Date of Award

Spring 6-12-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph.D. in Teaching and Learning Sciences

Organizational Unit

Morgridge College of Education, Teaching and Learning Sciences, Curriculum and Instruction

First Advisor

Brette Garner

Second Advisor

Kimberly Schmidt

Third Advisor

Rashida Banerjee

Fourth Advisor

Lolita Tabron

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved.

Keywords

Action learning, Black feminist pedagogy, Black women professionals, Humanized Black Feminist Action Learning (H-BFAL), Leadership development, Workplace learning, Corporate environments

Abstract

This study examined the workplace learning experiences of Black women professionals in corporate leadership contexts. Leadership development programs often rely on standardized models that overlook the lived realities shaping Black women’s professional experiences. In response, this study introduced Humanized Black Feminist Action Learning, a leadership development intervention that integrates Black feminist scholarship, humanizing pedagogy, and critical action learning.

Using a qualitative case study design, the research examined a cohort of midcareer Black women professionals who participated in four facilitated learning sessions structured around workplace dilemmas. During these sessions, participants engaged in reflection, dialogue, and action as they examined workplace dynamics and explored strategies for navigating organizational environments. The learning environment functioned as a counterspace that affirmed participants’ lived experiences while supporting collective interpretation of workplace challenges.

Thematic analysis of participant reflections and interviews identified patterns in how participants interpreted workplace dynamics and strengthened confidence in their leadership approaches. The findings highlight how leadership learning environments that center lived experience and collective meaning-making can support leadership development among Black women professionals.

This study contributes to scholarship on workplace learning and leadership development by introducing the Humanized Black Feminist Action Learning model as an identity-centered learning intervention. It demonstrates how action learning, grounded in Black feminist epistemologies and humanizing pedagogy, reorients leadership development away from neutral, decontextualized approaches and toward processes that center lived experience, collective sensemaking, and rehearsal. In doing so, the study shows how these processes can strengthen leadership confidence for Black women in corporate environments.

Copyright Date

6-2026

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Jovan Keith

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

175 pgs

File Size

1.9 MB

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