Abstract
Sport and belonging are not neutral. Both are shaped by power, organizations, and identity in ways that determine whose stories are centered and whose are marginalized. Black women student-athletes at highly selective, predominantly white institutions (PWIs) navigate this tension acutely, excelling in both academics and athletics while simultaneously contending with racism, sexism, and persistent othering. Research demonstrates that belonging is not merely an emotional experience; it directly influences academic achievement, mental health, identity formation, and long-term career outcomes. As college athletics undergoes a historic structural transformation, understanding these dynamics has never been more urgent. Intersectionality and Black Feminist Thought serve as the conceptual foundation employed for this research, providing a lens to examine how race, gender, belonging, and power converge in the existing scholarship on Black women student-athletes. This study employs a qualitative research design drawing on interviews with Black women student-athletes at a highly selective PWI. Through iterative semi-structured interviews exploring past, present, and future experiences of belonging, and analyzed using Grounded Theory, this work interrogates how institutional structures of power shape participants' sense of belonging beyond the athletic arena. Findings yield actionable recommendations for institutional practice, offering higher education administrators, athletic departments, and coaches concrete strategies for creating more equitable and affirming environments.
