Women Thriving In Academia

In a male-dominated higher education sector characterised by overt and subtle adversities for women, the path for women in academia is rarely a simple and easy one. This book sets out to empower women in academia to unite in sharing their stories, inspiring and encouraging one another.

In a male-dominated higher education sector characterised by overt and subtle adversities for women, the path for women in academia is rarely a simple and easy one. This book sets out to empower women in academia to unite in sharing their stories, inspiring and encouraging one another.

Veteran professors synthesize their combined 60+ years of expertise at primarily undergraduate, teaching-focused universities into easy-to-follow advice for graduate students and current faculty seeking to build thriving careers at similar institutions. Writing in a friendly tone that includes their personal reflections, the authors guide readers through the entire career trajectory: finding and applying for positions, developing essential knowledge and skills over the course of one's career, seeking tenure and promotions, and continuing to thrive in the mid- to late-career stages while preparing for retirement. The authors offer detailed insights for becoming a successful academic who can meet all the expectations of a teaching-focused institution. They explain how to develop core teaching competencies; choose advising philosophies for mentoring individual students, groups, and clubs; perform high-quality faculty service; and achieve scholarly, creative, and research goals--all while managing a high teaching load. Strategies for obtaining scarce yet crucial resources--time, money, and mentors--are also provided.

The perspectives, experiences and career trajectories of women of colour in British academia reveal a space dominated by whiteness and patriarchy. Facing daily experiences that range from subtle microagressions to overt racialized and gendered abuse, the contributors describe how they are compelled to develop strategies for survival and success.

This book documents the lived experiences of women of color academics who have leveraged their professional positions to challenge the status quo in their scholarship, teaching, service, activism, and leadership. By presenting reflexive work from various vantage points within and outside of the academy, contributors document the cultivation of mentoring relationships, the use of administrative roles to challenge institutional leadership, and more. Through an emphasis on the various ways in which women of color have succeeded in the academy—albeit with setbacks along the way—this volume aims to change the discourse surrounding women of color academics: from a focus on trauma and mere survival to a focus on courage and thriving.

Women and Leadership in Higher Education is the first volume in a new series of books (Women and Leadership: Research, Theory, and Practice) that will be published in upcoming years to inform leadership scholars and practitioners. This book links theory, research, and practice of women’s leadership in various higher education contexts and offers suggestions for future leadership development strategies. This volume focuses on the field of higher education, particularly within the context of the United States—a sector that serves a majority of students at all degree levels who are women, yet lacks parity by women in senior leadership roles. The book’s fifteen chapters present both hard facts regarding the current demographic realities within higher education and fresh thinking about how progress can and must be made in order for U.S. higher education to benefit from the perspectives of women at the senior leadership table. The book’s opening section provides data and analysis in addressing “The State of Women and Leadership in Higher Education”; the second section offers descriptions of three effective models for women’s leadership development at the national and institutional levels; the third section draws from recent research to present “Women’s Experiences and Contributions in Higher Education Leadership.” The book concludes with five shorter chapters written by current and former college and university presidents who offer “Lessons from the Trenches” for the benefit of those who follow. In short, the thesis of the book is that our world is changing; higher education collectively, as well as institutions of all types, must change. Bringing more women into leadership is critical to the goal of moving our society and world forward in healthier ways.

In this new volume, editors Lynn H. Collins, Joan C. Chrisler, and Kathryn Quina provide a wealth of information about institutional pitfalls in higher education professions, advice on how to handle difficult situations, and encouragement to those who persevere in their pursuit of an academic career.

Featuring forthright testimonials by women who are or have been mothers as undergraduates, graduate students, academic staff, administrators, and professors, Mothers in Academia intimately portrays the experiences of women at various stages of motherhood while theoretically and empirically considering the conditions of working motherhood as academic life has become more laborious. As higher learning institutions have moved toward more corporate-based models of teaching, immense structural and cultural changes have transformed women's academic lives and, by extension, their families. Hoping to push reform as well as build recognition and a sense of community, this collection offers several potential solutions for integrating female scholars more wholly into academic life. Essays also reveal the often stark differences between women's encounters with the academy and the disparities among various ranks of women working in academia. Contributors--including many women of color--call attention to tokenism, scarce valuable networks, and the persistent burden to prove academic credentials. They also explore gendered parenting within the contexts of colonialism, racism, sexism, ethnocentrism, ageism, and heterosexism.

This book provides a compelling and informative look into the experiences of women of colour in academia. Using personal and scholarly narrative the women in the book convey a poignant and richly descriptive account of the challenges they faced, the strategies they employed for survival and thriving, and the contributions they made to transform their institutions. From the seasoned faculty member and academic administrator to the entering graduate student, it is a must read book for women of colour in academia. They will resonate to the voices of the women in the book, and hear their needs articulated in perceptive and practical ways. In the tradition of critical race theory, this book also fulfils the purpose of providing White professionals and students a new perspective of the personal and professional world of women of colour in academia as represented through their eyes and realities.