“You have never been a Black woman in this job” How Black women educators experience and respond to gendered racism in Chicago’s schools

Black women educators have made significant countless contributions to American public education, yet their work and worth continues to be scrubbed from historical documents in a structural, political, and social effort to secure their invisibility. This intentional and targeted attack against Black women educators can be explored through the concept of gendered racism which seeks to elevate the confluence of both sexism and racism on the experiences of Black women. Because of the intentional erasure of Black women’s stories, I designed this study to center the voices and experiences of Black women educators who serve students in Chicago’s schools. Black Feminist Thought and Intersectionality Theory serve as theoretical frames that function to unpack and make visible the detrimental impact of gendered racism and misogynoir on Black women educators. The goal of this study is to learn more about Black women educators’ experiences, coping mechanisms, and needs as they navigate combinations of racism and sexism in their schools. This study is designed to create a safe space for Black women educators to show up authentically as themselves, without bias or judgement, to share their contributions and challenges with K-12 educational institutions.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educ Policy, Orgzn & Leadrshp

Grantor

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2025

Author dc:creator

• Curtis, Scenecia

Contributors dc:contributor

• Mason, Curtis
• Lee, Sharon
• Davila, Liv T
• Hale, Jon

• Black women educators
• Sista circles
• invisibility gendered racism
• misogynoir, intersectionality
• racism
• sexism
• stereotypes
• emotional labor
• silencing
• microaggressions

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2025 Scenecia Curtis

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129532

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F129532