Mapping Indigenous-Sustaining Leadership in State Education Policy

• In Event: AERA Research in Progress Roundtable Session Five
  In Invited Roundtable: Research-in-Progress RT074 (Sunday)

Abstract

This project pilots a quantitative text-as-data approach to examine how state education policy creates space for Indigenous-sustaining school leadership. Focusing on selected U.S. states with significant Native student populations and accessible policy documentation, I am developing and refining an Indigenous-Sustaining Leadership Indicators (ISLI) rubric to score state-level accountability and guidance documents. Initial domains include tribal consultation, language and culture, funding protections, community-defined success, and leadership preparation. I will link ISLI scores to publicly reported outcomes for American Indian/Alaska Native students (AI/AN), such as graduation and discipline rates. This pilot tests the reliability of the rubric and explores initial policy variation, informing a larger study of how policy environments shape culturally sustaining leadership.

Author

• Torye Wren Banura, Michigan State University