However, in an increasingly competitive academic job market, institutions that hesitate to create situations in which the morale of Black scholars -- as well as other faculty -- is nurtured and maintained, will suffer.
"Optimally, we should not wait until times of crisis to worry about morale," Johnsrud writes. "Morale is important. Our morale is our commitment to move forward, our enthusiasm to take on new challenges, and our spirit to maintain the highest of standards. Our academic institutions, the public that we serve, and particularly our students, deserve no less."
Morale Boosters
1. A sense of purpose 2. Adequate financial compensation 3. Research opportunities 4. Peer mentoring 5. Up-to-date campus facilities
Morale Busters
1. Isolation and marginalization 2. Threats to tenure and financial security 3. Disparity of workload 4. Tensions over affirmative action 5. Limited access to research resources
RELATED ARTICLE: Black Peer Mentors, Cooperative Advocacy Beneficial to Morale
Black faculty may indeed benefit from establishing mentor relationships with senior white faculty, but in her own experience, Dr. Rhonda Jones-Webb, an behavioral scientist and assistant professor at the University of Minnesota, has found that sometimes there is still a need to develop relationships with Black colleagues.
At institutions like Minnesota, where Black faculty are scattered in different departments and throughout different geographic locations, developing such relationships can be hard.
"[The isolation] makes it difficult to get the type of mentorship and develop the types of relationships you need," said Jones-Webb. Although she was not the only African-American in her department when she arrived at Minnesota five years ago, she is now.
Her research examines alcohol use among African Americans, and while her white colleagues have been supportive of her work from the beginning, Jones-Webb was eager to find Black colleagues who understood the unique challenges of researching issues that affect African Americans. Fortunately, activities sponsored by the associate vice president of minority affairs and diversity helped.
