RESILIENCE AND GRIT: CRITICAL TOOLS FOR A FEMALE GEOSCIENTIST’S PROFESSORIAL JOURNEY IN ACADEMIA (Invited Presentation)

“Women should not study geology because fieldwork in the bush is not safe for them.” When I applied for university admission in Nigeria in the late 1970s, I heard this or similar statements about geosciences as a discipline from my high school teachers, a male geologist cousin, and my mother. Through a combination of events, I ended up studying geology at the university. Although the geosciences embrace a higher number of females today, female geoscientists still face numerous barriers that hinder their advancement in the profession. This presentation will detail my decades-long experiences in a science, technology, engineering and Math (STEM) focused institution in rural Missouri, from a newly arrived immigrant with a doctoral degree from the United Kingdom to my current leadership role at the same institution. Resilience and grit are just two of the many critical tools that have enabled me to navigate an academic career as the first female African American professor campus-wide, in my interactions with students, staff and professor colleagues, and systemic biases while climbing the academic ladder. These experiences have shaped my role as a mentor to the thousands of students who have pass through my classroom and laboratory, and the importance of giving back to the profession through external service to organizations.