(2023). Our HMoob American College "Paj Ntaub": Student-Engaged Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR) as Counter-Invisibility Work. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), v36 n6 p1018-1038. This article presents the institutional and historical context, methods, findings, and action-consequences of 'Our HMoob American College Paj Ntaub,' a qualitative, student-led Participatory Action Research (PAR) project documenting the sociocultural and institutional factors that influence HMoob American college students' experiences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Drawing on concepts from Asian Critical Race Theory (AsianCrit), we identify sociocultural and institutional processes that misrepresent and erase HMoob American experiences, producing a profound and troubling experience of institutional invisibility which has serious consequences for students' wellbeing and educational attainment. However, we also document that student-led PAR research can be an effective means of enacting what we term 'counter-invisibility work,' by producing compelling counter-narratives that expand social networks for activism, outreach, and policy enactment…. [Direct]
(2023). Reconceptualizing the Achieving Success Everyday Group Counseling Model to Focus on the Strengths of Black Male Middle School Youth. Journal of School-Based Counseling Policy and Evaluation, v5 n1 Article 2 p4-20. Scholarship focused on Black male students in school counseling has been intermittent despite being well documented in the larger field of education and other disciplines. In this article, we conducted a systematic review of the school counseling literature that focused on Black male students. We used critical race theory (CRT) to examine the programs and interventions that have been published with Black male participants in school settings within the school counseling literature and examined the role that school counselors took when supporting Black male students' academic, social emotional, college and career identity development. We reconceptualize the Achieving Success Everyday (ASE) group model (Steen et al., 2014) and call for others to use the ASE group model to combat racism and foster Black excellence…. [PDF]
(2024). Reconstructing Democracy in Polarized Times: Thinking through/with the CRT Conflicts. Democracy & Education, v32 n2 Article 1. In this essay, we consider how reconstructing our ideas about the nature of democracy, and its relationship to education, can help us respond to contemporary challenges. We focus specifically on the ongoing fights about critical race theory (CRT), providing an overview of the CRT controversy–we argue that its cultivation for political reasons has often lessened the possibility of democratic discussions of race, racism, and ongoing white supremacy. Next, we consider how debates around CRT can help us to rethink how we "do" democracy and how to use education to help cultivate democratic habits and values. Finally, we describe three possibilities for responding to the CRT debates in ways that focus on pragmatic inquiry and that enable better thinking about the democratic purposes of schools to work to change racial habits/values and renew civic education and to increase the health of our democracy…. [Direct]
(2024). Graduation Rates and Math Proficiency in an Urban School District: A Counter-Narrative. Journal of Urban Learning, Teaching, and Research, Jun. This article examines high school graduation rates and Algebra I proficiency rates in a large urban school district in Maryland. The article approaches the problem of low minority graduation and Algebra I proficiency rates from a critical race theory perspective. The article challenges the school district's received narrative that it is doing well for its minority students. Using a counter-narrative framework and a critical quantitative approach, the article builds a counter-narrative to the school district's narrative using the school district's own high school graduation and Algebra I proficiency data. The data show that African-American and especially Hispanic students are not succeeding to the degree the official narrative suggests. Free and reduced-price meal data are also used to show the strong relationship between low income and racial composition in the high schools in the district. Recommendations for improving Algebra I pedagogy are suggested…. [PDF]
(2022). Reading, Sharing, and Experiencing Literary/Lived Narratives about Contemporary Racism. Urban Education, v57 n6 p1059-1078 Jul. This qualitative case study explores the literary/lived interpretations and experiences of middle school girls attending a book club located in an urban public school. We examine how the girls' responses to depictions of racism in the novels read reveal the ways in which they understand and/or experience racism in their own lives? We ground this research in critical race theory. Our inductive analytic process yielded the following three themes: (a) storying racism, (b) trusting the injustice and (c) enduring through trauma. We conclude with implications for preparing preservice and in-service classroom teachers to confront racism in their instruction…. [Direct]
