During the 2020-2021 academic year, Virginia piloted a state-designed secondary African American history elective in 16 school divisions. Using the framework of Racial Pedagogical Content Knowledge (RPCK), this study examined the treatment of race in the new course by analyzing the state-created curriculum materials and interviewing three teachers…

Recent efforts prohibiting race-related diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives have informed localized public pushback narrating anti-equity campaigns. Emerging research and media accounts have largely focused on adults engaged with or against these efforts, with less attention on youth and their perceptions of these campaigns. To center…

Across the country, effort is underway to restrict discussion, learning, and student support related to race and gender/sexual identity in educational settings, targeting schools with state legislation and politicians' orders; national conservative media and organizations; Board directives; and local actors wielding media-fueled talking points. To…

In this article, faculty and administrators describe their personal and institutional experiences with racial justice and equity.

This study examined how personal, behavioral and environmental factors influenced educational outcomes of Black collegians at predominately white institutions in the south. Specifically, 11 institutions are represented in this study from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The purpose of this study…

This article details how a team of fourth-grade teachers in Rockingham County, Virginia used the Inquiry Design Model (IDM) to deepen student understanding of Barbara Johns and the Moton Student Strike's fight for racial justice in Virginia and to reframe their overall approach to Black history in general. Although Rockingham County Schools are…

The relationship between a teacher and a student is directly related to both teacher and student satisfaction and success. The purpose of this study was to develop a valid and reliable Teacher--Student Relational Efficacy Scale (TSRES)--an instrument to provide measurable and research-based reflective opportunity to identify and potentially…

Academic health centers (AHC) both contribute to and are influenced by the communities they serve. As part of a central commitment to improving human health, there is a need for AHCs to acknowledge their history related to race and racism, the resulting impact on current health disparities, and the disparate treatment of racial and minoritized…

School leaders are tasked with greater responsibilities than ever before. Today's school leaders are expected to act as social justice leaders, ensuring all students have an equitable environment to learn in. State departments of education hold leaders accountable by comparing standardized test scores of students in majority and minority groups.…

In this research brief, we describe and decompose school segregation by race and ethnicity in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, in which we include: the District of Columbia; Alexandria, Arlington, and Fairfax County in Virginia; and Montgomery County and Prince George's County in Maryland. We find only modest segregation within all but one…

Background/Context: One of the most complex and systemic challenges U.S. public schools face is the disproportionate identification of multilingual learners in special education. Currently, students with multidimensional identities are often trapped in ambiguous and contradictory education policies and practices that contribute to both under- and…

Data have consistently revealed a major problem with disproportionality in several academic and social climate measures for African American students compared to their White counterparts. Black students tend to have lower end-of-course (EOC) testing scores in mathematics and reading, a greater tendency to be suspended from school, lower average…

The association between prosocial behavior and adolescents' social class--defined as one's parents' position in society assessed in terms of education, income, and occupation status--is far from conclusive and the moderators of the link have not been fully researched. Using data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development…

In this study, I explore the discourse surrounding parental rights in U.S. public schools, with Virginia as a focal point. Analyzing two sets of model policies regarding the treatment of transgender students--one established under a Democratic governor and another implemented following the election of a Republican candidate championing parental…

Secondary math teachers faced new experiences and struggles this past virtual school year due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Nine secondary math teachers from a school division in southeastern Virginia participated in this qualitative single case study. Data collection included individual semi-structured interviews and technology integration…