From Resistance to Restoration: Advancing Culturally Responsive School Leadership Toward Collective Liberation and Transformative Movement

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Wednesday 3:45 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Educational Research on Humanizing Pedagogy

Abstract

This paper explores how culturally responsive school leadership (CRSL) practices serve as a bridge from systemic resistance to restorative, liberatory school cultures. Grounded in the work of Khalifa et al. (2016), this research examines how leaders who center equity, cultural competence, and community voice disrupt dominant paradigms and cultivate purpose-driven, justice-oriented learning environments. Drawing on qualitative case studies from urban and suburban schools, the study highlights the conditions that empower leaders to move beyond performative inclusion toward deep transformation. By tracing leadership practices through the lens of collective liberation, this research offers a framework for purposeful action, clarity of vision, and movement-building within schools that seek to honor the identities, needs, and aspirations of historically marginalized students.

Author

• Lewis F. Thomas, Monmouth University