Program in African American Studies

Collegium of Black Women Philosophers launched at Vanderbilt; Conference set for September 2007

Kathryn Gines

A new organization to assist black women pursue careers in philosophy has been launched at Vanderbilt University through a five-year pilot program.

The Collegium of Black Women Philosophers will support black women in the field through networking, mentoring and financial support.

The CBWP will hold its first conference at Vanderbilt in September 2007.

“The American Philosophical Association has more than 11,000 members, and only about 112 of them are African American philosophers,” said CBWP founder Kathryn Gines, assistant professor of philosophy and also African American and Diaspora Studies at Vanderbilt.

“Only about 18 or 20 of the 112 are black women. So there are very, very few black women in the discipline of philosophy, and some have left the discipline because of the racism and sexism in some philosophy departments and institutions.”

The issue needs to be addressed, Gines said.

“With any discipline, you need a variety of perspectives and positions,” she said. “Without it, you just have this homogeneous group that tends to repeat and reassure itself.

“Philosophy is still viable in part because women and people of color have recharged the discipline in innovative and exciting ways. Part of that is seen in feminist theory and race theory being developed, and part of it has been the challenging of racism and sexism in a lot of classic texts.”

The CBWP plans to offer financial support to black women philosophers to attend conferences, where much of the networking takes place that leads to job opportunities.

“There are some excellent teachers and scholars out there who feel alienated in their departments or at their institutions, and sometimes all that is needed is a safe space where you can get some encouragement and mentoring,” Gines said. “If we provide it, more black women will enter the field and make progress. The discipline of philosophy will benefit if we’re successful.”

To Download Article on Collegium's Launch: http://sitemason.vanderbilt.edu/newspub/bjfTyg?id=31384

Purpose and Objectives:

The Collegium of Black Women Philosophers (CBWP) is a philosophical organization, launched through Vanderbilt University, whose purpose is to encourage and foster a networking and mentoring relationship between the underrepresented Black women in philosophy including graduate students and assistant, associate, and full professors in the Academy. The objective of the CBWP is to mentor and retain the Black women who are currently professors or graduate students in philosophy while simultaneously recruiting more Black women into the discipline.

The specific goals of the CBWP are as follows:

1) To increase the representation of Black women in philosophy in the Academy

2) To provide a network for participants to share their experience and expertise

3) To help participants in graduate programs in philosophy successfully complete the Ph.D. and
transition well into the job market and the Academy

4) To help participants get into tenure-track positions

5) To help participants successfully navigate the track to tenure

6) To help participants develop research projects into publications

7) To offer mentoring and professional development

These goals will be achieved through the following initiatives:

- Annual CBWP Conference

- APA Job Market Information Sessions

- Undergraduate Recruitment

- Publications

Please Visit The Collegium's Official Website: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cbwp