Book Review: ‘Lifting As We Climb: How Black Faculty Make Professional and Linguistic Choices to Thrive in Higher Education’ by Kendra Calhoun, et. al.

Black language scholars who choose to pursue a career in academia will find plenty of helpful insights and practical advice in Lifting as We Climb: How Black Faculty Make Professional and Linguistic Choices to Thrive in Higher Education by Kendra Calhoun, assistant professor of linguistic anthropology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Aris M. Clemons, assistant professor of Hispanic linguistics at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Joy P. G. Peltier, assistant professor of linguistics at The Ohio State University; Kahdeidra Monét Martin, assistant professor of education at Vassar College, and Anne H. Charity Hudley, the Bonnie Katz Tenenbaum Professor of Education at Stanford University.

Comprised of five academic articles, the book covers a wide range of topics related to professional development and emotional wellness for Black doctoral students, job seekers, newly hired faculty, mid-career academics, and those appointed to leadership positions, such as department chair, dean, or provost.

Specific topics include:

• the precariousness of applying for academic jobs,

• the systemic loneliness of being siloed in an academic department at a predominately white institution,

• the impact of the dismantling of diversity initiatives,

• the challenges of shifting language usage in different settings,

• the importance of “mattering” throughout one’s professional life, and

• the pressing concerns of intellectual extraction, which refers to the exploitation of one’s labor or ideas without proper recognition or reciprocity.

The book also features frank discussions of financial pressures for early-career academics. Each topic is explored from the perspective of Black language scholars in academic careers.

The information is sorely needed because, as the authors write, “there is no singular Black faculty experience in the United States...yet at the same time, there are systemic institutional and societal factors that all Black faculty must face.” Some of their concerns and experiences overlap with those of other groups; other concerns and experiences are unique to Black scholars.

One example is language usage.

The authors write:

“Black scholars in the language sciences are largely drawn to their fields because of their lived experiences with linguistic discrimination, or variation broadly, and the desire to better understand and advocate for marginalized linguistic systems.”

The book is well-organized with literature reviews, capsule biographies, resource lists, self-study questions, and other elements brought together to create a cohesive narrative that’s supported with tables, figures, and charts. Material that’s an awkward fit is set apart from the main text.

The advice is both broad and specific, often actionable, and rarely prescriptive. This is not a “you should” book; it’s a curated selection of smart recommendations supported by the lived experiences of dozens of Black language scholars at different institutions and stages of their careers.

In a section about wellness and the pressures of research, for example, the authors suggest that Black language scholars alert editors and reviewers to their intentional use of linguistic features, such as Black language, as a component of their multilingual or multidialectal scholarship. A brief note—e.g., “this is purposeful”—may help to ensure that editors and reviewers who aren’t familiar with those linguistic features will try to respect the scholar’s intentions.

Two important topics the book doesn’t explore are how Black language scholars are being affected by declining enrollments and closures of some academic institutions and the myriad of problems associated with the widespread use of machine learning and large language models in academia.

While Lifting as We Climb is primarily a resource for Black linguistic faculty, the book also offers valuable insights for non-Black faculty, academic administrators, and other allies of these dedicated and hard-working professionals. #

Marcie Geffner is a journalist, writer, and book critic in Ventura, California.

Disclosure: One of Lifting As We Climb’s lead authors is a member of a global online writing community of which I am also a member.

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Lifting As We Climb: How Black Faculty Make Professional and Linguistic Choices to Thrive in Higher Education

Kendra Calhoun, Aris M. Clemons, Joy P. G. Peltier, Kahdeidra Monét Martin, and Anne H. Charity Hudley

Teachers College Press

May 22, 2026

216 pages