(2024). The Spirit-Murdering of Black Students from White Educators. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, University of Missouri – Saint Louis. In this collection of autoethnographies, four researchers explored our deeply personal experiences and encounters with racialized oppression in the form of spirit-murder. Using Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Critical Whiteness Studies, this dissertation explores how two white educators have committed spirit-murder against Black students and how two Black educators have both experienced spirit-murder as students and have spirit-murdered their Black and Brown students as classroom teachers. We wanted to elevate our voices using counter-stories as a tenet of CRT and examples of our teaching practices. We aimed to elicit relatable suggestions to combat spirit-murdering from white educators toward Black students during their grade school and college experiences. All four educators hoped that by sharing, we exposed not only the existence and effects of spirit-murder and ways we were working to eliminate these unfair acts and practices but also ways to better support Black children in… [Direct]
(2024). Marva Collins: How One Teacher Ignited the Innate Brilliance of a Generation of Black Children. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Fielding Graduate University. This study aims to determine if the educational approach of educator Marva Collins was counter-hegemonic through a critical race theory (CRT) lens. This is a study in contemporary history using autobiographical and archival materials and in-depth interviews to explore the relationship between her educational approach and that used by the traditional educational system. No other study has asked: Was Marva Collins' educational approach counter-hegemonic? Only two scholarly studies are available on the topic of Collins' work. Thus, this study contributes to our academic knowledge about a figure much discussed in the popular press but not frequently studied by academics. The study's findings reveal that Marva Collins' educational approach was counter-hegemonic. While she utilized some traditional teaching methods, she opposed the general hegemonic devaluing of Black students. Collins disproved the assumption that Black children were not as bright as White children. She did so by teaching… [Direct]
(2024). Diversity in Higher Education: A Multiple Case Study. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, National University. The shortage of African American faculty employed at higher education institutions is prevalent at two-year community colleges across Tennessee. The problem addressed in this study is the lack of African American faculty employed at Tennessee Board of Regents institutions. This qualitative multiple-case study examined why there is a lack of African American faculty, the effects of this trend, and what can be done to address this issue. The theoretical framework that supports this study is the Critical Race Theory, which assisted in describing the perceptions of currently employed faculty members. Semi-structured interviews and a focus group discussion were used to collect data from 16 currently employed participants at one of the 13 community colleges operating under the Tennessee Board of Regents system. Research questions that guided the study addressed faculty perceptions as to why there is a consistent lack of African Americans employed at their institutions and what strategies… [Direct]
(2016). Illuminating Agency: A Latin@ Immigrant Parent's "Testimonio" on the Intersection of Immigration Reform and Schools. Equity & Excellence in Education, v49 n3 p350-362. Anti-immigration reform has created a hostile and threatening climate for Latin@ immigrants and their families. Simple everyday acts that are often taken for granted (i.e. parents dropping off children at school, driving to the grocery store, etc.) became acts that threaten to separate families. As a result, many Latin@ families are currently "living in the shadows"–hiding their immigration status from any agency (including schools) or individuals that may pose a threat. Via the use of field notes and interviews, the author reconstructs one parent's (Blanca) experience "cruzando la frontera"/crossing the border, as well the moment when Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials appeared at her doorstep, and subsequent actions thereafter. By utilizing Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Latin@ Critical Race Theory (LatCrit), this study centers and prioritizes Blanca's experience navigating the intersecting space between seemingly disconnected immigration reforms… [Direct]
(2023). Raging Waters of Whiteness: Addressing White Evangelical Racism in Higher Education. ProQuest LLC, Ph.D./HE Dissertation, Azusa Pacific University. Too often, the racial diversity conversation is perceived as an issue for people of color rather than one that also profoundly impacts White people. The power of whiteness often reflects its invisibility, particularly embedded into the culture of Christian colleges. This study was a hermeneutic phenomenology of diversity professionals addressing whiteness at Christian colleges. The shift in examining racism to name the dominant culture of whiteness on Christian college campuses has remained largely missing from scholarly literature. Research to date had primarily focused on the experiences of students of color at Christian colleges and was missing the exploration of naming and addressing whiteness. This study aimed to bring visibility to whiteness and critically examine racism in Christian higher education (i.e., White evangelical racism). The central research question of this study was: What are the lived experiences of diversity professionals addressing whiteness at Christian… [Direct]
