Doubly Buffooned! Black Families Narratives Behind the Underrepresentation of Minorities in Early Childhood Intervention Services

• In Event: Attending to Complex Lives in Communities

Abstract

Black children are five times more likely to not receive early intervention (EI) special education services and increasingly determined as being learning or emotionally disabled (Feinberg, Silverstein, Donahue, & Bliss, 2011). The purpose of this narrative study was to explore the perceived barriers preventing Black families from accessing and utilizing EI special education services. Parental, medical, and educational professionals’ perceptions of the barriers were explored through the narratives of their experience encountered accessing and utilizing ECI supports. Stories were elicited through extensive and reiterative interviews with parents and professionals involved in the process. A synthesis of the qualitative findings offer implications for educational leaders, policymakers, program administration, and medical professionals who are working towards closing the access gap to EI services.

Authors

• Erika Aziegbe, University of Houston Clear Lake

• Leslie M. Gauna, University of Houston - Clear Lake