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Bennett and Spelman Colleges: Creating Black Female PhDs in the Sciences

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Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Abstract

Black women have a double burden to bear in life. First, they must combat the assertion that they are not capable of particular types of work because of their gender. For example, women, and specifically Black women, have been underrepresented in the natural and physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics (Leslie et al., 1998; Hanson, 2004; Salters, 1997). Second, Black women struggle with the prejudice that accompanies being Black in a country that continues to toil with racism. The combination of these influences has often prevented Black women from pursuing education and science-based professions within these fields. As a result, “the culture of science was historically, and is currently, a male culture that is often hostile to women and minorities” (Hanson, 2004, p. 99).

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Authors
  1. Shannon Gary
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

    Marybeth Gasman  & Christopher L. Tudico  & 

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© 2008 Marybeth Gasman and Christopher L. Tudico

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Gary, S. (2008). Bennett and Spelman Colleges: Creating Black Female PhDs in the Sciences. In: Gasman, M., Tudico, C.L. (eds) Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230617261_4

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