Inequitable rewards: experiences of faculty of color mentoring students of color

ABSTRACT

Employing the analytical lens of Critical Race Theory, I explored how faculty of color view their mentorship of students of color at predominantly White colleges and universities. The research was conducted through an anonymous online questionnaire shared with faculty of color at 136 predominantly White institutions. Three main themes emerge and show that faculty of color feel: (a) a sense of social responsibility to their communities of color; (b) that this demanding and often specialized work comes at a cost to their professional careers, and; (c) that shared marginalized identities create unique mentorship responsibilities and demands. I then discuss the implications for social justice in higher education.

KEYWORDS:

• Faculty of color
• mentorship
• students of color
• higher education
• critical race theory

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Nigel Brissett

Nigel Brissett received his doctorate in international education policy from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He also holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of the West indies, Mona. Dr. Brissett is currently a faculty member in the department of International Development, Community, and Environment (IDCE) at Clark University, Massachusetts, USA. His research, which is especially attentive to issues of access and equity, focuses on educational policies of postcolonial states with current emphasis on countries of the Anglophone Caribbean and its diasporic peoples.