Place, Space, and Race: Discovering the Dimensions of Rural and Racial Identities of Adolescents in Segregated High Schools

• In Event: Communities, Neighborhoods, and Educational Opportunity

Abstract

Abstract
Extant research has shown that students do better academically and socially when they are in schooling environments that are racially and socioeconomically diverse (Coleman, 1966). To date, there is very limited research which has examined the development of adolescents’ racial, ethnic, and social identities within the contemporary contexts of rural and racially segregated high schools in the South. The purpose of this study is to identify and examine the dimensions of rural and racial identity of students attending racially segregated and geographically isolated high schools in rural environments. Preliminary results indicated several themes that are negatively impacting the education and identity of rural, segregated, Black adolescents, such as: parochial mindsets, fear of the unfamiliar, white flight, and limited advanced courses.

Authors

• Janeula M. Burt, Bowie State University

• Dana Thompson Dorsey, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Shelby Eden Dawkins-Law, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Camile Fears Floyd, University of Georgia

• Cherish Williams, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill