THE STRUGGLE FOR EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT: A CASE STUDY OF THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN FEMALE NEUROSURGEON by Marilyn Redmon Nicholson M.S., Troy State University, 1999 B.S., University of South Alabama, 1984 A dissertation submitted to the Division of Diversity Studies College of Professional Studies The University of West Florida In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education 2005 © 2005 Marilyn Redmon Nicholson The dissertation of Marilyn Redmon Nicholson is approved: ______________________________________________ __________________ Fernaundra L. Ferguson, Committee Member Date ______________________________________________ __________________ Robin Largue, Committee Member Date ______________________________________________ __________________ Joyce C. Nichols, Committee Member Date ______________________________________________ __________________ Mary F. Rogers, Committee Chair Date Accepted for the Department/Division: ______________________________________________ __________________ Thomas J. Kramer, Chair Date Accepted for the College: ______________________________________________ __________________ Don Chu, Dean Date Accepted for the University: ______________________________________________ __________________ Richard S. Podemski, Dean Date Office of Graduate Studies iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Completing a doctoral program is the culmination of a challenging and rewarding experience. I would like to thank the members of my doctoral committee for their inspiration and insightful guidance. My appreciation is extended to Dr. Mary Rogers for sharing her passion for learning and her love for the “uniqueness of the individual,” which have helped me become a well-rounded professional. To Dr. Alexa Canady, I express my deepest gratitude for allowing me an opportunity to explore her life story and for the humble, yet exceptional way that she has touched my life. My heartfelt appreciation to Mrs. Hortense Canady, Dr. Kelli Tice- Wells, and Dr. Tara Daniel for sharing their exceptional experiences which helped make this study a rich portrayal of Dr. Canady’s life. I sincerely thank Dr. Mark Reynolds, Mari Thornton, and Melinda Tilton for their expertise in finalizing this manuscript. Another source of support and encouragement came from walking this journey together with my student colleague, Dr. Brenda Kelly. Personally, I thank my son, Marcus, his wife, Raffias, and my daughters, Marcia and Monica, for their love, lifetime support, unending encouragement, and their sacrifices as I made this research a priority. Above all, I thank God for His divine plan for my life, “I know the plans I have for you . plans to prosper you . to give you a hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV). Thus, this journey begins a new hope for the future. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................................. iv ABSTRACT................................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................1 A. Educational Achievement .......................................................6 B. Statement of Purpose ............................................................11 CHAPTER II. LITERATURE REVIEW ...........................................................13 A. Racial and Gender Inequality in Educational Attainment ....14 B. Occupational Segregation and Wage Inequity......................20 C. Feminist Theory....................................................................25 D. Women in Medicine..............................................................30 CHAPTER III. METHODOLOGY .....................................................................44 A. Feminist Methodology..........................................................45 B. Participants............................................................................47 C. Crisis of Representation........................................................49 D. Data Generation....................................................................51 E. Oral History and Interviewing ..............................................52 F. Data Analysis........................................................................57 G. Ethical Considerations..........................................................59 CHAPTER IV. SIGNIFICANT EVENTS: SETTING THE CONTEXT............61 A. Changing Times....................................................................62 B. The Naturalistic Context.......................................................72 C. Chronicles of a Pioneer.........................................................74 CHAPTER V. SEEKING AN INSIDE VIEW: STRUGGLES, STRATEGIES, STORIES, AND SUCCESSES.........................92 A. Walking Around the Edges...................................................96 B. Challenging the System of Power.........................................99 C. Getting a Different Reception.............................................103 v D. Staying on Task...................................................................106 E. Leaving a Bit of a Bad Taste...............................................109 F. Establishing a Neurosurgery Practice .................................113 G. Becoming a Neurosurgeon Today: Impact on Current Students...............................................................................115 CHAPTER VI. CONVERGING VIEWS: FORMING A POSITIVE CONSENSUS ...........................................................................118 CHAPTER VII. DISCUSSION...........................................................................132 REFERENCES .............................................................................................................145 APPENDIXES ..............................................................................................................157 A. The University of West Florida Institutional Review Board Approval Letter ........................................................158 B. Informed Consent................................................................161 vi ABSTRACT THE STRUGGLE FOR EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT: A CASE STUDY OF THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN FEMALE NEUROSURGEON Marilyn Redmon Nicholson This qualitative case study examines the lived experiences of Dr. Alexa Canady, the first African American female neurosurgeon. A feminist perspective provides the theoretical framework for looking at the gendered systems of power in a male-dominated profession. The purpose of this study was to identify challenges Dr. Canady encountered related to race, gender, and class in her educational and professional achievements and the strategies she used to overcome them. Data were derived from document analysis and 12 in-depth interviews, 9 with Dr. Canady and 3 with other participants. In order to understand this unique case, both power and privilege in Dr. Canady’s life were explored. vii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION “Truth must be dug up from the past and presented to the circle of scholastics in scientific form and then through stories and dramatizations that will permeate our educational system.” Carter G. Woodson Women have historically experienced difficulties attaining a medical education and the accompanying professional status of a medical doctor. Marks and Beatty (1972) illustrate similar difficulties as they recount the story of Dr. James Barry who received the Doctor of Medicine from Edinburgh in 1812 at the age of 15. Dr. Barry’s long list of accomplishments includes serving as staff-surgeon to the garrison, Inspector-General of the British Army, and as the Governor’s medical advisor. In addition, Dr. Barry advanced in the army at such an unusual pace that the achievement of the rank of surgeon-major by 1827 is often described as a progression of “two steps at a time” (Marks & Beatty, p. 74). Having served over 50 years as a member of an elite army officer corps as a skilled physician with expert operating techniques, Dr. Barry is remembered for being very courageous and committed to duty. Dr. Barry died after refusing medical treatment for an illness. The autopsy revealed that Dr. James Barry was a female who, at some point, had given birth to at least one child. Despite this revelation, the outraged, very conservative British Medical 1 2 Association leaders refused to acknowledge Dr. Barry’s gender and declared her a male because “army records said so” (Marks & Beatty, 1972, p. 75). This precursor to the modern movement for women in medicine indicates what females who desired to become physicians faced. In 1981, at the age of 31, Dr. Alexa Irene Canady, a 1975 graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School, became the first African American female neurosurgeon in the United States (Changing the Face of Medicine, 2003). Four years later at the age of 35, Dr. Canady attained the prestigious position of chief of neurosurgery at Children’s Hospital of Michigan, which she retained for 18 years (Changing the Face of Medicine). In this qualitative study, I explore her lived experiences. Rogers and Garrett (2002) describe “people’s lived experiences [as] . evidence of the embodied actualities of their lives” (p. 72). Dr. Canady’s educational and professional accomplishments occurred during the 1970s and 1980s when many changes occurred for African Americans. Educational attainment in American society had already evolved considerably. In the 1980s, many barriers were still