A charge to keep I have: Black women teachers’ spirituality and the implications for educational leadership

ABSTRACT

Black educators represent a small percentage of the educator workforce. In this manuscript, we examine the institutional and leadership conditions which contribute to the liminal presence of Black women educators specifically. We nuance the discussion about Black women educators to help educational leaders gain a deeper understanding of their: commitments to Black students, experiences with organizational oppression, and navigational techniques. We outline the ways that four Black women educators center religio-spiritual praxis in their classrooms. We use a phenomenological case study design to explore the narratives and religo-spiritual perspectives of four Black women educators. The authors leverage womanist theology to examine Black women educators’ work, commitments and ways of knowing. This manuscript utilizes interviews, artifact and document collection to paint a holistic picture. There are three major themes: strength, peace and womanist activism. These findings suggest that Black women educators are uniquely positioned to navigate, and help their Black students navigate, oppressive schooling conditions. This manuscript nuances the discussion about Black women educators in three key ways: (1) repositions their expertise in supporting Black students, (2) can increase educational leaders’ understanding of their commitments and realities, and (3) expands the teacher turnover discussion.

KEYWORDS:

• Faith and religion
• leadership
• theory
• women
• race and ethnicities

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Darrius Stanley

Darrius Stanley is an assistant professor of Educational Leadership at Western Carolina University. Dr Stanley is a community-engaged scholar who seeks to build partnerships between community-based resources, schools and the larger community. Broadly, His research explores the intersections of race, gender and liberatory education. His most recent scholarship considers: (1) the roles of Black educators as liberatory pedagogues, (2) Black educators’ experiences in hostile institutional climates, and Black educators’ bridgework with local communities.

Brandi Hinnant Crawford

Brandi Hinnant-Crawford, PhD is an Associate Professor of Educational Research and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Coordinator for Teacher Education at Western Carolina University. A self-described critical pragmatist and aspiring scholar-activist, Crawford’s scholarship focuses on equity and inclusion for marginalized students across the P-16 pipeline as well as how research, particularly improvement science, can be leveraged as methodological tools to catalyze just practices and outcomes. Brandi has experiences in education ranging from the classroom in the rural south to central office in the urban northeast. Dr Hinnant-Crawford is an award-winning educator, known for her student-centered, critical pedagogical practices.