#BlackLivesMatter

Introduction

In the spring of 2015, Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings accepted the Social Justice in Education Award at the American Educational Research Association’s annual meeting. In her lecture aptly titled “Justice . . . Just, Justice!” Ladson-Billings explained why she was troubled by the current use of the term “social justice” and feared how it was, for some, purely ideological. Most distressing, she noted how many social justice advocates fail to recognize injustice. Poignantly, Ladson-Billings challenged the audience to move beyond justice as a theory to justice as praxis. Interestingly, although many educational leadership preparation programs have recognized the need to include the praxis of social justice in their curricula, the significance of race is often overlooked (Gooden & Dantley, 2012). As women of color and professors of educational leadership committed to social justice we, too, noted the “short shrift” (p. 238) of race in our respective curricula. This case study was drawn from our study of successful school leadership (Day, 2010). We recognized that although “success” is contextual and may be broadly defined, at the heart of successful school leadership, particularly in urban settings, is a need for transformative leadership praxis centered on justice and race.

Purpose

The purpose of this case study is to equip master’s level educational leadership candidates with the needed tools to challenge and disrupt seemingly race-neutral practices that hinder the success of all students (López, 2003). We used a transformative leadership theory framework (Shields, 2010) to critically examine the actions (or lack thereof) of Michael Pelligrino, ¹ a young White high school principal in a district that serves a primarily Black and Latina/o student populace. Although a multitude of viable leadership theories may be found in the literature including distributive (Spillane & Diamond, 2007), contingency (Fiedler, 1967), path-goal (House, 1971), and transformational (Burns, 1978), we utilized the Shields (2010) definition of transformative leadership as it unapologetically centers race in its praxis and functions to dismantle hegemonic policies and practices that perpetuate the status quo. Boutte (2012) found that if schools of education were transparent and diligent in their efforts to address systemic racism not only in the classroom but also in society, ultimately schools and communities would be positively affected.

Context

Hilltop High School is located in a large urban school district and has a student population that reflects its surrounding community. Sixty-five percent of the students identify as Black, 30% as Latina/o, 4% as multi-racial, and 1% as White. Of the nearly 800 girls and 700 boys, three out of four qualify for free lunch. The student–teacher ratio is 20:1 and more than half of the faculty members are Black, 30% are Latina/o, 10% are White, and 5% are multi-racial. As with many historically Black neighborhoods throughout the northeast and Midwest, gentrification is causing property values to significantly increase while changing the face of its residents. Along with the city’s residents, Hilltop High School has also undergone some changes.

Hilltop opened its doors in 1982 in a rough section of the town at the height of the crack cocaine epidemic. Ironically, despite its bleak surroundings, hundreds of students applied each year for admission to the magnet school, as it was viewed as a trajectory to post-secondary education. Unfortunately, nearly two decades after it opened, Hilltop began to decline. Although the school continued to carefully screen students for admission by reviewing their transcripts, attendance records, and standardized test scores, its waning reputation no longer made it a school of “first” choice. Students who once would have applied to the “school on top of the hill” began choosing to attend the city’s “test-only” high schools. Furthermore, Hilltop’s Humanities, Medical, and Pre-Law academies (specific programs of study that lead to certification and/or college credit) no longer provided the appropriate curricula for the outcomes highlighted in the school’s brochure and website.

Dr. Betty Clark was Hilltop’s founding principal. She lived within walking distance of the school and was considered by many to be the matriarch of the surrounding community. Dr. Clark was a constant collaborator with parents and local businesses and frequently held meetings at the neighborhood church (where she was also a Deacon) to discuss the school’s successes and challenges. In recent years, however, time began to take its toll. Dr. Clark’s health began to wane and she was not able to attend church and community events as often as she would have liked. During these years, Hilltop too began to decline and in the fall of 2012-2013 academic year the school was placed on the superintendent’s “watch list” due to dismal student achievement and low attendance rates. Faced with pressing district mandates and reform initiatives, Dr. Clark realized she no longer had the energy to successfully lead Hilltop.

