Colorblind Mentoring? Exploring White Faculty Mentoring of Students of Color.

TLDR: The authors examined the effect of race-neutral, color-blind language on students' perceptions of their academic abilities and potential to achieve success in STEM disciplines and in graduate education, and found that white faculty members often engage with students from a "colorblind perspective" and used race neutral, colorblind language to describe their students as inferior, less prepared, and less interested in pursuing research and graduate studies.

Abstract: In this critical multisite case study we examined the concept of colorblind mentoring. Using Bonilla-Silva’s Colorblind Racism Frames, we sought to understand White faculty members’ perspectives on their mentoring of Students of Color. The findings revealed that White faculty members often engage with students from a “colorblind perspective.” Their use of race-neutral, colorblind language (avoiding racial terms but implying them) allowed White faculty members to describe their students as academically inferior, less prepared, and less interested in pursuing research and graduate studies while potentially ignoring structural causes. Faculty perceptions of students may influence the way Students of Color perceive their academic abilities and potential to achieve success in STEM disciplines and in graduate education.