Böcker av Katherine H. Betts

The primary purpose of this interpretative phenomenological inquiry was touncover the lived experiences, both professional and personal, of Black female academicdeans across Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs). Black Feminist Thought (Collins,2,000) served as a guiding theoretical framework in light of the unique experiences ofBlack women as a result of their intersecting identities. Three key findings emerged fromthe interviews with the study's participants. Together, these findings captured the essenceof the lived experiences of the participants in the study. The first finding reflected boththe underlining fatigue that Black female deans battled on a daily basis as they navigatedconstant assaults related to their race and gender as well as their resilience that definedtheir leadership in the face of such assaults. The second finding captured these deans'commitment to channel their leadership oversight towards holding institutionsaccountable for their inequitable and unjust philosophy and practices. And finally, thethird key finding reflected Black female deans' struggles to reimagine the norms andstandards of the academic deanship position to embrace historically under-representedmembers such as themselves.