Rachel Farr is a second-year William T. Grant Scholar who has mentored over 100 undergraduate and 20 graduate students, including numerous students of various racial-ethnic identities who also identify as LGBTQ . She notes that while being LGBTQ is an identity she shares with many of her students, and that having LGBTQ mentors has been deeply significant to her, as a White woman, she has much yet to learn about career development issues faced by people of color and how to address them effectively as a mentor. With this award, Farr would like to develop cultural competencies that will help her tailor her mentoring to be more helpful to the unique needs of students of color, particularly their professional development and networking. She would also like to integrate discussions of work-life balance and developing one’s identity as a scholar into her regular mentoring meetings with students. Her mentee, Kyle Simon, a third-year multi-racial, LGBTQ , and first-generation student in the Psychology doctoral program at the University of Kentucky, will aim to investigate outcomes for LGBTQ Asian American and Pacific Islander youth and families when intersections of racial, ethnic, gender, socio-economic status, or sexual identities do not “align” with traditional cultural expectations surrounding development and family choices.
Farr will use this award to develop cultural competencies that will help her tailor her mentoring to be more helpful to the unique needs of students of color, particularly their professional development and networking
