Surveillance and Sacrifice

Previous research documents Black professors’ heavy service commitments and time spent mentoring; yet little work explores how this form of faculty work differs by gender. This intersectional analysis examines narratives of 37 Black professors at three institutions (collected across two studies), focusing on how race and gender shape Black professors’ expectations and experiences mentoring. Findings indicate that racism and sexism influence whether and how Black faculty members mentor in unique ways. Women engage in close, personal relationships and face high gender-based expectations regarding student contact, leading to their carriage of a heavy mentoring burden. Men are more formal and compartmentalize their relationships, partly due to perceived visibility and surveillance, as well as increased likelihood of accusations of inappropriate relationships with female students.