“Expect to Be Taken Out of Class”: Comparing School Experiences of Trauma-Exposed Black Girls and Boys

Abstract

This study explores the intersections of race, gender, and trauma in students’ school experiences. We collected focus group data from 36 trauma-exposed Black girls and 10 trauma-exposed Black boys from two urban high schools. Data was analyzed using an intersectional framework and resulted in the following themes: (1) Don’t Touch the Students; (2) You Gettin’ Suspended; (3) You Supposed to Be the Bigger Person; and (4) If We Have a Uniform, They Should Have a Uniform. Implications are discussed.

Keywords:

• Black youth
• education equity
• intersectionality
• social justice
• urban education

Additional information

Funding

Support for this study was provided, in part, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, under the New Connections Grant, ID #74728. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation.