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ABSTRACT BURNETTE, SAMARA FLEMING. Resiliency in Physics

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ABSTRACT BURNETTE, SAMARA FLEMING. Resiliency in Physics ABSTRACT BURNETTE, SAMARA FLEMING. Resiliency in Physics: The Lived Experiences of African-American Women Who Completed Doctoral Physics Programs. (Under the direction of Dr. Paul Bitting.) Currently, little is known about African-American women with doctoral degrees in physics. This study examined the lived experiences of African-American women who completed doctoral programs in physics. Due to factors of race and gender, African- American women automatically enter a double-bind in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields (Malcom, Hall, & Brown, 1976; Ong, Wright, Espinsoa, & Orfield, 2011) and therefore, they automatically assume risk for attrition when entering into an androcentric and White graduate program in physics. However, literature on educational resilience has never examined how these women make it through to completion in doctoral physics programs. Using an interpretive phenomenological approach, this study is designed to further investigate the lived experiences of African-American women who graduated from doctoral physics programs. The selected participants included a purposeful sample of five African-American women who had completed a doctorate degree in physics since the 1980s from American doctoral institutions. Data collection consisted of a nine-question background survey, documentation, and semi-structured interviews conducted throughout a one month period. Interviews, lasting no less than 90 minutes, were digitally recorded and transcribed. To ensure validity of findings, triangulation and member checking were utilized. Within this study, the findings answered four overarching questions. These questions surrounded the lived experiences of the participants and how they initially became interested in physics as well as experiences from their undergraduate years. Also, six doctoral obstacles became apparent. These obstacles included gender, race, autonomy, assertiveness, forming study-groups, and passing qualifying and defense exams. How participants overcame these obstacles were revealed through four emergent themes surrounding the social and literal meanings of pluralism. These themes emerged from the data that linked the doctoral resiliency of at least three of the five participants and were categorized as: 1) Forming pluralistic peer connections; 2) Acquiring pluralistic laboratory skills; 3) Utilizing pluralistic problem-solving; and 4) Forming pluralistic support connections. Based on the results of the study, a process paradigm became evident along with three salient conclusions. First, African-American women who want to pursue a doctorate degree must interact with a diverse group of peers and faculty to overcome programmatic challenges, such as the ones previously mentioned. Second, these women must be creative when facing foreseen challenges and utilize strategic problem-solving, even a multi-layered strategy, such as acquiring multiple laboratory skill sets to overcome bias outside of the confines of their doctoral physics programs. Lastly, protective factors have limitation based upon situation and setting. These same protective factors may be unprotecting, or produce negative consequences, if utilized improperly. Suggestions for future research included more in-depth studies of African-American women in physics. First, researchers may want to explore graduate program resiliency utilizing a larger population of African-American women in physics. Next, research on understanding the role of the NSBP in the retention of African-American women in graduate programs in physics may be insightful. Also, studies may be conducted to explore how African-American women in doctoral physics programs partner with foreign nationals, especially the Chinese, to be successful. Lastly, researchers may want to examine life after acquiring the doctoral degree for African-American women in physics. © Copyright 2013 by Samara Fleming Burnette All Rights Reserved Resiliency in Physics: The Lived Experiences of African-American Women Who Completed Doctoral Physics Programs by Samara Fleming Burnette A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of North Carolina State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Educational Research and Policy Analysis Raleigh, North Carolina 2013 APPROVED BY: _______________________________ ______________________________ Dr. Paul Bitting Dr. Tuere Bowles Committee Chair _______________________________ ______________________________ Dr. Lance Fusarelli Dr. Adrienne Stiff-Roberts ii DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my parents who instilled in me a love for God, faith as a grain of mustard seed, and a solid work ethic. This document is also dedicated to anyone who ever hoped for something, but had no idea how to attain it. iii BIOGRAPHY Samara Fleming Burnette was born in New Haven, Connecticut, on February 12, 1974. The third child of five in a religious and working-class family, she was taught the importance of keeping God first in everything and having a solid work ethic through daily lessons in a homeschool curriculum. These seminal teachings have remained with Samara throughout her career endeavors and educational pursuits. She was homeschooled until she entered into the sixth grade at Speight Middle School after moving to Wilson, North Carolina. Once she entered the public school system, she realized that her thirst for knowledge was recognized by both students and teachers. She excelled in public school, receiving academic awards through high school and graduating fourth in her class of 200 students. After graduating from E.T. Beddingfield High School in June 1992, she entered into North Carolina (NC) State University as a political science major, but changed her major twice and finally graduated in less than four years with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in December 1995. While at NC State University, Samara worked as a work-study student, which inspired a love for the institution. Upon graduating with her undergraduate degree, she applied for a full-time position with the Office of the Provost. In March 1996, she became the academic policy specialist for NC State University and editor of the Handbook for Advising and Teaching and the Faculty Handbook. During this period, she also was responsible for transitioning many paper-based communications onto the World Wide Web, including 26 university standing committees and iv other administrative and ad hoc committees. Samara also worked with the Committee on Committees, which provided oversight to the numerous committees at NC State University. During this time, she continued exploring higher education options until she chose a master’s program in public administration in January 2001. In July 2004, Samara began a new position in the Division of Enrollment Management and Services as the first student retention coordinator for NC State University. After graduating with a Master of Public Administration in December 2004, Samara transferred into a new division in June 2005, but she retained her title in the newly reorganized Division of Undergraduate Academic Programs. She began facilitating the newly formed Advisory Council for the Enhancement of Student Success (ACESS), which was a large institutional council charged by the provost to examine the institutional perspective on student success by bringing together colleges and administrative offices around campus. Though she began taking classes in 2006, Samara was fully accepted into the Educational Research and Policy Analysis program in August 2007. Due to pending budgetary constraints in December 2008, Samara was moved to the Office of Advising Support, Information, and Services (OASIS) for six months in January 2009 after which she enrolled in her doctoral studies full-time under the advising leadership of Dr. Paul Bitting. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, I would like to thank God for all of the strength and fortitude that He provided me while going through this rewarding, but challenging, experience. He kept His promises and provided what I asked. I can wholeheartedly affirm that I could not have done this without God! I praise Him for all of His abundant blessings!!! Next, I would like to thank my chair, Dr. Paul Bitting, for providing direction and giving me enough room to research a topic near to my heart. Your wisdom is boundless! I appreciated every bit of it! I would also like to give thanks to Dr. Lance Fusarelli, Dr. Tuere Bowles, and Dr. Adrienne Stiff-Roberts for agreeing to be part of my dissertation committee. I especially thank Dr. Fusarelli for the wisdom his courses provided regarding the dissertation process. I have used this wisdom and it has been helpful. Continue to demystify the process for other students. Additionally, I would like to thank those individuals who have supported and influenced me along the way, namely my husband, Dr. James Earl Burnette, Jr.; I would like to thank him especially for his verbal and financial support, tireless encouragement, editing, and undying patience throughout these years. I offer my sincere gratitude and thanks for sticking with me through these daunting years! I know they were trying times for both of us. I would also like to thank my parents, Clifton and Louise Fleming, for their encouragement and financial support throughout my challenging doctoral years. I also want to thank my in-laws as well, William and Shirley “Molo” Hines, especially Molo for always being there with a word of encouragement when things were ever so bleak. I would
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