Although in recent years there has been increased attention on bullying prevention and bullying legislation in the United States, there is limited research on the implementation of anti-bullying policies. Moreover, few studies have addressed the use of anti-bullying policies to protect LGBT youth from bullying. The present study seeks to examine the role of anti-bullying policies as a means to protect against bullying based on perceived sexual orientation and gender identity. Qualitative interviews with high school teachers, administrators, and staff members within an urban school district in the United States were conducted to gain insight into how those charged with the task of protecting LGBT youth engage with their school and district policy in efforts to create a supportive environment for their students. In this study, I argue the following: 1) the policy structure, both in the language of the state law and district policy on bullying, created barriers for schools to implement the anti-bullying policy; 2) the barriers created by the policy structure limited teachers' ability to protect LGBT youth from bullying; and 3) despite the evident barriers, teachers found ways to create supportive classroom environments for their students. Results indicate that teachers are not knowledgeable of the contents of their school's anti-bullying policy, and have had limited exposure to the policy through training specific to their school's anti-bullying policy. Similar results occurred when teachers and administrators were questioned about their awareness of trainings specific to the prevention of bullying against LGBT youth, posing significant barriers to effective policy implementation. In addition, interview data suggests that although teachers lack the sufficient support in terms of training on the anti-bullying policy, there were multiple examples of teachers serving as advocates for LGBT youth in both their classrooms and in their schools more broadly. The displays of advocacy by teachers, in addition to the presence of district and school administrator support for LGBT students, serve as an example of how school districts can find ways to implement school policies, address bullying in their schools, and raise awareness for the unique experiences of LGBT youth in terms of bullying.

This study explored the involvement in school of racial Francophones in a large city in Canada. Specifically, the study investigated the involvement of Black francophone parents in two of Ontario’s publicly funded elementary schools. This study was guided by one main research question: How are Black francophone parents of African origin involved in their children’s formal education in the French-language schools? Five sub-questions stem from the main research question: How do Black francophone parents of African origin understand parental involvement in school? What strategies do these parents employ to become involved in their children’s formal education? What is the nature (i.e., extent, depth) of Black francophone parents’ involvement in their children’s formal education? What inhibits or facilitates the participation of these parents in the school? How is the double-minoritized positioning of these parents implicated in their participation and strategies? Using an anti-racist lens, the study revealed that Black francophone parents of African origin hold differing views regarding involvement in their children’s education. Although these parents treasure education and strive to instill personal values in their children, they express their understanding of involvement in school primarily in terms of cumulative negative experiences they have experienced and in some cases continue to experience with the French-language schools. Understanding of parents’ involvement in school was also encapsulated in terms of the parents’ own schooling experiences. For many, what constitutes involvement in school challenges the discursive meaning given to parental involvement in educational institutions, governments, and by mainstream parents. This study indicated that the extent to which Black francophone parents are involved in school and their strategies for involvement are rather poor. Moreover, the study singled out racism as one of the primary deterrents for Black francophone parents’ involvement in school. Other uncommon but significant barriers to parents’ involvement in school included: the impact of role inversion in the family; parents’ unawareness of the importance of their role in the education of their children; the blind-spot approach of parents to schooling; the absence of spirituality in parents’ lives; and the laissez-faire attitude of families rearing children.

This study explored the involvement in school of racial Francophones in a large city in Canada. Specifically, the study investigated the involvement of Black francophone parents in two of Ontario’s publicly funded elementary schools. This study was guided by one main research question: How are Black francophone parents of African origin involved in their children’s formal education in the French-language schools? Five sub-questions stem from the main research question: How do Black francophone parents of African origin understand parental involvement in school? What strategies do these parents employ to become involved in their children’s formal education? What is the nature (i.e., extent, depth) of Black francophone parents’ involvement in their children’s formal education? What inhibits or facilitates the participation of these parents in the school? How is the double-minoritized positioning of these parents implicated in their participation and strategies? Using an anti-racist lens, the study revealed that Black francophone parents of African origin hold differing views regarding involvement in their children’s education. Although these parents treasure education and strive to instill personal values in their children, they express their understanding of involvement in school primarily in terms of cumulative negative experiences they have experienced and in some cases continue to experience with the French-language schools. Understanding of parents’ involvement in school was also encapsulated in terms of the parents’ own schooling experiences. For many, what constitutes involvement in school challenges the discursive meaning given to parental involvement in educational institutions, governments, and by mainstream parents. This study indicated that the extent to which Black francophone parents are involved in school and their strategies for involvement are rather poor. Moreover, the study singled out racism as one of the primary deterrents for Black francophone parents’ involvement in school. Other uncommon but significant barriers to parents’ involvement in school included: the impact of role inversion in the family; parents’ unawareness of the importance of their role in the education of their children; the blind-spot approach of parents to schooling; the absence of spirituality in parents’ lives; and the laissez-faire attitude of families rearing children.

Zero-tolerance discipline policies have been in use in U.S. schools for almost 25 years. Since their enactment in the 1990s, researchers have found that zero tolerance disciplinary policies and practices can cause students to enter the school-to-prison pipeline. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the perceptions of middle-school male students of color regarding the discipline process on a campus that supplemented zero-tolerance discipline with restorative practices (RPs). Additional intents of this study were to discover the challenges students encountered when they returned from a disciplinary alternative education program (DAEP) and determine whether RPs helped or hindered their transition to the home campus. Six middle-school male students of color who were placed at the district's DAEP and returned to their home campus participated in the study. The conceptual framework was based on Braithwaite's concept of stigmatized shame following an exclusion and Nathanson's human reactions to shame. The study yielded seven major themes: (a) student perceptions of exclusion, (b) behaviors related to exclusion from school, (c) human reactions to shame—attacking others, (d) human reactions to shame—avoidance, (e) the need for reintegration and acceptance, (f) traumatic events, and (g) dissonance in the discipline process.