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Afro-Caribbean Immigrant Faculty Experiences in the American Academy: Voices of an Invisible Black Population

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Abstract

Afro-Caribbean immigrants have been an integral part of the history and shaping of the United States since the early 1900s. This current study explores the experiences of five Afro-Caribbean faculty members at traditionally White institutions of higher education. Despite the historical presence and influence of Afro-Caribbean communities and the efforts within education systems to address the needs of Afro-Caribbean constituents, Afro-Caribbean faculty members continue to be rendered indiscernible in higher education and to be frequently and erroneously perceived as African–Americans. The study examines the lived experiences of these individuals in the hegemonic White spaces they occupy at their institutions with both White and Black populations. Through their narratives, issues of stereotyping, microaggression, and isolation are addressed. The participants also offer solutions to address these issues by university administrators, department heads, faculty development professionals, diversity officers, policy makers, and other stakeholders. The voices in this study shed light on an overlooked, misunderstood, and under-researched population within our faculty ranks in the American Academy.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA

    Dave A. Louis & Patriann Smith

  2. Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Keisha V. Thompson & Juann Watson

  3. Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA, USA

    Hakim Mohandas Amani Williams

Authors
  1. Dave A. Louis
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  2. Keisha V. Thompson
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  3. Patriann Smith
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  4. Hakim Mohandas Amani Williams
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  5. Juann Watson
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dave A. Louis.

Appendices

Appendix: Instrument Used for the Development of Narratives

Instructions

The instrument consists of four sections comprising a total of eighteen items. Each section consists of questions about your experiences as an Afro-Caribbean faculty member at predominantly White institutions (PWIs). These questions are to be used as guides or prompts to your reflection towards the development of your narrative.

SPN is a constructivist research methodology, developed by Nash (2004), which recognizes the personal experience as an effective research approach. It is an alternative style of scholarly writing within qualitative inquiry and is developed in the narrative tradition. SPN uses the power of personal storytelling to harvest data, and to build comprehension and meaning in scholarly research. The narrative writers utilize the first-person to explicate their own experiences. The writing is coupled with reflection of their experiences and encourages the expression of the meaning of the said experiences. (Louis et al. 2014, p. 236)

The majority of questions will be open-ended. You are asked to answer the questions fully with as much detail and description as possible. There is no word limit for any item and you are encouraged to utilize as much space as they need to express their thoughts and perceptions. Please type your responses directly below the questions.

Section 1: General Questions

  1. 1.

    In general describe your experiences as a faculty of color at a PWI?

  2. 2.

    What are the most positive aspects of your experience as a faculty member?

  3. 3.

    What are your most negative aspects of your experience as a faculty member?

Section 2: Experiences with White Faculty Peers at Your Institution

  1. 4.

    How would you describe your interaction with White faculty members?

  2. 5.

    What are the most positive aspects of your experience with White faculty members?

  3. 6.

    What are your most negative aspects of your experience with White faculty members?

  4. 7.

    Have you ever experienced microaggressions from White faculty members? Describe.

Section 3: Experiences with African American Faculty Peers at Your Institution

  1. 8.

    How would you describe your interaction with African American faculty members?

  2. 9.

    What are the most positive aspects of your experience with African American faculty members?

  3. 10.

    What are your most negative aspects of your experience with African American faculty members?

  4. 11.

    As an Afro-Caribbean faculty member do you view yourself differently that African American faculty member? Describe differences and/or similarities.

  5. 12.

    Have you had situations in which you are expected, as a “Black” faculty member to “know what is being discussed” with a group of African Americans? If yes, please describe one of those most pertinent experiences.

  6. 13.

    Have you ever experienced microaggressions from African American faculty members?

Section 4: Experiences with Students at Your Institution

  1. 14.

    Please describe your experiences with students in general at your PWI?

  2. 15.

    Describe your experiences with White students at your PWI?

  3. 16.

    Describe your experiences with African American students at your PWI?

  4. 17.

    Have you ever experienced microaggressions from any students? Describe.

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Louis, D.A., Thompson, K.V., Smith, P. et al. Afro-Caribbean Immigrant Faculty Experiences in the American Academy: Voices of an Invisible Black Population. Urban Rev 49, 668–691 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-017-0414-0

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