TY - JOUR
T1 - On becoming a social justice leader
T2 - A fictionalized narrative approach
AU - Flood, Lee D.
N1 - Funding Information:
Social justice leaders orient their educational philosophy around prioritizing equity within schools and proactively working towards equitable outcomes and experiences for marginalized groups (Bogotch, 2000; Bruner, 2008; Cribb & Gewirtz, 2003; Dantley & Tillman, 2006, Theoharis, 2007). The International School Leadership Development Network (ISLDN), an international collaboration of educational scholars supported by the University Council of Educational Administration (UCEA) and the British Educational Leadership, Management, and Administration Society (BELMAS), broadly defined a social justice leader as a principal who has a “strong educational philosophy that commits to reducing inequality” (ISLDN, 2016). Bogotch (2000) noted that individual perspectives start from the notion that “social justice emerges from the heroic [capital H or small h] efforts of individuals, someone with a vision and a willingness to take risks to see that vision enacted” (p. 6). In the spirit of the ISLDN and Bogotch (2000), this study interrogates the life history and events of a principal to understand how the educational philosophy and vision of a “heroic” individual came to be in the first place.
Publisher Copyright:
© Official Publication of EARDA-Turkish Educational Administration Research and Development Association.
PY - 2017/7
Y1 - 2017/7
N2 - The purpose of the study was to examine the experiences and influences that aided, prompted, and informed a principal in the south-western United States to act as a social justice leader with a keen focus on creating equitable conditions and outcomes for marginalized students within his school (Bruner, 2008). By employing a fictionalized narrative approach to findings, the aim of this study was to illuminate the shadows around the formal position to more fully understand what experiences caused an educational leader to act with and focus on social justice in his formal capacity as a high school principal. Findings highlighted that parental upbringing, experiences while in college, a competitive nature reinforced through athletics, and a meaningful relationship with a mentor all had a profound influence on the participant’s orientation to and belief in reducing inequities in his school and providing opportunities for all of his students.
AB - The purpose of the study was to examine the experiences and influences that aided, prompted, and informed a principal in the south-western United States to act as a social justice leader with a keen focus on creating equitable conditions and outcomes for marginalized students within his school (Bruner, 2008). By employing a fictionalized narrative approach to findings, the aim of this study was to illuminate the shadows around the formal position to more fully understand what experiences caused an educational leader to act with and focus on social justice in his formal capacity as a high school principal. Findings highlighted that parental upbringing, experiences while in college, a competitive nature reinforced through athletics, and a meaningful relationship with a mentor all had a profound influence on the participant’s orientation to and belief in reducing inequities in his school and providing opportunities for all of his students.
KW - Fictionalized narrative
KW - Leadership
KW - Social justice
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064513378&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85064513378&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.30828/real/2017.1.6
DO - 10.30828/real/2017.1.6
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85064513378
SN - 2564-7261
VL - 2
SP - 106
EP - 126
JO - Research in Educational Administration and Leadership
JF - Research in Educational Administration and Leadership
IS - 1
ER -