Exploring the League of Women Voters’ Struggle for Equal Education in Las Vegas

• In Event: Roundtable Session 14
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Geographies, Curriculum Reframing, and Educational Policies in Schools and Communities

Abstract

Community groups and organizations have long influenced educational reforms. One of the most prominent reforms in the last half century was school desegregation. The purpose of this study is to explore how The League of Women Voters Las Vegas Valley (The League), a mostly White, middle-upper-class women’s organization, worked to pursue racial equality. This study analyzes the involvement and impact of this group in a major school reform intended to create equal education for marginalized students through school desegregation. The two broader questions that this research seeks to answer are: (1) How do privileged community organizations influence institutional reforms related to social justice? (2) How do individuals negotiate their race, gender, and socioeconomic identities in their approach to equality?

Author

• Carrie Sampson, University of Nevada - Las Vegas