Inez Beverly Prosser - Legacy

Legacy

Prosser was one of the key figures in the debate on how to best educate Black students. Arguments made in her dissertation were used in the 1920s and 1930s in the debate about school segregation. Her dissertation "examined personality differences in black children attending either voluntarily segregated or integrated schools and concluded that black children were better served in segregated schools" As a Black female psychologists, Prosser’s voice was crucial during her time and now because the voices and this histories of Black Psychology and Black Psychologist has been absent from the narratives of mainstream American psychology. Although her dissertation research remains unpublished, her work appropriated by other researchers were used in the debated leading up to the Brown v. Board of Education U.S. Supreme Court ruling of 1954, which argues that segregated schools were inherently unequal, thereby mandating integration in the nations public schools. Her works on the educational and identity development of Black students were not only influenced by her teaching and administrative experience, but by her only experiences at a "colored" school in Texas.

While Prosser is frequently referred to as the first African-American woman to earn a PhD in Psychology, others believe that Ruth Winifred Howard (1900–1997) was the first. The distinction depends on how one defines a psychologist. Those who argue that Howard, earning PhD at the University of Minnesota in 1934 is the first African-American woman to earn a PhD, hold the view that a psychologist is someone who earned the degree within a psychology department. In Prosser’s case, although her "dissertation research was in psychology, her doctoral mentor and other members of her committee were psychologists, and much of her coursework was in psychology" she is often denied her well-deserved title. The distinction not only lies between these two women however, as holding the view that psychologists must earn degrees within a psychology department would disqualify not only many of the first and second generations of American psychologists, but also the rising number of contemporary psychologist who have not earned degrees from psychology departments.

Prosser had made many contributions to Psychology in her short life time. Prosser posed a powerful argument regarding the effects of racial inequality on the mental health of African-American children. In her dissertation, she discussed optional education avenues, exploring reasons for providing children the opportunity to be educated according to their ability, not their socioeconomic status. She cited examples of psychological stress in students incurred as a result of racial discrepancies and racial isolation. Prosser voiced her support for segregated schools and the reasons they benefited students and staff, and also provided reasons for which this segregation was detrimental to all students and individuals involved. Prosser’s contributions to education were felt across many fields. During the debates over school segregation in the 1920’s, many of her arguments were cited She was a critical voice for the African-American community at a time when women academics were scarce. Prosser’s contributions to the improvement of education for all students can be felt in many policies still being used throughout the teaching community today.

In 1934, she was killed in an automobile accident near Shreveport, Louisiana. Students, family members, friends, colleagues, and those who appreciated her dedication to improving the primary, secondary, and higher education of Black students mourned her loss. Prosser’s early death (one year after she received her PhD) prevented her from building a rapport as an academic writer.