(2022). "Would You Wear That to Church?!": The Production of "Ladies" in an All Girls' After-School Club in the Southeast United States. Urban Education, v57 n6 p1008-1030 Jul. This study investigated how Black middle school girls negotiated an after-school club, with a specific focus on ways of knowing and acting as "ladies." Drawing from Fordham's intersectional analyses of the histories and politics behind her conceptualization of "those loud black girls," we explore and critique the ways in which the girls were subjects of, and subjected to, context-specific discourses of race, class, and gender. Critical race theory and poststructural theory are merged to inform the study. The findings illustrate how the girls negotiated and resisted the traditional conceptualizations of femininity that were expected of them…. [Direct]
(2022). "We're Drawn to This Place": Black Graduate Students' Engagement with a Black Cultural Center. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, v15 n1 p86-96 Feb. This study provides a nuanced look at the experiences of Black graduate students who engage with a Black cultural center (BCC) at a historically White institution in an urban center. Combining the theoretical perspectives of critical race theory and graduate developmental networks, the three main findings unearth how (1) the BCC staff act as developers by diversifying graduate students' networks; (2) the BCC space provides opportunities for community that strengthens network ties; and (3) even though the BCC has taken on additional responsibilities to assist graduate students, a lack of institutional support ultimately burdens the center…. [Direct]
(2022). Early Career African American Teachers and the Impact of Administrative Support. Urban Education, v57 n3 p401-431 Mar. This study examined the mobility trends of African American public-school teachers. Guided by the integration of critical race theory and organization theory, this study used longitudinal data from the National Center for Education Statistics to explore how race and organizational climate predict African American teacher mobility. Using a quantitative descriptive study with logistic regression to determine which characteristics impact African American early career teachers' decision to stay in the profession, findings suggest alarming trends in African American teacher mobility and opportunities for school leadership to have a greater role in retaining African American early career teachers…. [Direct]
(2022). Place, Race, and Sports: Examining the Beliefs and Aspirations of Motivated Black Male Students Who Play High School Sports. Urban Education, v57 n1 p154-183 Jan. This article examined academically and athletically motivated Black male students who play high school sports. In-depth interviews and observations illuminated their experiences, beliefs, and aspirations in their Chicago neighborhood and school context. The notion of Place and Critical Race Theory framed their experiences. Yosso's communities of cultural wealth were utilized to analyze their experiences. Family members were instrumental in guiding these adolescents as they participated in recreational activities, enrolled in advanced classes, and participated in sports. This study concludes with implications for education, policy, society, and educational outcomes for Black male students, and Black male students who play sports…. [Direct]
(2022). Nurturing a Critical Race Feminista Praxis: Engaging Education Research with a Historical Sensibility. International Journal of Research & Method in Education, v45 n3 p259-270. This research article is a theoretical guide for scholars interested in bridging Critical Race Theories, Chicana/Latina Feminist frameworks, and historical sensibilities to disrupt whiteness within research about Chicana/o/x and Latina/o/x education. We articulate the contours of a Critical Race Feminista Praxis and provide examples of its application by sharing lessons learned from carrying research centred on the experiences of Chicana/o/x and Latina/o/x communities. We posit, social justice transformation is manifested when Education researchers uplift Chicana/o/x and Latina/o/x histories of resilience and resistance by nurturing a Critical Race Feminista Praxis…. [Direct]
