African American faculty expressing concerns: breaking the silence at predominantly white research oriented universities

Abstract

A Delphi method was used with a panel of 24 African American faculty employed at 43 predominantly white doctoral extensive universities to arrive at a group consensus on a list of concerns that African American faculty in general experienced or held. Using the Delphi method a panel of African American faculty initially worked from a list of eight concerns (i.e., lack of mentor; little guidance about the tenure and promotion process; social isolation and lack of collegiality; excessive and token committee assignments; research viewed as trivial and discounted; little guidance about the academic workplace; limited opportunities to participate in departmental and institutional decision making; and infrequent occasions to assume leadership positions) to the development of a list of 13 concerns after employing three rounds of the Delphi method. The implication from the expressing of these concerns is that universities have a portion of their faculty that are yet experiencing racism, subtle and even overt discrimination. This study serves as a clarion call that some universities are not being as successful at achieving diversity and inclusiveness as they declare or think.