In the spring of 2013, Dr. Clark announced her retirement after more than 30 years of service to the Department of Education. There was a month-long celebration and more than 300 people, many of whom were graduates of Hilltop, former colleagues, and district-level administrators attended her retirement party. During the summer months, more than 50 applicants applied for the principal’s position at Hilltop. Several candidates were from the school, 30 were from schools (both public and private) in the surrounding districts, and at least 15 applicants were from the tri-state area.

After an extensive review, the search committee identified two finalists. One was Dr. Janice Mickens. She shared a life story similar to Dr. Clark as she lived in the surrounding community, served as the Dean of Students at Hilltop for 7 years, and recently completed her PhD in Educational Leadership at the nearby state university. The committee also selected Michael Pelligrino, a White male, who grew up in a nearby suburb. Pelligrino, a former Math teacher, was an assistant principal in a middle school that served as a feeder school to Hilltop for 5 and 3 years, respectively. He successfully implemented a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) program at his middle school 2 years ago; propelling the school from a D to an A on their state issued report card. Despite this feat, many stakeholders thought Hilltop’s Dean, Dr. Mickens, was a shoe-in for the position as she worked closely with Dr. Clark and was known to the school and the surrounding community. They were in for a surprise.

Leadership Matters

At the start of the summer of 2013, Michael Pelligrino was named the second principal of Hilltop High School. Dr. Mickens’ strong ties to the founding principal were considered a hindrance to the changes that needed to occur at Hilltop. In addition, several committee members did not want an inside successor. Pelligrino was an outsider with a proven track record in program implementation. The committee hoped he would use his prior experience to restore Hilltop to its former glory. In this light, the superintendent first tasked Pelligrino with restructuring the school’s academies. She believed a robust curriculum coupled with highly sought after certification and college credit options would be a strong first step in repairing Hilltop’s image. More importantly, the superintendent hoped that the revitalized academies would lead to an increase in student achievement and attendance. Hilltop’s graduation rates hovered at 60% for the past few years, 7% below the district’s average, and its attendance rates were shockingly low.

During the summer months Pelligrino analyzed the school’s academies along with the faculty and student records and, after consulting with district officials, implemented several structural reforms. His actions reflected a no-nonsense stance on rigorous and relevant curricula coupled with discipline: the embodiment of what many district officials considered “successful” school leadership. To explain, a new tardy policy was instituted at the school, and instead of eight 50-minute classes, which was the norm for high schools in the district, Pelligrino placed students in four 85-minute core classes (i.e., math, science, English, and history) and one 45-minute elective class (i.e., art, music, leadership, computer programming, and dance). He also reassigned teachers based on need rather than seniority and many veteran teachers were no longer given a full teaching load of Honors and/or Advanced Placement classes. In fact, several veteran teachers were assigned co-teachers as two dozen students were found to have modified Individualized Education Plans that were never enacted.

When the 2013-2014 academic year commenced Hilltop’s teachers reluctantly went along with Pelligrino’s initiatives, as their contracts were not violated. And, although the administrative team felt slighted because they were not consulted in regard to the sweeping changes, they did not let their feelings show. The faculty, however, were not as tactful as the administrative team and Pelligrino received a great deal of pushback on his tardy policy wherein students were suspended for 2 days if they arrived late to more than three classes in 1 week. During monthly meetings held in the fall Pelligrino reassured skeptical teachers (and some administrators) that the new policies would yield immediate results. And, by the end of the fall semester, most cynics were surprised when his tactics were proven to be effective. Student lateness declined almost overnight, and, truth be told, less than 10 students were suspended. More importantly, the tardy policy resulted in students spending more time on task. Also, the new block schedule allowed for lower student–teacher ratios (15:1) and many core teachers grudgingly reported that they were able to cover their content more deeply while engaging their students in meaningful cross-curricula projects. By the end of the spring semester more than a quarter of the student body was on the honor roll. On the surface, Hilltop was indeed on the rise.

Although Pelligrino appeared to be making progress, his leadership style was deemed “problematic.” Almost all the teachers were unhappy with his unilateral and authoritative stance. They felt excluded from the decision-making process and consistently disrespected. In sum, the largely Black and Latina/o faculty found Pelligrino culturally unresponsive and characterized his leadership style as disempowering. Similarly, members of the student government thought that he was cold and the few parents he met with all agreed that he was a condescending know-it-all. By the end of the school year more than two dozen veteran faculty members were looking for jobs in neighboring schools and districts and parents and teachers were beginning to complain to the superintendent that they needed a school principal who could relate better to Black and Latina/o communities.

