Aaron Moore

Franco Colombo Russell

English 101- Synthesis Essay

11/10/2025

Predominantly White Institutions, often known as PWIs, are often depicted as spaces for equal opportunity for all and intellectual growth, yet remain unshaped by societal norms and expectations rooted in white supremacy and patriarchy.  Though for Black Women,  navigating through environments such as PWIs causes mass academic adjustment and extreme intersecting pressure among their gender and race. This essay will explore how institutional expectations within predominantly white universities influence the identity development of Black women, arguing that these expectations often compel them to navigate racialized and gendered academic environments that shape their self-perception, sense of belonging, and overall college experience.

Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs) tend to try to portray themselves as inclusive, diverse, and welcoming to all people of color. Though the few Black Women in these institutions have mentioned that these places function primarily based on gendered and racialized expectations, allowing for their white counterparts to actually thrive in these environments. Whereas Black women are constrained to the institution’s complex expectations, as it’s not actually inclusive for all. Norms of success, communication, and professionalism are built from PWIs and patriarchy. This results in Black Women balancing the role of being authentically themselves, assimilating and perpetuating a false narrative of themselves to be deemed as contemptible, respectful, professional, and deserving of civility. Such a balance pushes for a sense of belonging for Black Women as the institutional expectation influences how they see themselves not only academically but socially. Such influences are based on stereotypes. These stereotypes become more prevalent in women of society as they’re instantly perceived as inferior compared to their white counterparts, who believe their personality and behavior should be inhuman or depicted negatively. A Black Woman who attends Brennan University (B.U.), Anita, shares her story in an interview about how often her white peers would exclaim their shock upon her having a “bubbly” and approachable personality. Anita then explained later in the interview that she believes this shock from her peers came from rooted internal racism and stereotypes; that she would be loud, angry, and unapproachable. Ultimately portraying the stereotypical Black Woman (Johns Hopkins University Press). Black women facing racial narratives from their white counterparts in and outside of academic fields aren’t uncommon in society. Occupying two marginalized identities pushes Black Women to perform even more unrealistic roles and tasks set in place for their white counterparts, as the expectation for a Black Woman isn’t to be as far ahead, or neck and neck with their counterparts. This is due to PWI’s historical and cultural grounding in Eurocentric values and norms, which created the concept and definition of professionalism, academic, and successful legitimacy. These campus climates often center around whiteness and render the college experience marginal rather than major for the community.  This may lead to Black Women feeling pressured to code-switch and suppress many emotions to try to minimize the stereotype of “angry Black Woman”  Stereotypes have not only distorted reality but can also create harmful interactions. Solorzano et al. have stated, “The narratives stereotypes create are extremely dangerous because when taken as truth, they function as a pseudo guide for how White Americans are to treat members of the minoritized racial group to which they are attributed” (Johns Hopkins University Press). These fabricated narratives not only justify the racial hierarchy in society but also explain how Black Women tend to lack a sense of belonging in Predominantly White Institutions. 

Even from a young age, Black Women are struggling to find a sense of belonging within their academic community.  Young Black girls in predominantly white institutions(PWIs) often shoulder the responsibility of trying to create a sense of belonging in environments that typically have underrepresentation. They push to navigate in academic and social spaces where they were not in mind, creating pushback while actively seeking out support among their peers, classmates, and the overall academic community. Books such as “African American Young Girls and Women in PreK12 Schools and Beyond: Informing Research, Policy, and Practice” have shared a story about a young Black girl in a predominantly lighter and or White classroom of classmates and teachers who make fun of her for being known as the “Dark” girl, A first-grade teacher begins to set up for a self-portrait activity. She goes around the room, handing each student a crayon for their skin tone. … teacher, Kheris Rogers, hands her the black instead of a brown crayon…bullied for having “dark” skin by classmates, immediately puts her head on the desk and refuses to color with her class-mates…” (Lauren C. MIMS ET AL. 30). Through talking to peers, engaging in a subject, or simply coloring self-portraits, young Black girls face the constant backlash of simply trying to fit in with their counterparts around them. Over time, many tend to struggle in navigating through exclusion, from being, if not the only Black girl in the classroom, the “dark”  girl in the classroom. This often turns into feeling pressured into cold switching and downplaying a lot of their personality or overall identity, simply just to be accepted. The ongoing struggle of such becomes degrading as they are now pressured to balance their academic achievements while also protecting their sense of belonging in their academic environment. But such backlash doesn’t stop with little girls putting their heads down due to racist remarks from their counterparts within their classroom, but over time tends to reach them internally, to where they now believe that the beauty that they were born with is something to be ashamed of in comparison to their White Female counterparts.  Remarks such as “…you look pretty with your hair straightened” when playing with other Black girls or “I wish my hair was like yours” when playing with white girls (Dr. Abigail Amoako Kayse, 35). Remarks like these flowing throughout a classroom manifest self-doubt due to criticizing their own cultural and ethnic features and distancing themselves further away from their identity just to try to be accepted. They may start to feel as though they are “not enough” or that something of themselves is “too much,” and make that the reason as to why they don’t belong or fit in within their academic community. 

The challenges that Black Women have faced within PWIs have created barriers within their professional career fields and have carried them into shaping how they move throughout their work environments. The pressure to suppress personality, the fear of the stigma of “angry Black Woman”  being placed upon them, internalized racism, self-monitoring, and or code – switching are now heightened and become persistent for them to feel as though they are being taken seriously. Such descriptions create the disorder of Imposter Syndrome mainly due to the underrepresentation, ignorance, evolved modern-day stereotypes, microaggressions, and more being placed on Black Women. Writers from “Experiences With Imposter Syndrome and Authenticity at Research-Intensive Schools of Social Work: A Case Study on Black Female Faculty” have mentioned that though there is little information known about imposter syndrome for Black Women, the information that is known has resulted in poor professional outcomes for Black Women. Nonetheless, the journey that Black Women go through, facing symptoms of, if not the actual condition of, imposter syndrome, reflects both the perseverance they put into themselves to try and reshape their code-switching character and the overall social and professional norm barriers they face and challenge within their career fields to be taken seriously. 

Despite these emotionally painful battles internally, academically, societally, and more, young Black Women have created resilience by embracing their cultural and ethnic backgrounds, features, seeking community and support, and overall challenging the stigma that has made them feel as though they can’t be long-term or academically succeed as their counterparts.  Through building a supportive community and advocating for themselves, Black Women have created a more inclusive environment not only for themselves but for all Black people and people of color (POC) in general. 

Despite these emotionally painful battles internally, academically, societally, and more, young Black Women have created resilience by embracing their cultural and ethnic backgrounds, features, seeking community and support, and overall challenging the stigma that has made them feel as though they can’t be long-term or academically succeed as their counterparts.  Through building a supportive community and advocating for themselves, Black Women have created a more inclusive environment not only for themselves but for all Black people and people of color (POC) in general