MENTORING RELATIONSHIPS AND THE CAREER ADVANCEMENT OF AFRICAN AMERICAN FEMALE ADMINISTRATORS IN HIGHER EDUCATION: EXPLORING INTERSECTIONS OF RACE AND GENDER

Although recent data indicate more African American females are earning academic degrees, the figures do not show gains in their career advancement within the academy, particularly with regard to obtaining senior administrative positions. Although different factors impede their progress, the question remains, if African American women possess the credentials, why are they not holding senior level administrative positions? This qualitative study examined the developmental relationship of mentoring, frequently viewed as instrumental to an individual's career advancement, and its effect as a conduit for African American female higher education administrators whose dual identities of gender and race places them in a marginalized position in society. Eleven senior-level administrators in Pennsylvania were interviewed. All were members of the Pennsylvania Black Conference on Higher Education (PBCOHE), a nonprofit professional education organization whose purpose is to ensure that Blacks and other underrepresented groups in Pennsylvania have access to higher education. The study examined mentoring relationships associated with African American female administrators' career advancement and construct of success, including the significance of the mentor's race and gender. The construct of marginality was investigated; construed as creative, it elevates the African American female's self-identity; viewed as negative, it situates them as invisible within society. The construct of power was examined in an effort to understand the restrictions and limitations it had on respondents.The findings indicate that these African American female administrators felt mentoring relationships had been critical to their career advancement; that the race and gender of the mentor was not as determining a factor as the mentor's influence and reputation; that creative marginality was a "way of life" for them in an effort to maintain a positive attitude; and that success was measured by the legacy they left to others. Substantive recommendations were also gathered from the study, including the need for African American females to stay professionally prepared while pursuing senior-level roles and that institutions must share in the burden of increasing the pipeline for African American senior-level administrators by enforcing stringent search committee strategies to provide diverse candidate pools, establishing retention efforts, and maintaining databases that highlight disparities