Women of Color in Academia @ CSULB

Women of Color in Academia @ CSULB 

This group was instituted in 2018 to provide structural, institutional, communal support for women of color faculty. Maintaining a community of peers, collaborators, and mentors aligns with the university’s goal to increase faculty diversity by recruiting/retaining faculty from underrepresented groups. The group provides recognition of the impact of the intersectionality of gender, race, & ethnicity on the professional experience of faculty women of color on campus and strives to increase institutional support to promote the success of faculty women of color (a group with one of the highest attrition rates among tenure-track faculty). Current membership is over 40 and comprises faculty varied by rank & department. The Faculty Center provides publicity, logistical, and other forms of support for this group.

This project formally began in the 2018-19 academic year to provide structural, institutional, and communal support for women of color faculty. Maintaining this campus community of peers, collaborators, and mentors aligns with the university’s goal to increase faculty diversity by recruiting and retaining educators from underrepresented groups. Women of Color in Academia @ CSULB pledges to do so by continuing to 1) provide recognition of the impact of the intersectionality of gender, race, and ethnicity on the professional experience of faculty women of color on campus and 2) increase institutional support to promote the success of our faculty women of color. 

By the end of its inaugural year, membership comprised of 33 faculty varied by rank (adjunct, lecturing, tenure-track, tenured, full), university program/department home, and of course self-identified woman of color status, among other intersecting identities. Membership is anticipated to grow as existing members continue to share news of this group with others throughout the university. Many have expressed gratitude and eagerness to continue with this community that is socially validating and professionally lucrative to our positions as university faculty.