Over the past two decades, research has shown links between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement. While the benefits of high levels of collective teacher efficacy have been documented, research focused on how it is developed in school serving socio-economically disadvantaged students and the role of principal leadership in that development is lacking, specifically from a qualitative case-study approach This qualitative case-study explored how collective teacher efficacy was developed in an urban neighborhood elementary school serving socio-economically disadvantaged students and how the principal’s leadership influenced that development. This was accomplished through in-depth individual interviews with teachers, support staff, and the principal. This research revealed the principal’s leadership positively influenced the development of collective teacher efficacy through effective communication, support, and the empowerment of teachers. Teacher dispositions were also found as influencing collective teacher efficacy. Implications of this research and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

Thesis advisor: Samantha Teixeira / Residents and activists in neighborhoods undergoing gentrification have been raising alarm bells about its impact for decades. The promises that state and private funders and developers make about the benefits of neighborhood redevelopment are often overemphasized and/or unmet according to many in the communities who have experienced this change. The literature on the effects of capital reinvestment and urban renewal programs has shown mixed results, suggesting that poverty and crime rates tend to decrease as higher-income and educated residents move into these neighborhoods. However, evidence suggests that this may be the result of displacement of original residents and an influx of middle- and higher-income residents. Much of the existing research into the effects of gentrification follows from a political economy perspective, which often leaves out the personal and communal effect on residents’ psychological well-being. Though some recent work incorporates resident perspectives of the gentrification process, the field of social work has only recently begun engaging in understanding the impacts of gentrification This dissertation aims to address this key gap in the literature by exploring gentrification and associated neighborhood processes in partnership with residents from a Boston community undergoing gentrification. This dissertation is a predominantly qualitative study with an embedded quantitative analysis using ethnographic methods to understand how residents of the East Boston neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts perceive their neighborhood. Specifically, the dissertation explored 1) the perception of individual and individual impacts of gentrification-related impact amongst long-time residents, 2) how residents make meaning of social control in the neighborhood as it relates to gentrification, and 3) the neighborhood-level spatial indicators of gentrification that contextualized residents’ perceptions. This overarching approach relied on community-level input and participation through four methods: 1) an ethnography, 2) walking interviews, 3) photovoice, and 4) geospatial analysis of gentrification-related indicators using administrative data in order to use a rich array of data to better understand how community members communicate their experiences in their neighborhood as it gentrifies. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2023. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Social Work. / Discipline: Social Work.

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore through the lens of culturally responsive instruction (CRI) the development of teachers’ sense of efficacy, as defined by Bandura (1995), to address the literacy learning of diverse first, second, or third grade (i.e., primary grade level) students. In this process, I purposively selected the location and the participants because answering my research questions required that I conduct the investigation within learning settings where culturally and linguistically diverse students in the primary grade levels (i.e., first, second, or third grade) receive literacy instruction. My time in the field and my comprehensive focus on the participants and their teaching practices allowed me to gather rich descriptive data concerning the participants’ perspectives, experiences, and teaching practices through multiple traditional case study data collection means. Four overarching themes emerged from within, between, and across case analysis as significant in the development of teachers’ sense of efficacy to address the literacy learning of their pluralistic student populations in a culturally responsive manner. The themes include: (1) Perspectives shaping literacy instruction provision, (2) Understanding what constitutes CRI, (3) The impact of establishing a collaborative teaching community on the development of teachers’ sense of efficacy, and (4) Foundations of culturally responsive teachers’ sense of efficacy. I base my recommendations for the development of inservice teachers’ sense of efficacy to address the literacy learning of their students using CRI and my recommendations for future research on my study findings.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Relationships among neighbors contribute to the well-being and outcomes of all who live within a neighborhood. Existing literature provides us with a wealth of information on individual seniors’ isolation but does not seem to consider how neighborhood factors add to the attachment of seniors. Given the increasing number of seniors in our society who have the ability to remain living in their neighborhoods as they age, this study focuses on understanding neighborhood attachment to seniors living in the community. Furthermore, emphasis was placed on the potential impact that senior attachment could have on youth as one subset life stage who reside in a neighborhood. This thesis describes the characteristics of neighborhoods that foster low, normal, and high levels of senior attachment in urban areas and explores the relationship this attachment has to neighborhood youth outcomes. This research opens the door for other scholars to begin to place greater emphasis on the understanding of neighborhood dynamics, intergenerational ties to seniors, and the well being of residents across the life course.

In the past three years, educational leaders in the United States were called to fight for equity and dismantle the oppressive systemic racism that afflict our schools. Yet, as so many of our school leaders and educators are White, they feel unprepared to confront the historic and evolving problem of racial inequality that has frequently been viewed as a “Black problem” (Singleton, 2015, p. 37). With a renewed commitment to educational equity, school leaders are seeking ways to build less divisive and more inclusive schools. This qualitative study describes the role of trust and collaboration in developing culturally responsive school leadership through the perceptions, beliefs, dispositions, and strategies of five school leaders. This study is a narrative inquiry into the experiences of five current school leaders in Massachusetts collected from interviews from June -October 2022. Their staff were also surveyed electronically. Participants were selected based on the following criteria: (a) Experienced (>5 years) principals and assistant principals (b) Current employment in public schools in Massachusetts (c) Leaders with diverse backgrounds and racial identities, including people who identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) including both male and female leaders and (d) Graduate coursework in culturally responsive school leadership. Their narratives are analyzed through the frameworks of both critical theory and critical race theory. The analysis is organized around four components of equity leadership described by the school leaders: core values, leadership roles, barriers to trust, and influence and identity. The study recommends practices for equity-focused school leadership and suggests ways districts can support, identify, and recruit culturally responsive school leaders. This dissertation aims to deepen our current understanding of the relationship between staff trust and culturally responsive school leadership while also describing an emerging leadership identity that is shaping current educational practices.

While research has been conducted on how to strengthen collective efficacy, there is a scarcity of knowledge regarding practical solutions. The aim of this study is to investigate how residents in a negatively stigmatized neighborhood engage in practical measures to enhance collective efficacy, while also exploring their perceptions of the measures requiredto improve the functionality of their neighborhood through collective efficacy. By utilizing participant observations, in depth interviews, and a partly theory-driven thematic analysis, this study sheds light on how neighborhood social structures play an important role in controlling disruptive behavior. The empirical findings of this study revealed that the mothers are utilizing various practical measures to enhance collective efficacy within Rinkeby, including visible presence, expressing solicitude to residents, organizing activities, and partaking in weekly meetings with the police. This study also concludes that the critical components in facilitating the development of a widespread willingness among resident in Rinkeby to partake in collective crime prevention is through establishment of organized meeting places, reduce of negative neighborhood stigma, expressing solicitude towards residents, and stronger cooperation between residents and the police. These components are also vital to overcome perceived barriers, improve the functionality of Rinkeby through collective efficacy, but also to ensure the sustainability to maintain and drive residents' attitudes toward direct intervention. It is essential to ensure that personal cost, and time- and language barriers of participating in collective crime prevention initiatives are not solely borne by residents, but rather shared by the government. Keywords: Collective efficacy, Collective crime prevention, Neighborhood, Night wandering Mothers, Rinkeby, Stigmatization

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