(2023). Two Stories in Search of One Tale: The History of Education Research Meets Critical Race Theory–A Review of Key Secondary Sources, and a Call for a New Narrative. American Educational History Journal, v50 n1-2 p847-258. In a book published in 2000, entitled "An Elusive Science: The Troubling History of Education Research," Ellen C. Lagemann traced educational research (ER) in the U.S. from its pre-history–the training of common school teachers in summer schools, high schools, normal schools, female institutes, and later colleges and universities. Lagemann explained the field's origins as both intellectual and political developments and framed its emergence in the context of the near completion of the feminization of teaching at the end of the 19th century. With some exceptions, Lagemann saw the study of education–from the start–beset by matters of low status inside and outside the academy, overly quantified and narrowly defined. She also professed that its history is further complicated by the complex dealings "that have existed between education scholars … and the society that has sustained them" (Lagemann 2000). This article reviews Lagemann's account and other secondary… [Direct]
(2025). Caregiver Experiences of Racialization While Accessing Early Intervention (EI) Services for Their Children. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, v44 n4 p303-315. Early intervention (EI) services–including but not limited to speech, physical, occupational, and mental health therapies–have been proven to significantly benefit young children's development, shaping their readiness for school and offering pivotal support for caregivers. However, racial disparities persist in identification for and access to EI services. Little is known about the ways in which racism affects how caregivers experience and navigate the screening and EI referral process. Through in-depth qualitative interviews, we explored the experiences of nine minoritized caregivers with experience seeking EI services in the San Francisco Bay area of the United States. Using Critical Race Theory, we investigated how caregivers are racialized in the process. Our findings elucidate mechanisms of racialization, including but not limited to provider bias, managing stereotype threat, and dismissal of caregiver concerns. We also highlight ways in which such racialization contributes to… [Direct]
(2021). The Spook Who Sat by the Ivory Tower: A Critical Race Theory Narrative of a Black Man's Tenure-Track Journey within the Academy. Diversity in Higher Education "The Spook Who Sat by the Door" is a cult-classic early-70s film, based on the 1969 novel by Sam Greenlee. The film deals with issues of inauthentic diversity initiatives, tokenism, and Black Nationalism. In the same manner, this chapter uses themes from the film and novel to disclose how the author navigates pseudo diversity initiatives within higher education and his experiences of being viewed as an exemplar Black male (token) by colleagues, while simultaneously remaining committed to his explicit research focus pertaining to exemplar practices and programming for Black boys and men. Theoretically, the author intersects tenets of Critical Race Theory into his essay (Delgado & Stefancic, 1993, 1994; Tate, 1997). While the author does not advocate for physical violence (as depicted in the film), he is using the training received in academia to declare war on the pernicious educational system that continues to intentionally mis-educate (Woodson, 1933), Black boys and… [Direct]
(2023). From Model Minority to Yellow Peril: The Shifting Narratives of Asian International Students. Journal of International Students, v13 n1 p79-84. The ongoing pandemic, COVID-19, has demonstrated how quickly depictions of Asian individuals can shift from "model minority" to "yellow peril" during times of crisis. These times were particularly difficult for Asian postsecondary international students who were directly impacted by these shifting narratives, as many faced discrimination, violence, and prejudice as a result of the rise of anti-Asian hate that occurred across Canada. Thus, utilizing critical race theory (CRT), the purpose of this article is to provide an overview of these contrasting narratives, how the "model minority" and "yellow peril" can contribute to the maintenance of White supremacy, and possible considerations and interventions to better support Asian international postsecondary students during their studies in Canada…. [PDF]
(2023). White Christian Nationalism: What Is It, and Why Does It Matter for Educational Research?. Educational Researcher, v52 n5 p286-295 Jun-Jul. The ascendance of White Christian nationalism has profound implications for democracy and public institutions in the United States, including public education. This article explains the core beliefs and features of White Christian nationalism as a contemporary religiopolitical movement that seeks to fuse Christianity with civic life; delineates how and why it matters for educational research; and identifies how education scholars might begin to address White Christian nationalism, particularly by investigating how it can be unlearned. We argue that learning about White Christian nationalism can help educational stakeholders better understand current educational battles, such as banning books and discussion of critical race theory, and contextualize a wide range of pressing problems facing US education, especially problems involving educational justice and equity…. [Direct]