Academic  Motherhood:  Silver  Linings  and  Clouds  Bri9any  A.  E.  Jakubiec  

Background  

Significance  of  Study  

Methodology  and  Research  Design  •  To  explore  par*cipants’  lived  experiences,  a  phenomenological  research  design  was  used  where  women’s  experiences  as  leaders  is  the  phenomenon  studied.  

•  For  data  analysis,  I  used  standpoint  theory  which  argues  that  where  we  stand  has  an  impact  on  what  we  think  to  be  true  and  influences  our  percep*on  of  reality  (Smith,  1999).      

 

ParEcipant  and  Site  SelecEon  •  Purposive  selec*on  process  (Schwandt,  2007).      •  Eight  women  (five  have  children,  and  three  did  not).  

•  I  focused  on  two  universi*es  located  in  Atlan*c  Canada.    Four  par*cipants  volunteered  from  each  site.      

 

Data  CollecEon  

•  Eight  par*cipants  took  part  in  2  interviews  and  completed  a  7-­‐day  leadership  journal  (16  interviews  &  7  journals  were  primary  sources  of  data)  

References  

•  Women  shared  challenging  and  difficult  stories,  but  also  stories  of  choice  and  control.      

•  They  felt  a  sense  of  empowerment  and  hope.  •  Changes  to  collec*ve  agreements  for  the  beTerment  of  women  and  parents  

at  universi*es  (e.g.,  1  year  parental  leave,  with  pay)  

Results  

•  CharloTe  drove  home  every  day  to  breasUeed.  •  S*ll  sense  of  judgment  for  women  who  get  pregnant.    Erin  argued  that  

women  s*ll  fear  geVng  pregnant  because  they  could  lose  their  jobs.  •  Having  kids  before  tenure  helped  (Allison).  •  Formula  for  balancing  act  success  (Heather):  energy,  organiza*on,  

rou*ne,  involved  &  suppor*ve  husband.  •  Taking  your  *me  through  graduate  school  to  experience  motherhood  &  

joy  of  spending  *me  with  children  (Freda).  •  Having  a  helpful  and  suppor*ve  husband  (Allison,  Heather,  CharloTe).  •  Never  ending  struggle  for  balance  (Erin,  Joanne).  

•  Historically  universi*es  dominated  by  men  &  women  were  not  typically  present  in  academic  posi*ons  (Ward  &  Wolf  Wendel,  2012).  

•  Academic  environment,  culture,  and  work  ethic  shaped  by  men.  

•  Leading  to  gendered  norms  that  oversee  faculty  life.    

 

Mothers  in  Academe  

•  Even  though  more  women  entering  workforce,  sexism  and  gendered  no*ons  have  not  been  eradicated  (Rhoads  &  Rhoads,  2012)  

•  It  is  especially  difficult  for  women  who  are  mothers  to  succeed,  get  promoted,  achieve  tenure,  etc.  (Dry_out  &  Estes,  2010)    

•  For  example,  women  (moreso  than  men)  perceive  parenthood  and  childbearing  as  main  barriers  in  aTaining  full  professorship  (Sanders  et  al.,  2009)  

•  Thus,  what  can  be  said  for  the  state  of  academic  motherhood  in  Atlan*c  Canada?  

 

•  Interrup*ng  the  dominant  discourse.  

•  Currently,  there  exists  a  de  facto  discourse  around  academic  motherhood.      

•  I  hoped  to  add  a  more  balanced  perspec*ve  to  what  is  currently  known  about  being  a  mother  and  an  academic  in  Canadian  universi*es.    

Balancing  Act:  Challenge,  Choice,  Control  

“The  biggest  challenge  was  when  I  started  in  this  posi*on  at  this  university.    I  had  three  kids  in  daycare  and  one  in  Grade  1.    I  was  

dropping  kids  off  to  daycare  and  coming  to  teach.    I  had  8:30  classes  every  day  of  the  week,  and  I  taught  six  courses  […]  Having  never  taught  before,  you  could  only  imagine  what  it  was  like.    It  was  a  

nightmare”  (Joanne)      

“The  women  with  children  felt  as  though  the  journey  of  being  an  academic  and  a  mother  was  a  mixed  experience,  one  with  both  sacrifices  and  rewards.    Thus,  the  par*cipants’  posi*ve  and  balanced  experiences  should  be  viewed  as  addi*ve,  rather  than  as  replacements,  to  the  current  discourse  of  academic  motherhood.    Ward  and  Wolf-­‐Wendel  (2012)  also  spoke  about  the  contradic*on  of  academic  motherhood  as  both  sacrificial  and  rewarding,  describing  it  as  “silver  linings  and  clouds,”  with  both  posi*ve  and  nega*ve  stories  (p.  49).”  (Jakubiec,  2015,  p.  86-­‐87)  

“Historically,  it  has  been  an  issue  to  have  children  and  do  this  job.    Now  we  have  a  very  good  maternity  deal  here,  or  parental  deal,  so  

you  can  get  12  months  [off]  at  almost  full  salary”  (Allison)      

Joanne  Heather  Freda  Liz  

CharloTe  Allison  Erin  

Pamela  

Dry_out,  V.  L.,  &  Estes,  S.  (2010).  Explaining  the  gender  gap  in  professors’  inten*ons  to  leave.  Sociological  Focus,  43(2),  109–127.    Jakubiec,  B.  A.  E.  (2015).  The  lived  experience  of  female  leaders  in  two  university  seVngs:  Perceived  supports,  barriers,  and  challenges.  Unpublished  master’s  thesis,  University  of  Prince  Edward  Island,  CharloTetown,  PE.    Rhoads,  S.  E.,  &  Rhoads,  C.  H.  (2012).  Gender  roles  and  infant/toddler  care:  Male  and  female  professors  on  the  tenure  track.  Journal  of  Social,  Evolu=onary,  and  Cultural  Psychology,  6(1),  13–31.    Sanders,  K.,  Willemsen,  T.  M.,  &  Millar,  C.  C.  J.  (2009).  Views  from  above  the  glass  ceiling:  Does  the  academic  environment  influence  women  professors’  career  and  experiences?  Sex  Roles,  60(5/6),  301–312.  doi:10.1007/s11199-­‐008-­‐9547-­‐7    Schwandt,  T.  A.  (2007).  The  Sage  dic=onary  of  qualita=ve  inquiry.  Thousand  Oaks,  CA:  Sage.    Smith,  D.  E.  (1999).  Wri=ng  the  social:  Cri=que,  theory,  and  inves=ga=ons.  Toronto,  ON:  University  of  Toronto  Press.    Ward,  K.,  &  Wolf-­‐Wendel,  L.  (2012).  Academic  motherhood:  How  faculty  manage  work  and  family.  New  Brunswick,  NJ:  Rutgers  University  Press.