A Qualitative Examination of Relationships Between Leaders and Black Middle-Class Parents in Secondary Schools

• In Event: 69.013 - Confronting Racism in Schools: Then and Now

Abstract

Focused on parent involvement and parent-school relationships Black middle class parents experience within public secondary schools located in one middle class neighborhood in Novi, CA, this study examines the intersection of race and class and its effect on parent involvement. An analysis of educational outcomes for Black middle class students reveals that their academic performance warrants a look into the parent-school relationships of this particular sub-group (Ferguson, 2002). In an effort to document and understand the experiences of Black middle class parents in secondary public schools an on-going, in depth qualitative case study of sixteen families, demonstrates from the parents’ perspectives the role forms of racism play in shaping relationships they experience with school administrators.

Author

• Rema Ella Reynolds, Eastern Michigan University