WHEN THEY SEE US: A CASE STUDY EXPLORING CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE SCHOOL LEADERSHIP IN A MIDWESTERN SUBURBAN MIDDLE SCHOOL

Abstract

As suburban school leaders experience more diverse student populations, some have enacted Culturally Responsive School Leadership (CRSL) to improve the experiences of underrepresented students. The four CRSL strands include: (1) Critical Self-Awareness, (2) Culturally Responsive Curricula and Teacher Preparation, (3) Culturally Responsive and Inclusive School Environments, and (4) Engaging Students and Parents in Community Contexts. The purpose of this case study was to explore how suburban school leaders at McKinley Middle School (MMS) enacted CRSL in their efforts to improve Black student experiences, along with the opportunities and challenges that these leaders encountered. At MMS, the student population was White-majority and one-fifth African American. In this study, school leaders were defined as both administrators and teacher leaders. In total, the sample included 16 participants. Data were collected through interviews, observations, and artifacts. Findings of this study revealed that participation in professional development through the Equity for Student Success Program (ESSP) provided school leaders with the opportunity to enact CRSL efforts related to three of the four strands. While this informed the creation of some entirely new initiatives, other efforts were embedded within existing practices. Another key finding showed that while ESSP efforts addressed one aspect of Black student needs, socioeconomic status emerged as another identity for some students. By expanding school leaders to include teacher leaders, one finding revealed the need for school leaders to better define the teacher leader role and the purpose of leadership teams. This study’s findings have implications for school leaders, researchers, and policymakers. First, if CRSL were to become inclusive of other student identities, this might provide school leaders with ways to increase their responsiveness. Expanding CRSL literature to include the role of teacher leaders may also provide insights on how to better utilize them in more transformational ways. A final implication of this study related to the calculation of school report card grades. Currently, school leaders are held accountable based primarily on student performance data; however, policymakers should consider ways to assess school leaders in their efforts to become more culturally responsive which may not be measurable by student test scores. Future researchers should study other sites enacting CRSL through ESSP efforts and this should include schools with various demographic compositions.