Reimagining Whole-School Reform: The Intersection of Community Schools and School Turnaround

• In Event: Family, School, Community Partnerships’ Leadership and Reform

Abstract

School turnaround efforts have had limited success in prior research, largely due to their grounding in deficit narratives about schools, communities, and families and singular focus on academics. Community school approaches have promise, and are increasingly used by state and local education authorities, as not just a means to engage communities and families to leverage resources and provide services to students, but to catalyze broader, authentic efforts grounded in community assets and whole-child approaches to re-envision schools as more just and equitable spaces. We investigate the intersection of community schools and school turnaround, focused on student perceptions of sense of belonging and academic rigor.

Authors

• Robert Shand, American University

• kecia hayes, American University

• Reuben Jacobson, American University