"There's Reasons Why I'm Extra": Constructions of Strength and Resilience of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Girls in Schools

• In Event: Black and Latinx Educational Futures: Possibilities and Pathways

Abstract

This paper analyzes the ways in which adolescent girl-identified BIPOC students in all-girls schools navigate the racialized, gendered, and classed pressures and expectations of their schooling environments. Using focus group data from middle school and high school-aged BIPOC students, parents/caregivers of BIPOC youth, teachers, and administrators at four different school sites, we map the experiences of BIPOC youth through the lenses of the Strong Black Woman (SBW) or Superwoman schemas. As we trace their mindsets and behaviors, we emphasize the role of schools in socialization, and we will explore what practitioners and researchers can do to ensure these youth thrive within these unique contexts.

Authors

• Charlotte E Jacobs, University of Pennsylvania
  Presenting Author

• Melissa Felice Carter, Cleveland State University
  Presenting Author

• Katherine Clonan-Roy, Cleveland State University
  Presenting Author