(2023). Redefining the Narrative of Women in Leadership: A Qualitative Study of Latina Leaders in K-12 Education. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Seattle University. Even with women outnumbering men in obtaining graduate and professional degrees in educational leadership, the representation between women and men in higher level positions such as principalships, district office executives, and superintendencies remains incongruent. Consequently, this incongruency is further exacerbated when we look beyond women as a monolith and see that women of color, and more specifically Latina women are significantly underrepresented in comparison to their counterparts and the population that they represent. Through using a qualitative phenomenological approach, the researcher explored intersectional factors in relation to the participants multiple identities. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to provide insight into Latina educational leaders lived experiences in K-12 settings to deepen the understanding between identity, role, and leadership. Participants were established through the researchers' current participation and network with the… [Direct]
(2021). Educating Informal Educators on Issues of Race and Inequality: Raising Critical Consciousness, Identifying Challenges, and Implementing Change in a Youth and Community Work Programme. Education Sciences, v11 Article 410. The debate regarding institutional racism and White privilege within higher education (HE) remains prevalent, and higher education institutions (HEIs) are not exempt from the racial equality debate. Youth and Community Work is underpinned by anti-oppressive practice, highlighting a need to educate informal educators on the structural underpinnings of Race and inequality, so that they can be challenged in practice to bring about social change. For Youth and Community Workers, this is primarily done through informal education and critical pedagogy. The research aimed to unearth race inequality within the Youth and Community Work programme at Wrexham Glyndwr University (WGU). Critical reflection methodology was used to deconstruct departmental processes of recruitment, learning and assessment, student voice, and support. Research data was analysed using thematic analysis, determining three themes: critical consciousness, challenge, and change. These are discussed within the framework of… [PDF]
(2022). Special Education Teachers of Color and Their Beliefs about Dis/Ability and Race: Counter-Stories of Smartness and Goodness. Curriculum Inquiry, v51 n5 p496-521. Teacher beliefs about race and dis/ability1 are important in understanding how teachers educate and support students of color with dis/abilities. This is particularly critical because of the overrepresentation of students of color in special education, irrelevant curriculum, and poor post-school outcomes which continue to impact students of color with dis/abilities in US public schools. Using qualitative counter-stories of goodness and smartness, this study highlights the expressed beliefs of two special education teachers of color, Leena and Leonardo, who were completing a special education teaching credential program at a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in Southern California. The teachers were asked to compose a series of short and long reflections as part of two courses centering dis/ability and race. They also participated in follow-up interviews in which they reflected on their beliefs and experiences with the intersections of dis/ability and race. Courses were intentionally… [Direct]
(2022). Preparing Special Education Intern Teachers Remotely during the COVID-19 Pandemic. ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, University of California, Davis. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the effectiveness of remote teacher preparation during the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically special education teachers participating at an Intern Credentialing Program in Northern California. In addition to remote teacher preparation, the study explored how intern teachers experienced delivering special services remotely, how they perceived the Intern Program prepared them compared to traditional programs, and how they experienced their preparation to become agents of change in public education. Data for this study was collected through field journals, surveys and interviews. The findings of this study revealed that Intern Teachers experienced remote Teacher Education as having more benefits than challenges, however the delivery of services to students with disabilities had more challenges than benefits. The interviews indicated that the Intern Teachers believe they are not well prepared to be agents of change. Implications… [Direct]
