed in the study include what some of the social factors that have led WoC to consider leaving STEM higher education and those that have led women to remain persistent are. According to Ong et al. (2018), some of the factors that necessitate the formation of counterspaces are experiences of isolation and microaggressions from their colleagues, supervisors, and institutions. The study found that most microaggressions towards WoC in higher education were perpetrated by white male peers. Counterspaces, such as peer relationships, diversity conferences, mentoring relationships, departments, and campus student groups, can act as havens for WoC in higher education. 

Lou (2015) also found that women of color could use counterspaces to overcome marginality and stereotype threat. Counterspaces are psychological and physical spaces where people with minoritized identities can fight oppression and dominant spaces. In such spaces, the non-dominant group finds solidarity, provides support for one another and challenges racism (Lou, 2015). Such spaces can help WoC in higher education to navigate and decolonize political workspaces. 

Microaggression and discrimination are also perpetrated by male students in higher education institutions. Consequently, discrimination impairs the teaching effectiveness of WoC faculty. Pittman (2010) performed a qualitative research study to determine some of the issues that WoC face in higher education. The research determined that white male students showed the highest levels of microaggression against women of color faculty. These students challenged the authority and teaching competency and disrespected the scholarly expertise of women of color. Additionally, Linden (2012) also found that women of color’s abilities and expertise were unappreciated, overlooked, and unrecognized in hegemonic, hierarchical organizations. Therefore, the gendered racism that these women of color faced affected their teaching effectiveness. 

Racism in the US has long contributed to the ineffectiveness of education for people of color, especially African Americans. These effects extended from the slavery era, where African American children as young as ten were expected to work in factories. Furthermore, segregation of educational institutions led to further inequalities in education for people of color. The inequalities caused a black/white achievement gap ( Bartz & Kritsonis, 2019) . Davis (2016) also addressed the presence of racial disparities in educational achievement. He found that students of color in urban school environments are more vulnerable to the politics of race than those in non-urban school environments. These factors have contributed to the US’s tragic legacy in educating African American children. Blaisdell (2016) emphasized that schools should be regarded as racial spaces, which would help researchers appreciate teachers’ roles in the advancement of structural racism in schools. Eliminating racism in learning institutions is dependent on the structural understanding of race. 

The Effect of Structural Racism on Women of Color Employment 

Structural racism disproportionately affects women of color, subsequently affecting their employment. The racism leaves people of color more vulnerable to qualification requirements, such as the demand for higher-education diplomas that are unrelated to work performance. Organizations can increase minority employment by finding alternatives to a higher-education degree. Due to educational inequalities in the US, women of color are more disadvantaged than recent immigrants who have financial and social class advantages (Ezorsky, 2018). Stratton (2016) also found that educational inequalities were advanced by the emphasis of industrial training instead of intellectual training for people of color. Furthermore, there was the whites’ assumption that people of color were incapable of higher learning. Another prejudicial expectation is the lack of leadership skills, which prevents leadership development for women of color (Kim, 2008). Therefore, affirmative action policies for WoC in higher education should be maintained or enhanced. 

Conclusion 

WoC are barely represented in higher education due to various factors. For example, the intersection of gender and race in higher education significantly affects leadership development for WoC. Furthermore, race and gender influence the identity-safe cues for these women, insinuating that a surge in the number of women in higher education institutions would encourage further enrollment by WoC. Various factors, such as social isolation and microaggressions, also influence the retention of WoC in higher education. Microaggressions and racism lower their persistence. The presence of counterspaces for such women enhances persistence. Affirmative action should be implemented to avert the negative consequences of structural racism on the education of women of color. 

References 

Bartz, D. E., & Kritsonis, W. A. (2019). Racism, the White Power Structure, and the Tragic History of the Education of African American Children in the United States. http://www.nationalforum.com/Electronic%20Journal%20Volumes/Bartz,%20David%20E%20%20Racism%20the%20White%20Power%20Structure%20SCHOOLING%20V10%20N1%202019.pdf 

Blaisdell, B. (2016). Schools as racial spaces: Understanding and resisting structural racism.  International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education ,  29 (2), 248-272. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2015.1023228 

Davis, D. R., & Maldonado, C. (2015). Shattering the glass ceiling: The leadership development of African American women in higher education.  Advancing Women in Leadership Journal ,  35 , 48-64. https://doi.org/10.18738/awl.v35i0.125 

Davis Jr, T. J. (2017). The politics of race and educational disparities in Delaware's Public Schools.  Education and Urban Society ,  49 (2), 135-162. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013124516633503 

Ezorsky, G. (2018).  Racism and justice: The case for affirmative action . Cornell University Press. 

