“You Are Seen; You Matter:” Applying the Theory of Gendered Organizations to Equity and Inclusion for Motherscholars in Higher Education

Abstract

This international study examined how to support equity and inclusion for 18 mothers in academia (“motherscholars”). Applying Acker’s theory of gendered organizations as a framework for the study, we recruited participants from Facebook groups for women and mothers in higher education across disciplines and nine countries. To attend to the needs of participants, we employed principles of rigid flexibility, such as adjusting data collection to allow for texting as a form of interviewing. Thematic analysis coupled with researcher arts-based sketches led to identifying critical supports and obstacles for motherscholars, including mentoring and financial opportunities, institutional resources for families, open communication about families, and experiences of bias and isolation. Recommendations for practice, policy, and further research are included.

Acknowledgments

We are indebted to Lisa Wolf-Wendel, Peter Eckel, and the Journal of Women and Gender in Higher Education in particular for invaluable sets of feedback from Co-Editor-in-Chief, Jeni Hart, and recommendations from the anonymous reviewers. And most importantly, thank you to the motherscholar participants who shared their lives and insights to address ways to make academic organizations more equitable and inclusive for all.

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

¹ It also carries some importance at many institutions that focus more heavily on their teaching mission.

² Acker’s theory has been critiqued because it reinforces the gender binary (Lester et al., 2017). Because we are using the theory here, we recognize this limitation.

³ Researcher flexibility included methodological changes, adaptation to different data collection, and the extension of the time frame for the study.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported in part by The Consortium of Gender Scholars, Kazakhstan.