“Strategic Niceness": A Study of Middle-Class Latinx Parents' School Involvement in San Antonio, Texas

• In Event: Intersectional Efforts of Supporting Latina/o/x and Black Youth Educational Advantages and Resiliency

Abstract

Social class explanations of educational inequality have long dominated the discourse. However, the intersection of race and class in structuring parenting and school involvement practices is understudied and has the potential to reshape the literature on childrearing, educational inequality, and the role of class-based resources. This paper draws on interview data from middle-class Latinx parents in and around San Antonio, Texas, to examine whether class advantages are leveraged in school involvement. Our study reveals that instead of acting with a sense of entitlement, parents engaged in what we term "strategic niceness," actively currying favor with teachers and diminishing their own expertise. They viewed this approach as more effective in securing educational benefits for their children and a rejection of entitled parenting.

Authors

• David Enrique Rangel, Brown University

• Serena Levin, Brown University

• John Bellaire, Brown University