University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Open Access Dissertations 9-2011 Sometimes Sisters: An Exploration of the Culture of Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Its Impact on the Campus Climate for Lesbian and Bisexual Female Students Donique R. McIntosh University of Massachusetts Amherst, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation McIntosh, Donique R., "Sometimes Sisters: An Exploration of the Culture of Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Its Impact on the Campus Climate for Lesbian and Bisexual Female Students" (2011). Open Access Dissertations. 483. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations/483 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SOMETIMES SISTERS: AN EXPLORATION OF THE CULTURE OF HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AND ITS IMPACT ON THE CAMPUS CLIMATE FOR LESBIAN AND BISEXUAL FEMALE STUDENTS A Dissertation Presented by DONIQUE R. MCINTOSH Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION September 2011 Social Justice Education ©Copyright by Donique R. McIntosh 2011 All Rights Reserved SOMETIMES SISTERS: AN EXPLORATION OF THE CULTURE OF HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AND ITS IMPACT ON THE CAMPUS CLIMATE FOR LESBIAN AND BISEXUAL FEMALE STUDENTS A Dissertation Presented By DONIQUE R. MCINTOSH Approved as to style and content by: _______________________________________ Maurianne Adams, Chair _______________________________________ Kevin E. Quashie, Member _______________________________________ Joseph B. Berger, Member ______________________________ Christine B. McCormick, Dean School of Education DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to the memory of my mother who first taught me the meaning of justice. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my advisor, Maurianne Adams, for being more to me than I knew I needed. She advocated for me, encouraged me, and believed in the importance of my work. I would also like to thank Kevin Quashie and Joe Berger for offering their insight and thoughtful critique. I would also like to acknowledge the following people for the myriad ways they supported me throughout the tenure of my doctoral process: my sister, Sharese, my niece, Elayne, Sharon Morris, Melissa Taylor, Monya Stubbs, Alicia Forde, Leigh-Anne Francis, Jen Daigle-Matos, Andrea Ayvazian, the Haydenville Congregational Church, Day McCallister, Khadine Higgins, T-Sey-haye Preaster, Lori Harris, Dre’ Domingue, Stephanie Storms, Monica A. Coleman, Norma Akamatsu, Leslie Leonard, Sharon Crawford, Valerie Allen, Nikky Finney, Shederick McClendon, and Herb Marbury. I want to thank my colleagues and friends at Smith who had to hear about this project more than they probably wanted. A few in particular stand out. Becky Shaw pushed me to finish when I wanted to give up and gave me time off when I needed it. Hannah Durrant checked in with me, always asked how I was doing, and offered to get things for me that I needed. Sara Sandstrom and Liz Hait empathized with me and celebrated every milestone with me. And, my staff this year has been very supportive and cheered me on as well. I extend a special thanks to the students at Stacker College for entrusting me with their stories. Lastly, I thank God for pushing me to pursue justice in the world and for sustaining me while I do it. v ABSTRACT SOMETIMES SISTERS: AN EXPLORATION OF THE CULTURE OF HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AND ITS IMPACT ON THE CAMPUS CLIMATE FOR LESBIAN AND BISEXUAL STUDENTS SEPTEMBER 2011 DONIQUE R. MCINTOSH, B.A., FISK UNIVERSITY M.S.S.W., UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE M.T.S., VANDERBILT DIVINITY SCHOOL M. ED., UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA Ed.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Maurianne Adams For approximately the last 20 years, researchers have studied the “environment” for students who are lesbian, gay, and bisexual. However, there has been little empirical research on the experiences of lesbian, bisexual, or gay students at historically Black colleges and universities. Most of the literature to date has focused on students at predominantly White institutions and students who are male. Further, HBCUs have long- been lauded for the unique educational experience they have created for African American students in general as evidenced by reports of greater satisfaction, faculty and social support, positive self-images, strong racial pride, and better psychosocial adjustment (Allen, Epps, & Haniff, 1991; Berger & Milem, 2000; Fleming, 1984; Fries- Britt & Turner, 2002; Terenzini, Bohr, Pascarella, & Nora, 1997). However, little research has been conducted on within-group differences among African American students at HBCUs to explore whether and how other social identities such as sexual vi orientation or socioeconomic class impact an African American student’s experience of an HBCU. This is an exploratory study that examines the experiences of seven lesbian and bisexual female students at an historically Black college and inquires into the relationship between the culture of HBCUs and the students’ perceptions of campus climate. Drawing from a focus group interview, a survey, institutional artifacts, and historical data, I explore three research questions. The questions are 1) what can be characterized as the culture at historically Black colleges and universities; 2) what is the lesbian and bisexual female student perception of the campus climate for lesbian and female bisexual students at HBCUs and; 3) how, if at all does the HBCU culture impact the campus climate? The culture was characterized by adherence to traditional gender norms of dress and behavior, affirming racial identity but not sexual identity, the dominance and prevalence of Christian values and beliefs, and a system of rewards and punishments for conforming or not conforming to gender norms. The climate was characterized by students feeling afraid; being harassed; feeling as though they are not wanted at the institution; restricting themselves from participating in activities; facing threats of expulsion; and having little to no social or institutional support. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. v ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................... vi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 Statement of Purpose ................................................................................. 5 Significance of the Study ........................................................................... 5 Overview of Climate and Culture .............................................................. 7 Campus Climate ............................................................................. 7 Campus climate studies...................................................... 7 Culture.......................................................................................... 14 Analysis of Culture ...................................................................... 15 Organization of the Study ........................................................................ 17 2 METHODS ...................................................................................................... 18 Introduction .............................................................................................. 18 Setting ...................................................................................................... 19 Study Participants .................................................................................... 19 Data Collection Methods ......................................................................... 20 Focus Group Interview .................................................... 20 Survey .............................................................................. 23 Written Artifacts .............................................................. 24 Historical Analysis ........................................................... 24 Data Management and Analysis .............................................................. 25 Focus Group Interview .................................................... 25 Survey .............................................................................. 26 Written Artifacts .............................................................. 26 Historical Data ................................................................. 27 Researcher Location................................................................................. 27 Ethical Considerations ............................................................................. 28 viii 3 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................ 30 Social Constructions of Race, Gender, and Sexuality ............................. 30 Social and Historical Context of the Founding of Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Education