Honoring My Experience A significant theme under contributors to trust, was the

White trustworthy mentor’s honoring the experience of the Black supervisee or counseling student. These mentors held a deep appreciation for the Black struggle and sought to validate the participant’s experience. There were five subthemes which included: humble inquiry, mutual growth, less rigid boundaries, providing space, and respect disagreements.

1.3.1. Humble Inquiry. Four participants noted that their mentor was humble enough to

recognize that they were not an expert on their student’s experience, despite the mentor’s potential expertise in multicultural competency. Kelly shared an emotional story about having a White male supervisor who inquired about the racist and sexist experience Kelly was having with an older White male supervisor at her university:

I remember with one [white male] mentor, I was really upset because I had a really not good experience with a [white male] supervisor. The whole time I had been in this other supervisory relationship, I was feeling as if there were racial and gender dynamics that he was unaware of but I was very aware of. I remember, so crying in my other supervisors office about it, and him bringing that up…I'm about to cry thinking about it, but it's just a very gentle and just a curious way of bringing up those dynamics because I didn't want to have to be the one to say it because sometimes you feel like you're crazy, but he brought it up. Just being pleasantly surprised but grateful when that does happen.

The White persons that these participants found to be trustworthy listened deeply, empathized readily, and asked questions when appropriate in recognition of the struggle of their Black mentees.

1.3.2. Mutual Growth. Three participants shared that cross-racial mentoring can benefit

both the Black mentee and the White mentor. They believed that Whites who honored their experience could grow in their own multicultural competency as a result of the cross-racial relationship. Chad stated that:

Just being able to share those conversations, share those experiences and even talking about what it's like for me to walk into a room professionally with a bunch of other white counselors and being the only black male counselor in the room. Those conversations, I think, help build me as a mentee, but also help build my mentor.

These students understood themselves as resources for their mentors in regarding to sharing their lives and experiences as Black students in a White space.

1.3.3 Less Rigid Boundaries. Seven of the ten participants shared that it was important

that the White person they choose to trust did not restrict the conversation to matters of academic and professional significance. Simone said, “We would talk about everything really. She wasn't only like a mentor for the profession. She was almost a mentor for life.” Kelly said:

I don't know if this is the culture or maybe the particular program that I'm in or if this is just a culture knack of academia in general, in that it feels as if sometimes professors set these boundaries as, I'm the professor, you are the student, the GTA, the doc student or whatever. In doing that, they set boundaries in what is acceptable to talk about, what are acceptable manners of acting with

you, and I find that to be really limiting, especially with how I relate to people because I don't relate to people, it's probably a cultural thing, but when those boundaries are rigid and when they're set. I have a harder time working within those parameters because I'm just looking around like I don't know what I can talk to you about or can come to you with. If I'm struggling personally, is it okay if I come in crying in your office because if those boundaries are really rigid, I don't feel like I can do that.

These students felt that their mentors having less rigid boundaries allowed for the participants to be more vulnerable about their lived experiences as students of color.

1.3.4. Providing Space. Half of the mentees felt it was important for Whites to create

space for Blacks to process their encounters with racism and isolation. Kelly articulated her need for such a space in the midst of the,

current political and social climate that's contributing to my experience as a black student, as a black person in America. I think it's important to even, we don't have to provide space every single time there is a shooting, the police shoot a black man or every single time something happens, but I think that just providing that space for students is really important. It's providing that space for your mentee's to talk about it is really important. I think if there's not, if that space isn't provided or if there seems to be this unawareness of historical but also current social and political context that are contributing to our experiences as black people, I just don't think that I would trust them as much For these students, their White mentor provided the space for them to express emotions and ask questions that may not be safe to ask other Whites.

1.3.5. Respect My Disagreements. Three participants stated that their cross-racial trust

grew as they discovered that they could disagree with their mentors without repercussions. Harpo wanted Whites to know,

That having a different opinion doesn't mean I'm against you, doesn't mean I don't like you. It's being willing to stop and just have respect for the fact that people see something different than you. Somebody can still support you even when they have a different view than what you have.

These students felt that they may be able to trust a White person who was able to receive a critique or an opposing argument from a Black supervisee or student.

1.4. Ability to Trust. The research team labeled the fourth and last theme under