Thesis advisor: Lauri Johnson / Research has indicated that hiring and retaining educators of color can positively impact students of color, as educators of color have the capacity to be social justice change agents (Villegas & Davis, 2007), serve as strong role models for students of color (Ingersoll & May, 2011), promote culturally responsive curriculum (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995), and positively impact student achievement (Ahmad & Boser, 2014; Dee, 2004). However, there is a significant gap in the existing research on how educators of color perceive the impact of their racial/ethnic identity on their work in the classroom. This qualitative case study sought to answer how educators of color perceive the impact of their racial and/or ethnic identity on their relationships with students, their instructional practices, and the reduction of cultural bias in their school. It was part of a larger group case study that sought to capture the perceptions of educators of color related to racial disproportionality and its impact on the educator pipeline and schools. Data was collected through semi-structured face-to-face interviews and the administration of the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure protocol with educators of color in the Cityside Public School District. Data was examined through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT), specifically the tenets of permanence of racism, critique of liberalism, and counter storytelling. Findings support that the majority of the participants interviewed have a strong sense of belonging to their racial and/or ethnic group. Moreover, educators of color perceive that they serve as positive role models, provide students of color with culturally responsive pedagogy, and offer counter narratives that combat stereotyping. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

Thesis advisor: Lauri Johnson / The purpose of this individual study was to address the gap in research and answer the following research question:  How do educators of color perceive the evaluation process and its impact on their professional growth and development?  It was part of a larger group case study that sought to capture the perceptions of educators of color related to racial disproportionality and its impact on the educator pipeline and schools.  As educators of color work to maintain a presence within the educational system, it is essential to study how perceived biases related to race may impact the evaluation process. This single case study attempted to capture how five administrators of color and five teachers of color employed by the Cityside Public School District perceived the evaluation process used within their district.  Additionally, a document review of union contracts was used to ascertain the evaluation process used by Cityside. The Critical Race Theory tenets of permanence of racism, counter storytelling and critique of liberalism provided a theoretical framework to analyze the responses given by each participant who participated in semi-structured interviews. Findings reveal that the majority of the participants do not believe the evaluation process has improved their growth and development.  Other findings revealed that the racial identity and the level of cultural competency of the evaluator impacted whether or not participants believed their race was a factor in how they were evaluated. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

This study explored social workers perceptions of disproportionality of African American children in the child welfare system, with a particular focus how they felt child welfare agencies, and organization address the specific needs of African American children and families. Along with the types of services social workers felt could be implemented in order to address the concerns amongst African American families. Major findings in the research under represent the perspective of the social workers who work closely with these children and their families. The overall research method that was utilized in this study was qualitative by design. The data collection consisted of 11 face to face interviews with different types of social workers with current and past experiences working with African American children and families, in the child welfare agency. This research called for opinions, experience and personal beliefs from social workers. The survey consist of 13 open/close ended question and demographical questions that were personally asked to each social worker on a one on one bases. The results of this study identified African American children entering and staying in the system at longer rates, poverty, lack of resources in the community, distrust in the government and cultural competency as major contributing factors to disproportionality in the child welfare system. This study displayed a need for social workers to take on more of a strength based approach and remembering to model the NASW code of ethics when working with African American families. Recommendations for future studies include but are not limited to: exploring options to have preventative services for African American families to be offered in their homes or alternatives to easy accessible services and to explore different strategies, tool and techniques in efforts to increase the relationships between the African American families and the social workers.

Racial disproportionality in exclusionary discipline measures among public school students has been well-established for African American youth in the United States. The research literature has included limited and inconsistent research findings providing information on the representation patterns among Hispanic students in school discipline. Previous studies on Hispanic representation in school discipline have established a need for data to be analyzed at the state level. Using a large dataset acquired from the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights - Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) for the 2013-2014 school year, this paper examines if Hispanic students are disproportionally represented in exclusionary discipline measures for the five states with the highest percentage of Hispanics within the population. Using ratio calculations for proportion and risk ratios, we determined risk and describe the extent of disproportionality for in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, and expulsion among Hispanic students compared to their White, non-Hispanic peers.This paper also examines differences in racial/ethnic disparities by gender. The results of this study indicate that significant disproportionality exists for Hispanic students to some degree for various exclusionary discipline categories in every state analyzed. The analysis also indicated Hispanic females are at a higher risk of receiving suspension compared to White, non-Hispanic females and Hispanic males compared to White, non-Hispanic males. To increase understanding of school disciplinary patterns for Hispanic students, including the results of this investigation, future research should examine office discipline referrals, and analyze discipline data from the district and school levels in order to determine if and to what extent additional school and community factors affect the discipline gap.

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