“I Wanted to Do It Another Way”: Multilingual Learners as Catalysts for Leadership Transformation

• In Event: Leadership for Liberation: Centering Marginalized Voices in Equity Reform

Abstract

Objectives
This study examines the influence of the identities and lived experiences of current and aspiring education leaders in California’s Central Coast region on their work with multilingual learners (MLs), particularly those identified as English Learners (ELs). It aims to understand how these leaders navigate reclassification policies, professional development, special education practices, and newcomer services through asset-based and equity-focused lenses. The study emphasizes the importance of aligning leadership preparation and professional learning with the lived realities and strengths of MLs.

Theoretical Framework
The study is grounded in the Culturally Responsive, Critically Self-Aware, Social Justice-Oriented (CR/CSA/SJ) leadership framework (Kim, 2023), drawing from multiple theoretical roots, including:
• LatCrit and liderazgo (Wiemelt & Welton, 2015) to affirm cultural identity in leadership;
• Radical care (Rivera-McCutchen, 2021) to center relationships and equity-driven advocacy;
• Community Cultural Wealth (Yosso, 2005) to elevate the experiential knowledge of ML families and communities.
These perspectives guide the analysis of how leaders’ self-awareness and cultural responsiveness inform their everyday leadership practices and policy enactment.

Methods
A qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with 25 school and district leaders (including aspiring administrators) from Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz counties. Participants were recruited from a range of public, charter, virtual, and parochial schools. The data were coded using both deductive and inductive approaches in Dedoose software, allowing themes to emerge from both the literature and participant narratives.

Data Sources
Data sources include transcribed Zoom interviews, demographic data on leaders and counties, and coded responses to questions about personal and professional experiences with MLs, training, policy navigation, and culturally responsive practices. The study also references regional statistics on ML populations and teacher demographics, providing a structural context for leadership experiences.

Results
Findings reveal that leaders who were formerly ELs themselves draw on their identities to implement affirming and innovative practices. Across diverse roles, leaders expressed frustration with the limited availability of ML-specific training and instead relied on mentorship, community engagement, and their own lived experience.
Key practices included:
• Holding reclassification celebrations to build student confidence;
• Designing targeted professional development rooted in equity;
• Advocating for better placement of ELs in STEM and electives;
• Prioritizing “grow your own” hiring models to match school staff with student demographics;
• Using dual enrollment, trauma-informed care, and culturally responsive instruction to support newcomers and dually identified students (ELs with disabilities).

These practices reflect deep reflection, systemic awareness, and a commitment to educational justice.

Scholarly Significance of the Study
This work extends the scholarship on leadership for equity by examining how leader identity and personal experience can serve as catalysts for systemic change. It highlights both the gaps in leadership preparation and practices that emerge when leaders are empowered to act from a place of cultural awareness and radical care. This chapter also offers an actionable framework for embedding ML-focused training into leadership development. In alignment with AERA’s 2026 theme, it demonstrates how transforming leadership from the inside out can help dismantle deficit paradigms and construct affirming, multilingual educational environments.

Author

• Elisabeth Kim, Lehman College