(2023). A Call for Critical PDS: Infusing DisCrit into the Nine Essentials. School-University Partnerships, v16 n1 p92-100. Purpose: The field of Professional Development Schools (PDS) continues to evolve with promising implications. As part of advancing practice, the National Association for Professional Development Schools has updated its nine essential guiding principles, which now includes an explicit expectation for all PDS partners to advance equity, anti-racism and social justice. This article is a call for critical professional development work which infuses Disability Critical Race Theory (DisCrit) practices into achieving the Nine Essentials. Design/methodology/approach: In this call-to-action article, the authors argue that it is imperative for the whole of PDS work to establish a priority for inclusive practice that recognizes and responds to all aspects of diversity in education from the outset, including disability. The authors suggest that PDS work must be guided by an intersectional approach that is operationalized to achieve equity in education by dismantling both racism and ableism in… [Direct]
(2019). Advancing an (Im)Possible Alternative: Ethnic Studies in Neoliberal Times. Texas Education Review, v7 n2 p30-44. This conceptual paper examines the question of the political imaginary in the neoliberal moment, and the crucial role that Ethnic Studies can play in realizing critical pedagogy's promise of emancipatory social transformation. After Arizona House Bill 2281, educational scholarship has paid renewed attention to Ethnic Studies classrooms as key sites of politically transformative praxis. Attending to recent literature that contextualizes Ethnic Studies within broader contemporary struggles against neoliberal educational reform, this analysis traces the contentious relationship between Ethnic Studies and the advancements of neoliberal multicultural ideology. This essay extends these critical dialogues by arguing for a dialectical description of the Ethnic Studies, which emphasizes its ability to stage productive confrontations between traditions in Marxist philosophy, decolonial theory, and critical race theory. The epistemological and ontological tensions that arise here, I argue, are… [PDF]
(2017). "Latino Spaces Have Always Been the Most Violent": Afro-Latino Collegians' Perceptions of Colorism and Latino Intragroup Marginalization. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), v30 n8 p759-782. This study centers on the racialized experiences of Afro-Latino undergraduates at historically White institutions. Of particular interest, I examine how six Afro-Latino collegains experience intragroup marginalization due to colorism. The research design is undergirded by critical race theory and a critical race methodology. Participants' narratives reflect how colorism manifests in the lives of Afro-Latino collegians. In drawing attention to a population that has been rendered invisible in higher education, findings from this study guide implications for future research and practice for higher education and student affairs leaders…. [Direct]
(2017). Racial Differences in College Students' Assessments of Campus Race Relations. Journal of College Student Development, v58 n2 p247-263 Mar. Guided by the principles of critical race theory, we sought to understand how race and racism help explain differences in White and Black students' assessments of race relations on a predominantly White college campus. The authors employed data from a campus-wide survey conducted in Spring 2013 at the University of Alabama; the sample numbered 3,219 students. For Blacks and Whites, a strong relationship was observed between perception of campus race relations and a measure of symbolic racism, such that higher symbolic racism scores predicted a more positive perception of race relations…. [Direct]
(2017). Spirituality, Community, and Race Consciousness in Adult Higher Education: Breaking the Cycle of Racialization. Routledge Research in Education. Routledge Research in Education Drawing on the lived experiences of Black students in adult degree completion programs at predominantly White, Christian institutions in the southern United States, this book presents a model for reimagining adult higher education. Westbrook explores the reasons students enrolled in degree programs, how they experience their predominantly white institutions, and how their experiences affect their lives. Employing Critical Race Theory and Christian theology as frameworks for evaluating the students' experiences, the author sheds light on the ways African American experiences to inform, critique, and shape Christian adult learning in higher education…. [Direct]
(2019). Heretical Discourses in Post-Katrina Charter School Applications. American Educational Research Journal, v56 n6 p2609-2643 Dec. Using New Orleans as a site of analysis, this article provides a critical race theory reading of a little studied policy mechanism, the charter school application and authorization process. Embedded and competing narratives within charter school applications are analyzed. The authorization process is the central gatekeeping mechanism in the reproduction of charter schools. The authorization process determines who gets to govern schools, including the freedom to set curriculum, discipline policies, personnel, utilization of funds, and their relationship to and role in the communities in which they are located. This article unpacks the community based and "no excuses" discourses within charter applications. It finds patterns of confluence between those narratives and the applicants' racial and educational identities, suggesting that the authorization process worked as a site for the reproduction of racialized neoliberal dominance in post-Katrina New Orleans, disenfranchising… [Direct]