Woman in the Making: The Impact of the Constructed Campus Environment of Xavier University of Louisiana on the Construction of Black Womanhood.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study explores the experiences of African American women as students at Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA). This study specifically focuses on how these women's experiences at their HBCU facilitated their construction of Black womanhood. This study did not aim to compare, contrast, or situate the experiences of African American women against any other student population. Instead, it made visible, through their voices, the complex and varied experiences of African American women in HBCU campus environments. The findings address a significant gap in the catalog of research on African American women in higher education. By addressing this gap, this work also provides depth to a growing body of research on HBCUs. It aims to answer the following two research questions: (1) How do African American women construct Black womanhood? and (2) What role does the Xavier University of Louisiana campus environment play in facilitating these constructions of black womanhood among female students?.
These two questions were approached by embracing a Black Feminist Epistemology and examining data through the Black Feminist Thought and Hip-Hop Feminist frameworks. Data was collected by using narrative inquiry and a photo elicitation method termed Sankofa Photo Analysis. The study includes 12 participants. Criteria for participants include individuals who are alumni of XULA, graduating between 2000 and 2010; who identified as cisgender women at the time of enrollment at XULA; and identify as African American. Two in-depth semi-structured and open-ended interviews were conducted. Questions were constructed to invite the interviewee to be that narrator of their own experiences.
Two overarching themes emerged from this study: the shared standpoint of black women at XULA and performative black womanhood on campus. Ultimately, findings showed that participants constructed their ideas of Black womanhood through observation and experimentation. Their main sources of inspiration were older students on campus and the campus environmental influences on appropriate female behavior deemed appropriate by the university. This dissertation concludes with implications for Black women, practices in higher education, and future research.