The Truly Diverse Faculty: New Dialogues in American Higher Education

Many universities in the twenty-first century claim "diversity" as a core value, but fall short in transforming institutional practices. The disparity between what universities claim as a value and what they accomplish in reality creates a labyrinth of barriers, challenges, and extra burdens that junior faculty of color must negotiate, often at great personal and professional risk. This volume addresses these obstacles, first by foregrounding essays written by junior faculty of color and second by pairing each essay with commentary by senior university administrators. These two university constituencies play crucial roles in diversifying the academy, but rarely have an opportunity to candidly engage in dialogue. This volume harnesses the untapped collective knowledge in these constituencies, revealing how diversity claims, when poorly conceived and under-actualized, impact the university as an intellectual work environment and as a social filter for innovative ideas.

Stephanie A. Fryberg is Associate Professor of Psychology and American Indian Studies at the University of Washington, USA.

 

Ernesto Javier Martínez is Associate Professor of Women's and Gender Studies and Ethnic Studies at the University of Oregon, USA. He is the author of On Making Sense: Queer Race Narratives of Intelligibility (2012) and co-editor of Gay Latino Studies: A Critical Reader (2011).

PART I: UNIVERSITY STRUCTURES AND THE PROFESSIONAL LIVES OF JUNIOR FACULTY OF COLOR

1. Constructed Strugglers: The Impact of Diversity Narratives on Junior Faculty of Color; Ernesto J. Martínez and Stephanie A. Fryberg

Comment: Valuing the World, Valuing Diversity; Nancy Cantor and Kal Alston

2. Models of Success in the Academy; Victoria Plaut

Comment; Kecia Thomas

3. Junior Faculty of Color in the Corporate University: Implications of Neoliberalism and Neoconservatism on Research, Teaching and Service; Nana Osei-Kofi

Comment: Which Way Forward? The Corporate University as a Site of Contradiction; Michael Hames-García

PART II: NEGOTIATING A NON-DIVERSE ACADEMY

4. On Being the Solo Faculty Member of Color: Research Evidence from Field and Laboratory Studies; Denise Sekaquaptewa

Comment; Robert N. Shelton

5. Whiteness as Request; Phillip Atiba Goff

Comment; Daniel Little

6. Mammy No More/Mammy Forever: The Stakes and Costs of Teaching Our Colleagues; Tiffany Willough-Herard

Comment: Sister-Administrators in the Neoliberal Academy: Reflections of a Feminist-of-Color; Chandra Talpade Mohanty

PART III: SPEAKING TO THE PIPELINE: EARLY MENTORSHIP, PREPARATION, AND PROFESSIONAL BARRIERS

7. Trusting Vulnerability: Mentoring Graduate Students of Color; John Riofrio

Comment; James A. Larimore

8. Lanterns and Street Signs: Effective Mentoring for Greater Equity in the Academy; Monisha Bajaj

Comment: Mentoring for Institutional Gain; Luis Fraga

9. Breaking Through the Associate Professor Glass Ceiling; Mari Castañeda and Michael Hames-García

Comment: Slowing Down the Line; Carol Stabile