Am I My Brother's Keeper?: The Importance of Black Male Kinship at a PWI

Introduction

Recent statistics suggest that the percentage of Black students pursuing a post-secondary education has declined during the pandemic (Goldberg, 2021). The shift highlights the challenges Black students, specifically males, face in today’s society. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the Black community has been disproportionately affected including higher mortality, food, housing insecurity rates, and financial hardships (Harper, 2020). Moreover, members of the Black community were more likely to reenter the hospital after contracting COVID in comparison to Whites (Henry Akintobi et al., 2020). These sobering statistics among other factors impacted the percentage of Black males that pursued a college degree. For this reason, it is critical that administrators, faculty, and university staff examine the unique barriers Black male doctoral students have to overcome. While much of the research on Black male college students focuses on undergraduate students, additional research on graduate students at PWIs is equally important.

Black males must overcome stereotypes and misconceptions that impact their ability to succeed in graduate school. Regrettably, they have to transverse barriers without the support of Black males with similar lived experiences. Research suggests that Black male college students with quality mentors are more likely to succeed (Goings, 2021). Thus, this chapter seeks to explore the concept of Kinship between a Black male doctoral student and Black male faculty member. Rarely are Black males given a platform to discuss how racial bonds play a vital role in their success.