Based on a need to understand African American women's mentorship experiences in senior leadership positions such as president, vice president, provost, and dean in community college settings, this qualitative descriptive study was conducted to inductively explore African American women's experiences in higher education. The research question was: "What role does mentorship play in helping African American women attain senior leadership positions in community college settings?" The qualitative approach was appropriate because it encouraged participants to provide their viewpoints to advance scientific research pertaining to mentorship, diversity, and equality in higher education. A purposeful sampling strategy identified the chosen group of African American women who had been formally and/or informally mentored toward senior leadership roles in community college settings. In this study, the researcher examined the perceptions of African American women senior leaders in community colleges in the Southeast, Northeast, and Midwest regions of the United States. Participants shared in-depth stories in semistructured interviews with open-ended questions. The mentoring theory acted as the primary theoretical framework for this study, followed by social networking theory as a secondary framework. In addition, two complementary theories, transformational leadership theory and diversity leadership practice, helped guide this research. Data analysis revealed 10 themes: (a) leaders inspire, (b) opportunity, (c) exposure, (d) connection, (e) access, (f) sponsorship, (g) education, (h) insight, (i) navigation, and (j) reflection, as well as 22 subthemes. The findings may help higher education leaders find practical solutions to the complex issues associated with leadership in higher education. As in previous literature, the results indicated African American women have a range of essential professional experiences and possess a significant portion of terminal degrees yet lack a readiness to participate actively in a critical leadership role. Recommendations for practice include encouraging African American women who aspire to leadership positions in higher education to observe successful African American women leaders within their field, engage in mentoring relationships with African American women leaders, become leaders within their current area of influence, and become educated about and immersed in the sector in which they desire to hold a position. Recommendations for future research include a mixed-methods study using a larger sample, a comparison study based on ethnicity, gender, or type of institution, a replication study based on social networking theory, and further investigations using diversity leadership theory or self-efficacy theory as a framework. Mentorship and sponsorship are vital for African American women's success as executive leaders' positions in community college settings. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]