Ensuring students' equitable access to talented educators remains a national priority. Congress established the Teacher and School Leader (TSL) Incentive competitive grant program in 2015 to help address this goal, providing financial support to selected school districts to improve their systems for hiring, supporting, and retaining educators,…

Despite the research of Chief Diversity Officers in K-12 educational setting being limited, these DEI-focused professionals have become a recent emergent practice in Connecticut school districts. Informed by the research on Chief Diversity Officers in corporate organizational and higher educational structures, this phenomenological study aimed to…

This study investigates what equity-focused school superintendents know and believe about culturally relevant pedagogy and how their leadership practices align with the tenets of culturally responsive leadership. We interviewed a diverse sample of 23 New Jersey district leaders who self-identified or were identified by others as equity oriented.…

This study analyzes the impact of the Chicago Alliance for Equity in Computer Science (CAFÉCS) Research Practice Partnership (RPP) on the Chicago Public School (CPS) Office of Computer Science (OCS). Using a qualitative analysis drawing on data from leadership team meetings, published articles and presentations, and evaluation reports from 11…

Measuring the appropriate level of teacher compensation for different working conditions requires overcoming a number of empirical challenges, including defining and measuring differences in qualifications, effects of non-wage compensation, financial constraints, and lack of market clearing. We address those challenges in a study of teacher…

We employ the metaphor of an educational ecosystem to explain how racial inequity in special education manifests in a midsized urban school district via equity expressions and experiences. We focus on two ecosystems operating at the mesol-evel within school districts: 1) special education and 2) equity ecosystems. We show how these educational…

Across Canada, school districts have been confronting a backlash to their equity and social justice initiatives. Critics of public education have been arguing that the solution to these controversies is to increase school choice. Using several examples from the United States, this paper argues that the endgame of these strategies is to undermine…

This case study explains factors that prevented a predominately White suburban district from diversifying its teaching staff despite the stated desire of administrators to provide more diverse teachers for the district's students. The researcher interviewed three central office administrators, five district curriculum directors, and four…

Since the initial passage of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), private school students and teachers have been eligible to participate in the Title I, Part A (Title I) program. The reauthorization of the ESEA by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) continues the requirement that a local educational agency (LEA) that…

We study the equity-efficiency implication of giving school districts control over teacher pay using an equilibrium model of the market for public-school teachers. Teachers differ in their comparative advantages in teaching low- or high-achieving students. School districts, which serve different student bodies, use both wage and hiring strategies…

There is an epidemic of race-related suspension disparities in a local school system within the State of Maryland. Minority students are more incessantly referred for disciplinary actions and suspended at higher rates than their white peers. Research shows there are significant contributors to race-related suspension disparities. These disparate…

Providing an accessible and equitable education for all students has been an ongoing process mandated by the Managing for Equality and Equity initiative to close the achievement and opportunity gaps among students. This qualitative study examined Black superintendents' perspectives about the effectiveness and impact of diversity, equity, and…

Despite impacting almost three million students annually, and disproportionately impacting Black students, little is known about district policy and central office staff in the use of in-school suspension. The purpose of this study was to understand how districts use in-school suspension over time, with attention to racial disparities,…

Launching new, pioneering programs to improve student outcomes requires consistent support to help maximize impact. The Region 1 Comprehensive Center (R1CC) and the Maine Department of Education (Maine DOE) wanted to provide evidence-based strategies to support pilot programs launched under the state's Rethinking Responsive Education Ventures…

Background: Increasingly, there are calls for educational equity to explicitly include LGBTQ+ students, including the creation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer/questioning (LGBTQ+) clubs, or Genders and Sexualities Alliances (GSAs), which are associated with positive outcomes for LGBTQ+ students and promote a safer school climate…