The school-community connection: social justice leaders’ community activism to promote justice for students

ABSTRACT

This research examines social justice leaders’ community activism in response to three local and national political contexts. Grounded in literature that advances ecological models of school leadership, we analyzed how seven urban school leaders conceptualized community activism as linked to school outcomes, and how leaders conducted activism work. Findings demonstrate that various political contexts at local and national levels catalyzed and motivated participants’ community activism, but participants’ primary purpose for activism was to promote student equity within their school buildings. This reflects ecological models in which schools and communities are conceptualized as interconnected with a reciprocal relationship of impact. Our examination of motivations related to political contexts provides insights into how these contexts impact schools and school leaders. This piece also contributes to the growing body of literature around socially-just leadership, particularly to the limited subset of literature on leaders’ out-of-school justice work. Finally, among other implications and directions for future research, we conclude that community activism should form a crucial component of socially-just school leadership and taken up in the research as such.

Disclosure statement

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

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Meagan Sharissa Richard

Meagan Richard, M.S., is a Doctoral Candidate studying Educational Policy Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her research investigates emancipatory forms of school leadership, such as social justice and activist school leadership. Her dissertation is examining the ways in which neoliberal educational market policy shape social justice leadership in multiple urban districts across the United States.

Jason Salisbury

Jason Salisbury, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Educational Policy Studies department at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he teaches primarily in the Urban Education Leadership program area. His research investigates anti-racist and socially-just leadership practices. Prior to his work as a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Dr. Salisbury was an assistant professor at Iowa State University and special educator in Chicago Public Schools and Wisconsin.

Shelby Cosner

Shelby Cosner, Ph.D., is Professor of Educational Organization and Leadership and Director of UIC’s Center for Urban Education Leadership at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is an expert on the preparation and development of educational leaders and on the ongoing continuous improvement of preparation and development programs for educational leaders.