UnCommon Bonds

Kersha Smith, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Psychology at the City University of New York, Queensborough Community College. Kersha has been published in Pedagogy, Culture & Society, The Journal of Social Issues, and Transformative Dialogues, among other journals. She is a recipient of the Spencer Foundation’s Discipline Based Studies in Education Fellowship, Calvin W. Ruck Award, and The Larry Murphy Award by the Adult Higher Education Alliance.Marcella Runell Hall, Ed.D., is Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students at Mount Holyoke College. Marcella has a doctorate in social justice education from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, a masters of arts in higher education administration from New York University, and a bachelor’s degree in social work from Ramapo College of New Jersey. Marcella has previously edited four books and contributed chapters to several book projects, as well as published her work in VIBE, Equity & Excellence in Education, and the New York Times Learning Network. Marcella has received numerous awards from NASPA (Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education) and was the recipient of the K. Patricia Cross Future Scholar’s Award given by the AAC&U (Association for American College’s and Universities).

• Acknowledgments – Sonia Nieto: Foreword – Kersha Smith / Marcella Runell Hall: Introduction – Joicelyn Dingle: Of My Purple Life – Stacey Gibson-Jessica Havens: It’s All About the Rhythm: Birthing Sisterhood – Robin DiAngelo: "When You Do It to Me, It’s Racism" – Nelle Mills: Filiation – Liza A. Talusan: The Support I Need – Jodi Van Der Horn-Gibson-Christina Marín: Marginal Friendship: An Exploration of Culture, Privilege, and Sisterhood – Thembisa S. Mshaka: Friends in Real Life – Amber Buggs: Race Is a Factor, Not a Foundation – Millicent R. Jackson: Across the Abyss – Felice Belle-Anne Murphy: Dear Sis/Love, Sis – Jennifer M. D. Matos-Gail E. Norskey: Choosing Each Other: Love, Friendship, and Racism – S. Lenise Wallace-Eman Mosharafa-Joni Schwartz: Black, White, and Brown: A Collaborative Autoethnography Analyzing the Race and Friendship of Three Women in Academia – Mira Sengupta-Samantha González-Block: A Joyful Dance Between Friends: The Story of Our Hindu–Muslim, Jewish–Christian Friendship – Paulette Dalpes-Berenecea Johnson Eanes: Sliding Doors, Intentional Choices – JLove Calderón: Ride or Die: Relationships Beyond Constructs – Roberta Samet-Imani Romney-Rosa: Letters – Rani Varghese-Allia Abdullah-Matta-Hye-Kyung Kang: "The Ladies Salon": Building Intellectual and Personal Collective(s) – Deinya Phenix: The "Crazy White Lady" and Other Archetypes in Workplace Friendships, Boundaries, and Power – Keisha L. Green: Trust – Jamila Lyiscott: Afterword: Crossing – Contributors.

“Into a cultural landscape sorely lacking in representations of cross-racial friendships between women, «UnCom-mon Bonds» arrives as both revelation and gift—an uncommonly candid, nuanced guide to nurturing those bonds in the name of personal growth and social justice.”Emily Lordi, Associate Professor, University of Massachusetts Amherst,and author of «Black Resonance: Iconic Women Singers and African American Literature» and «Donny Hathaway Live»