The Duality of Women Scholars of Color

A volume in Research on Women and Education (RWE)Series EditorsBeverly Irby, Sam Houston State Universityand Janice Koch, Hofstra UniversityThe seven chapters address long-standing concerns from first-hand perspectives regarding women of colorfaculty in the academy, the marginalization of women of color scholars in the academy and the benefits ofmentoring support. Discussion of such are threaded throughout this book. Mentoring has been a practice ofleadership since Greek times, and research has documented the advantages of mentoring. Aligned with theauthors espoused mentoring perspectives in this book, is the coined concept of synergistic mentoringAccordingly, Synergistic mentoring is defined as a mentor and mentee working together collaboratively to(a) generate a greater good for both, (b) integrate diverse perspectives into the context, and (c) construct together an otherwise unattainable goalattempted independently.The authors of this book seek to enlighten, dynamic and critical discussions by and about women of color in the academy. Conceivably the mostintriguing part of each chapter is the methodological approaches used to address race, gender, and social justice in the academy. Qualitative methodsdominate the chapters with effective use of personal narratives and the lived experiences of the participants. The voices of those often ignored orforgotten are examined building on the legacy of women of color in the academy who paved the way for this generation and future scholars of color.Moreover, the chapters presented herein challenge assumptions, perspectives and beliefs about the significance of women of color scholars in theacademy. They are provocative and provide direction for future research that advance knowledge and understanding for a better society based on socialjustice, equity and equal opportunity. They also give voice to both the shared diverse and commonexperiences of this group of women scholars of color and provide useful guidance and new perspectiveson transforming the world's academics into more inclusive and equitable environments around theglobe (Thomas & Hollenshead, 2001). Ultimately, outcomes from these collections of scholarlydiscourse, may have important implications for effective policy and program practice that raiseimportant questions about institutional commitments that advocate for the advancement of women ofcolor in the academy.