Jean-Marie, G. (2011). Unfinished agendas: Trends in women of color’s status in higher education. In Jean-Marie, G., & Lloyd-Jones, B. (Eds.), Women of color in higher education: Turbulent past, promising future (pp. 3-21) . Emerald Group Publishing. 

Kim, M (2008). Women of color: The persistent double jeopardy of race and gender. The American prospect. Retrieved from http://prospect.org/article/women-color 

Linden, P. (2012) Women and the organizational chess game: A qualitative study of gender, discourse, power, and strategy . UMI Dissertation Publishing. https://search.proquest.com/openview/a2923c84faaa687e83320fb9c2299aa9/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y 

Lou, H. C. (2012). Women of color leadership: Utilizing differential consciousness to navigate workspaces.  The Vermont Connection ,  33 (1), 11. http://scholarworks.uvm.edu/tvc/vol33/iss1/11 

Main, J. B., Tan, L., Cox, M. F., McGee, E. O., & Katz, A. (2020). The correlation between undergraduate student diversity and the representation of women of color faculty in engineering.  Journal of Engineering Education ,  109 (4), 843-864. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20361 

McChesney, J (2018). Representation and Pay of Women of Color in the Higher Education Workforce. A CUPA-HR Research Brief. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jasper_Mcchesney/publication/325698544_Representation_and_Pay_of_Women_of_Color_in_the_Higher_Education_Workforce/links/5b1ecea3a6fdcc69745bf1f9/Representation-and-Pay-of-Women-of-Color-in-the-Higher-Education-Workforce.pdf 

Ong, M., Smith, J. M., & Ko, L. T. (2018). Counterspaces for women of color in STEM higher education: Marginal and central spaces for persistence and success.  Journal of Research in Science Teaching ,  55 (2), 206-245. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21417 

Pietri, E. S., Johnson, I. R., & Ozgumus, E. (2018). One size may not fit all: Exploring how the intersection of race and gender and stigma consciousness predict effective identity-safe cues for Black women.  Journal of Experimental Social Psychology ,  74 , 291-306. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2017.06.021 

Pittman, C. T. (2010). Race and gender oppression in the classroom: The experiences of women faculty of color with white male students.  Teaching Sociology ,  38 (3), 183-196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0092055X10370120 

Stratton, C. (2016).  Education for Empire: American schools, race, and the paths of good citizenship . Univ of California Press. 