Despite the aforementioned concerns, both the local newspaper and district office praised Pelligrino for Hilltop’s academic gains and the progress he was making in restoring the school to its former glory. In June 2014, the school community had grown weary of the perceived contempt shown to them by Pelligrino. They demanded a town hall meeting be held, with district officials in attendance, prior to the start of the 2014-2015 school year. For his part, Pelligrino could not understand why the community was dissatisfied: he believed his policies were actually improving the school.

#BlackLivesMatter at Hilltop

In the summer of 2014, 18-year-old Michael Brown and 43-year-old Eric Garner, both unarmed Black men, were killed by White police officers in Ferguson, MO. and Staten Island, NY. The resulting groundswell of outrage and resistance spread across the United States. Hilltop’s town hall meeting was postponed and hundreds of students participated in protests in conjunction with the #BlackLivesMatter movement, “a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates our society” (BlackLivesMatter.com).

While the protests and riots in Ferguson, MO. disrupted the start of the Ferguson school year for 2 weeks, teachers across the country were urged to talk explicitly about these incidents and the broader Black Lives Matter movement (Bell, 2014). Dr. Marcia Chatelain (2014), a professor at Georgetown University, used Twitter to encourage K-16 educators to commit to teaching about Ferguson on the first day of school and to share their ideas and resources by using the hashtag #FergusonSyllabus. In addition, many educators drew on the multitude of resources available online (e.g., teachingtolerance.org, teachingforchange.org) and some school district officials, like those in the District of Columbia Public Schools, proactively provided resources for teaching about Ferguson (Hing, 2014). Within Hilltop High School’s district, school leaders were encouraged to help young people find positive ways of expressing themselves. Many principals planned to hold teach-ins and to support student walkouts during the first few weeks of school.

A week before Hilltop was scheduled to commence the 2014-2015 academic year, #BlackLivesMatter rallies began taking place in the park a few blocks from the school site. The peaceful protests were organized by local clergy members and included many of Hilltop’s students. Pelligrino soon began receiving emails from students, parents, and teachers asking how the school would be involved in the #BlackLivesMatter movement in the coming weeks. Pelligrino was unsure of his next steps. From his perspective teach-ins and rallies were disruptive and had little to do with student achievement. In fact, Pelligrino believed that any unrest at Hilltop would compromise the school’s recent improvement. He reflected on this as he sat down to respond to his emails.

While at his desk, Pelligrino heard a hesitant knock on his office door as it slowly opened. With a faint smile and furrowed brow Dr. Mickens eased her head into the doorway and asked if he was busy. Pelligrino stood up and warmly ushered her into his office. He had yet to respond to any of the emails and hoped the ensuing conversation would provide him with needed clarity. He knew he did not have many allies at Hilltop and hoped Dr. Mickens would help change the tide while proffering sound advice.

Teaching Notes

Transformative school leaders understand that schools are microcosms of society and that the harsh realities that hinder the success of students outside of the schoolhouse are ever-present inside of the schoolhouse, even when academic gains are present (Shields, 2010). Transformative leadership theory calls on school leaders to be courageous as they challenge the status quo and the “business as usual” stance that at best, is race-blind, and at worst, paints Black and Latina/o communities as pathological and their schools as irreparably broken. Shields (2010) operationalizes transformative leadership by identifying the following practices:

Revolutionary by nature, transformative leadership promotes democracy and egalitarian values. This is crucial for many marginalized people as education is either a pathway to liberation (Freire, 1993) and economic prosperity (Berger & Fisher, 2013) or a pipeline to prison (Wald & Losen, 2003). As a practice, one of the central components of transformative leadership is that the school leader must “create learning contexts or communities in which social, political, and cultural capital is enhanced in such a way as to provide equity of opportunity for students as they take their place as contributing members of society” (Shields, 2010, p. 572).

The following discussion prompts and questions may be used to guide debates, small group discussions, role-playing activities, and individual and/or small group projects as students learn about transformative leadership theory and engage in transformative leadership praxis: