Urbanities,
Vol. 3
·
No 2
·
November 2013
© 2013
Urbanities
144
sociology, social demography, and urban policy. She teaches Sociology at University of Lille and the
University of Social Career, Tourcoing, France
.
Name:
Natalia Campbell
Affiliation:
Wadsworth Magnet School for High Achievers, U.S.
Awarded:
2011, Lincoln Memorial University, U.S.
Hispanic Women in Leadership: Perceptions of Their Roads to Successful Careers
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of Hispanic women in
leadership positions as they travelled the roads to successful careers. The study also attempted
to discover how Hispanic female leaders were able to achieve professional success in the
United States: what barriers they encountered and what strategies they used to overcome the
obstacles. This study utilized a hermeneutic phenomenological framework to obtain, analyze,
and interpret rich descriptive data in order to answer the research questions.
Standardized, semi-structured, digitally recorded interviews with twelve Hispanic
females employed in leadership positions in academia, government, and the private sector
provided rich descriptive data for this study. Seven essential themes emerged because of the
coding and data analysis. These seven essential themes represented common characteristics
of the participants of this study, and explained their professional success: ( a). family,
(b).winner mentality, (c).desire to give back to community, (d).religious beliefs, spirituality,
and luck, (e).opportunities, ( f). keeping Hispanic roots, and (g).mentoring.
The results of the study revealed that family support, hard work, self-respect, self-
determination, and goal-orientation helped the participants to accomplish their career
aspirations. Also revealed was a drive for success and lack of a pre-conceived sense of
inequality that contributed to the professional success of the participants. The findings imply
that it is necessary to create information centers for professional Hispanic females who move
to this country. The Conclusions suggest that it is very important to create additional centers
for English language training and establish mentoring programs for aspiring Hispanic
females.
Dr. Natalia Campbell
, Ed. D. is a
lifelong learner and educator. She holds several graduate
degrees which she earned in three different countries, USA, Spain and Belarus, using different
languages, English, Spanish and Russian. Natalia Campbell earned her Doctorate in Executive
Leadership (Ed. D.) from Lincoln Memorial University, Harrogate, TN. Her dissertation research
topic is titled
Hispanic Women in Leadership: Perceptions of their Roads to Successful Careers
. Dr.
Campbell holds an Education Specialist
(
Ed.S) degree from Lincoln Memorial University with double
majors: Curriculum & Instruction and Educational Leadership, a Master’s degree in Spanish
Language and Spanish Culture from the University Of Salamanca, Spain (scholarship of the Embassy
of Spain and Georgia Department of Education) and a Master’s degree in Linguistics with double
majors: Spanish & English and Teaching
from
Minsk State Linguistics University in her native
Belarus. Dr. Campbell completed her specialized training in the Reading in the Classroom Program
in the university Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain (scholarship of the Embassy of Spain and
Georgia Department of Education).
Dr. Campbell is a member of the IUAES Commission on Urban
