Most educators enter the profession with a strong sense of purpose, often connected to a love of children and hope for the future, a desire to make a difference and give back to the community, or a belief in education as a catalyst for social justice. However, competing educational goals and purposes, as well as current educational reforms rooted…

This phenomenological study conducted through a CRT lens examined the lived experiences of rural school counselors who implemented or sought to implement antiracist school counseling practices in PK-12 schools. Literature currently exists on the experiences of school counselors implementing antiracist social justice practices (Smith-Durkin, 2022),…

Pellow's (2018) four pillars of Critical Environmental Justice (CEJ) provided a framework to address environmental justice challenges in this study of the San Diego Urban Sustainability Coalition's (SDUSC) Climate Ambassador Program. I used participatory action research to collect data from six participants in a key-informant interview,…

In the aftermath of George Floyd's death, independent schools faced a resounding demand for racial parity, compelling them to adopt transformative practices in response to community members voicing long-standing racial injustices (Carrera, 2021). This dissertation examined the perspectives of heads of independent schools in the U.S. regarding the…

Care is foundational to the way we reproduce and transform the world around us. Today, in a time marked by widespread calls for racial and social justice, and simultaneous backlash against these calls, it is imperative that we understand the ways that care circulates and operates within racialized struggle. In this dissertation I engage in this…

This dissertation documented how undergraduate students made sense of data in news media. The participants were 30 undergraduate students enrolled in a course called "Numbers and Social Justice." The study used argument analysis (Toulmin, 2003) and ethnographic methodology to examine students' written work in a naturalistic setting.…

This study addresses university leadership and the need to affirm diversity, equity, and inclusion in order to institute organizational change for social justice. My key research question is, "What are effective ways for leaders to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion with the goal of achieving social justice?" There is much research…

Impending climate crises, profound wealth inequality and unprecedented vulnerability to global catastrophe at the hands of technology make working towards justice a necessity, and a desperate one at that. However, engaging in work towards justice requires deconstructing the dominant narratives and norms that restrict what actions are permissible…

The purpose of this exploratory mixed-methods phenomenological study was to understand the perceptions of school building leaders (SBLs), also referred to as principals, regarding their facilitation of social justice leadership (SJL) and culturally responsive school leadership (CRSL) practices to support student inclusion and belongingness within…

The research problem addressed in this study is that racial bias programmed into predictive algorithm recommendations negatively impacts students in historically underrepresented groups. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore the perception of algorithm accuracy among data professionals in higher education and explore the…

Schools in the U.S. are faced with a complex set of barriers that limit their ability to provide equitable and meaningful education to students, such as reduced funding levels, increased concentrations of high-needs students, and institutionalized forms of oppression. However, research suggests that school leaders can spearhead efforts to overcome…

Many of the conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education rightly focus on the experiences of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students and how to support them on their educational journey. Fewer of the conversations involve naming and interrogating the oppressive systems that cause these students to need…

There is a crucial need for social justice-oriented educators in today's classrooms given the growing population of America's multicultural student population. Social justice-oriented teacher preparation programs (TPPs) have contributed significantly to shaping the pedagogies of teacher candidates, better equipping them to serve all students. The…

This qualitative descriptive study explored the experience of Senior Diversity Officers (SDOs) or comparable positions in implementing the frameworks for anti-racism strategies at Jesuit colleges and universities. The study explored how, if at all, SDOs think the Jesuit character impacted the implementation of frameworks and the move toward…

The racial diversity of children in US public schools continues to increase while most teachers and school leaders are White. In addition, systemic racism, whitewashing of curricula, microaggressions, and deficit mindsets persist within schools across the country. These pervasive injustices that plague the student experiences of children of the…