Realizing the Solidarity Dividend: A New Story of Educational Leadership

• In Event: Fairmont Roundtable Session Five
  In Roundtable Session: Navigating Higher Education and Storying Educational Leadership (Table 2)

Abstract

In this paper, we examine how Long Island leaders frame the problem and possible solutions to racial inequity in a segregated school system. We draw on McGhee’s (2021) book, The Sum of Us, to illuminate two different stories among leaders – a "zero sum" framing in which for one group to gain access to resources and opportunities another must lose, and a "solidarity dividend" framing in which that binary is revealed as false. While we found many examples of zero sum ideology, we highlight leaders’ working collectively by attempting to bridge multiracial groups together. This research has important implications for expanding what leadership accountability means when solidarity dividend is the goal, particularly in diverse school/community contexts where zero sum attitudes thrive.

Authors

• Allison Roda, Molloy University
  Presenting Author

• Florence Barbour, Molloy University
  Presenting Author

• Kelly E. Bare, Molloy University
  Presenting Author