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<p> African Americans are underrepresented in senior leadership positions of the Federal Government. As of 2009, African Americans occupied less than seven percent of senior pay level positions (EOEC, 2009). Kohli, Gans, and Hairston (2011) projected that African American representation in senior leadership positions will remain stagnant over the next decade. Thirteen GS-13 to GS-15 federal government managers participated in this qualitative phenomenological study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore the lived experiences of federal government managers. Moustakas&rsquo; modified van Kaam method and NVivo10 software was used to analyze transcribed participant interviews. The results from the study indicate the need for mentoring relationships and agency-sponsored training programs to prepare African Americans for senior leadership positions. Based on lived experiences, participants indicated that effective communication was essential for obtaining and sustaining senior leadership positions. Findings from the study also indicate that mobility is a major concern for African Americans who aspire to achieve senior leadership status. Federal government leaders in general schedule leadership positions are the major hiring candidate pool for senior leadership positions (EOEC, 2009). Information from this study may assist African Americans in advancing to federal senior leadership positions.</p>

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This study examines the portraiture of moral depravity in the African novel with specific reference to Ben Okri, and defines the authorial challenge that Okri poses to his readers. The study also explores the narrative differences between The Landscapes Within and Dangerous Love; the latter is an elaboration and revision of the former. Working under the assumption that a filiation exists in the tradition of African realism, the study undertook a comparative analysis, which includes the works of Wole Soyinka and Ayi Kwei Armah, as well as Okri. Soyinka’s and Armab’s works are used as barometers to measure changes and departures in Olcri’s depiction of post-independence life in urban Africa. The conclusions drawn from this study suggest that Okri revises the representation of moral depravity in the African novel through various techniques, which include his unique use of Yoruba creation myths and actual events such as the Biafran War. Okri’s ability to simultaneously explore individual and national consciousness through his young protagonists further defines his position in the tradition of African realism.

This study was an investigation of seven selected rhythm and blues black protest songs, from 1964 to 1975, and their relationship to black empowerment during the era of the Black Power Movement. The songs were analyzed using content analysis and revealed three expected themes of self/black identity, racial equity and self-determination. A fourth theme, social change, evolved during the study. The study focused on the political, cultural and economic ramifications, especially of black music, as a form of protest against a system that proved to be one of inequality, and prejudicial segregation in every aspect of the black life. The rhythm and Blues black protest songs were seen as efforts to empower the black community to take responsibility for its own survival. Of the seven artists who participated in the Black Power Movement, Nina Simone, Curtis Mayfield and Sam Cooke were the most prolific musical contributors to the protest movement of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in its efforts to deal with segregation. The four musicians wrote and performed music that was geared specially for transformations in social justice and to engage the American society, both black and white people, in substantial and lasting social change. The music of the other artists was instrumental in bringing Rhythm and Blues into a revolution. The musical revolutionaries were James Brown, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, and Stevie Wonder. The analysis, however, did not reveal whether or not the rhythm and blues black protest songs contributed to or led to black empowerment during the Civil Rights Black Power era.

This study provides an account and analysis of the role of women in the African Methodist Episcopal Church and discusses their attempts to achieve equal status with men in service to and leadership in the church. The study also examines and analyzes the personal style, skills and abilities of each of the women bishops and assesses the factors that led to her election. A case study approach was used to explain the causal links that have led to the historic election of three women bishops; to describe the context in which this event has occurred; to explore the issues and outcomes of women's efforts to gain leadership in the church; and to evaluate the likelihood that these elections signify far-reaching changes in the policy of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. The researcher found that the progress of women within the African Methodist Episcopal Church has been slow but consistent throughout the history of the church, and that changes in society as well as within the church itself have culminated in the election of women as bishops. Although future elections of women can be expected based on events to date, the researcher did not achieve a definitive assertion from the women bishops that they intend to actively engage in the promotion of the advancement of women in the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

This thesis examined the motif of madness in four literary works by Africana women: Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, Myriam Warner-Vieyra’s Juletane, Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions, and Bessie Head’s A Question of Power. The study was based on the premise that Africana women’s literature serves a receptive purpose. The primary goal was to demonstrate fictionalized madness as a social metaphor and to show how it relates to the existential realities of black women. A deconstructionist approach was used to analyze the four novels, and, a convergence of feminist and Afrocentric theories was used to unearth the diverse realities of black women. This writer found that in each novel female protagonists were driven mad due to the oppressive forces in their societies. In their journeys through madness, they attempted to redefine their self-identities. The outcomes of these journeys ranged from fatal to successful. The conclusions drawn from this study suggests that there are universal truths in the lives of black women, evidenced by the common themes in Africana women’s literature.

The voices of youth are typically absent in research on African communities. The assumption is that children are not really active subjects, and that adults can speak and act on their behalf. This study addresses the walls of silence between children and parents; teachers and learners and between boys and girls, on matters of gender, sexuality and HIV/AIDS. Within these walls, youth construct and re-construct their roles as either feminine or masculine. We see them challenging social constructs and reclaiming their voices and their right to be heard as experts about their own gendered and sexual lives. Using interviews and focus group discussions, a tri-site study was carried out in Kenya, and the findings presented illustrate how boys and girls construct their identities, negotiating, adapting to and resisting common articulations of masculinity and femininity. It demonstrates why it is wrong to constantly associate gender with women and girls, focusing on masculinity and femininity, not in isolation of each other, but as relational identities which derive their meaning from each other. "Breaking Silence" focuses on gender, sexuality and HIV/AIDS risk amongst youth, demonstrating how youth can empower themselves to steer their agenda and articulate what it means to be particular boys or girls, while developing strategies to deal with their issues.