Appendix 

Literature Review Table 

	Database or Source	Method/ Design	Target Population	Key Findings or Results	Call for Future Research
Bartz, D. E., & Kritsonis, W. A. (2019). Racism, the White Power Structure, and the Tragic History of the Education of African American Children in the United States. http://www.nationalforum.com/Electronic%20Journal%20Volumes/Bartz,%20David%20E%20%20Racism%20the%20White%20Power%20Structure%20SCHOOLING%20V10%20N1%202019.pdf	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research/Systematic review	Respondents of the research were drawn from the American-African blacks, Hispanic, and White Americans.	The research established that there are huge divides between the resources available to white students and students of color and the outcomes they achieve. Systemic racism is very much alive in American schools at every level, from preschool to Ph.D. programs.	The researchers appealed for research studies to establish certain approaches to end social and economic inequalities among the American schools.
Blaisdell, B. (2016). Schools as racial spaces: Understanding and resisting structural racism.  International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education ,  29 (2), 248-272	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research design/Interviews/questionnaires	Public schools and non-public schools	The American Schools might well have introduced sensitivity training and cross-cultural awareness in schools many years ago, but the issue that they must follow the dictates of the school boards, which are beholden to the PTA.	The researchers appealed for research studies to establish certain approaches to address cross-cultural disparities among the American races.
Davis, D. R., & Maldonado, C. (2015). Shattering the glass ceiling: The leadership development of African American women in higher education.  Advancing Women in Leadership Journal ,  35 , 48-64.	Data journals/data search engines	Qualitative phenomenological study/interviews	Five African American women in leadership positions within academic organizations.	Davis & Maldonado (2015) determined that race and gender-informed the development of African American women as leaders in academia. Some of the racial factors that informed their development as leaders were family background and values, sponsorships, the intersectionality of race and gender, exclusion from informal social networks, and lack of mentoring opportunities.	The study recommended further research on the theoretical framework of intersectionality in the context of race and gender.
Davis Jr, T. J. (2017). The politics of race and educational disparities in Delaware's Public Schools.  Education and Urban Society ,  49 (2), 135-162. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013124516633503	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research design/Interviews/questionnaires	The American-African black students, Hispanic students, and White American students from the Delaware's Public Schools	A well-researched phenomenon call the Achievement Gap supports that racism in the American public education system is as bad as it was pre-Brown vs. Board.	The researchers appealed for research studies to establish for certain approaches to achieve equality in various schools in the US.
Ezorsky, G. (2018).  Racism and justice: The case for affirmative action . Cornell University Press.	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research/ Case studies	Public schools and non-public schools	Schools are now more segregated than they were 10 years after integration efforts began in the 50s, and students of color are achieving at much lower rates than their white counterparts.	The researchers appealed for research studies to establish for certain approaches to achieve equality between students of color and their white counterparts.
Main, J. B., Tan, L., Cox, M. F., McGee, E. O., & Katz, A. (2020). The correlation between undergraduate student diversity and the representation of women of color faculty in engineering.  Journal of Engineering Education ,  109 (4), 843-864. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20361	Data Journals/data search engines	Correlational research study	Women of color faculty in engineering higher education.	The study recommended the use of the study to data in further research to determine whether faculty demographic composition leads or follows diversity in undergraduate student populations.
Ong, M., Smith, J. M., & Ko, L. T. (2018). Counterspaces for women of color in STEM higher education: Marginal and central spaces for persistence and success.  Journal of Research in Science Teaching ,  55 (2), 206-245. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21417	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research study/interview	Women of color in STEM higher education.	The study found that negative social experiences cause social discomfort, subsequently reducing the persistence rate in STEM education for women of color. The study also found that having counterspaces reduces the discomfort associated with such experiences and contributes to the higher persistence of WoC in STEM higher education.	Ong et al. (2018) called for further research into the existence of differences among women of color from varying racial backgrounds and STEM disciplines.
Pietri, E. S., Johnson, I. R., & Ozgumus, E. (2018). One size may not fit all: Exploring how the intersection of race and gender and stigma consciousness predict effective identity-safe cues for Black women.  Journal of Experimental Social Psychology ,  74 , 291-306. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2017.06.021	Data Journals/data search engines	Two qualitative experiments	Black women in STEM disciplines.	The experiment demonstrated that the most influential factors in fostering trust and belonging in the STEM industry are the presence of a black female or male scientist on the institution’s website or a Caucasian woman who advocates for Black women’s issues.	The study recommended further research into the importance of corresponding gender and ethnicity for women across different ethnic backgrounds.
Pittman, C. T. (2010). Race and gender oppression in the classroom: The experiences of women faculty of color with white male students.  Teaching Sociology ,  38 (3), 183-196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0092055X10370120	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research study/Interviews	Women faculty of color in a predominantly white yet relatively diverse Midwestern research institution.	White male students presented the highest challenge to women faculty of color by challenging their authority and teaching competency and disrespecting their scholarly expertise.	The research calls for faculty, staff, and administrators to apply the information gathered in the study to argue for and develop strategies and policies to reduce the negative experiences women of color face in higher education.
Stratton, C. (2016).  Education for Empire: American schools, race, and the paths of good citizenship . Univ of California Press.	Data Journals/data search engines	Qualitative research/Systematic review	American Public schools and non-public schools	The researcher established inequitable resource allocation to schools, poor teacher training and recruiting for inner-city schools, and cultural bias in curriculum and standardized tests to be the main cause of racism in American schools.	The researchers appealed for research studies to establish certain approaches to achieve equitable resource allocation between all races.