Living at the Intersections of Race and Gender in Diversified Mentoring: Experiences of Minoritized Women Leaders in Higher Education

Abstract

Problem

There is chronic underrepresentation of minoritized women in higher education leadership positions. A primary reason is that mentoring support is either lacking or rarely considers how the intersection of their race and gender creates a double bind. Further, there is a dearth of studies examining the lived experiences of mentoring support received by minoritized women leaders.

Solution

Through semi-structured interviews of fifteen participants, our interpretative phenomenological study adds to the extant literature by exploring how women of color (WOC) leaders navigated the challenges posed by the differences in gender and/or racial identities with their mentors in diversified mentoring relationships (DMRs). Our findings indicate that aspiring minoritized women leaders can thrive under the double bind in DMRs with successful coping strategies.

Stakeholders

University administration and HRD practitioners can apply the findings to leverage DMRs as a critical tool for developing the leadership identity of women of color in higher education.