The Trust Spectrum: Exploring the Diversity of Black Students’ Perspectives

• In Event: 21020 - Section on Sociology of Education Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 20: School and Classroom Dynamics: Trust, Discipline, and the Pathways to Educational Flourishing

Abstract

Scholars have long emphasized the role of trust in social mobility, yet they often overlook trust as a critical element of racial inequality in education. In my book project, Trust Matters: Creating Inclusive School Climates for Black Youth, I explore the racial dynamics of trust in urban public schools and strategies for cultivating trusting environments for Black students. This mixed-methods study draws on longitudinal data from New York City Public Schools (NYCPS) and 89 interviews across four high schools. As part of this larger project, I conceptualize the trust spectrum to illustrate how Black students develop and navigate trust in school settings. At one end of the spectrum are optimistic trustors, who extend trust to educators by default, often viewing them as supportive unless proven otherwise. At the opposite end are pessimistic trustors, who approach trust with skepticism due to past experiences of exclusion or harm. In the middle are strategic trustors, who adopt a conditional approach, selectively placing trust in educators based on perceived reliability and care. I demonstrate that Black students are not inherently distrustful, as much of the existing research suggests. Instead, their approaches to trust are nuanced and context-dependent.

Author

• Brittany Nicole Fox-Williams, CUNY-Lehman College