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Her Stories

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Women Negotiating Life in the Academy

Abstract

In Her Stories, a newly promoted professor revisits the complexities of a professional life mired in intense competition where individual success is measured by single-authored publications, securing international funding, seeking national and international collaborations and acclaimed recognition in one’s field. Her narrative examines the tensions surrounding the lived experiences of female academics navigating the gendered and racialized contexts of higher education. Drawing from theoretical foundations of critical qualitative inquiry, self-study, and feminist epistemologies, she discusses the elusive sisterhood, where women in academia weave work together, promoting and encouraging self and others to achieve their highest potentials and contributing in healthy ways to challenging work contexts. As a racialized woman thriving in academia, she reflects on the demands of teaching, research and service, struggling to balance work with a rich life at home as a mother, a partner, a sister, and a daughter. While she recognizes the collective strength of her many female colleagues in North America, in Europe, and in Asia, this chapter concludes with counsel to stand up boldly and courageously finding the collective strength to articulate the micro-inequities and micro-aggressions that pervade the professional experiences of women negotiating life in the academy.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of British Columba Okanagan, Kelowna, BC, Canada

    Karen Ragoonaden

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  1. Karen Ragoonaden
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Correspondence to Karen Ragoonaden .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Sarah Elaine Eaton

  2. Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Amy Burns

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Ragoonaden, K. (2020). Her Stories. In: Eaton, S., Burns, A. (eds) Women Negotiating Life in the Academy. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-3114-9_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-3114-9_3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-15-3113-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-15-3114-9

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