Leading for Justice and Equity in Schools of Education Series

What does it mean for a school of education to advance justice and equity? Is it enough for its mission statement to include words like “justice” and “democracy,” to offer signature programs about justice, or for there to be a critical mass of scholars who write on this topic? Since its formation in 2016, Education Deans for Justice and Education (EDJE), a group of more than 400 education deans and leaders from large and small institutions, has been grappling with what it means to advance — as well as to trouble — justice and equity in and through our schools of education and education systems more broadly. Leading on the EDGE brings together ten chapters, along with an introduction and conclusion, written by deans and leaders from a diverse set of institutions across the United States. These leaders have implemented ideas that support an equity stance in their institutions using the EDJE Framework for Assessment and Transformation, an instrument designed for this purpose. As leaders of schools of education, many of us constantly ask: how can we transform our institutions in meaningful ways to foster justice and equity? What actions can we take that go beyond the essentials of revising the curriculum or diversifying our faculty, staff, and students? How can we take a holistic approach to the transformation of all aspects of our institutions, our governance structures, fundraising strategies, and external relationships with communities? We are living and working in precarious times with justice-oriented work at universities threatened at the federal level with possible serious ramifications at both public and private universities. With diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, affirmative action measures, and equal opportunity policies under attack, university leaders committed to actions that support equity and access in their institutions require resources to support their work. Many initiatives that claim to address issues of justice and equity focus solely on curriculum and pedagogy. This Framework addresses all of the major areas in a school including admissions, hiring, development, budget priorities, community engagement, the support of faculty, staff, and students of color, as well as curriculum and pedagogical practices. The Framework was written by a large and varied group of people with great expertise and experience, who came together several times to pool their knowledge and resources. Through Leading on the EDGE, the authors tell complex and varied stories. While in some institutions, faculty quickly embraced ideas for focusing on justice and equity, other faculties were more reluctant. The stories in this volume reflect moments of vulnerability as well as strength. Authors reflect on the issues and challenges that arose from this work, how they adapted the Framework for their unique contexts and goals, how they got started, challenges they encountered, initial outcomes, how the work can be translated to other settings within the university and in other educational settings, and provide concrete strategies for their colleagues. At a time when education leaders are under attack, Leading on the EDGE provides concrete ideas and strategies for taking a stand and proclaiming a commitment to the transformative work of justice and equity in higher education. Chapters of Leading on the EDGE are conveyed in a variety of genres and styles: some are organized as case studies, others are more similar to reflective essays; some focus on assessment of the institution or school’s focus on equity and justice, while others turn their attention to how programs were implemented, including those results; some are written in a more traditional academic style while others more autobiographical, dialogical, or even artful.Perfect for courses such as: Higher Education Administration, Educational Leadership, Multicultural Education, Foundation of Education, Educational Policy, Race and Education, Research Methods, Social Justice Education, Organizational Management (in Education)

In today’s troubling times, we frequently find ourselves in conversations with educational scholars, educators, and university students about feeling overwhelmed with the attacks on and challenges facing education, and unsure of how to act in this moment. What does it mean to leverage scholarship for public impact? What impact on public debate, awareness, or policy can collective action as large groups of scholars and leaders make that more traditional scholarship cannot or simply does not aspire to make? That is, when scholars and leaders speak in a collective and public-facing way, what interventions can we make in movement building for public education and for the public commons more broadly? Collectives and the Commons: The Role of Educational Scholars in Movement Building for Justice grapples with such questions by diving into the years-long journeys of four scholar collectives working toward justice in and through education. Each emerged in different times, places, and circumstances, but in recent years have connected under a “collective of collectives” umbrella that allowed them to share resources and support one another in their work: CReATE (Chicagoland Researchers and Advocates for Transformative Education), CARE-ED (California Alliance of Researchers for Equity in Education), HSESJD (Hawai‘i Scholars for Education, Social Justice and Diversity), and EDJE (Education Deans for Justice and Equity). The result of this effort is this volume, which serves as a resource for scholars who are interested in working collectively for movement building and advocacy. With that goal in mind, each chapter consists of two key components: a narrative essay (how the collective formed, how they were organized and operated, their theory of change, the initiatives they undertook, how they pushed scholarship into the public space, challenges faced, and lessons learned or take-aways for others interested in educational advocacy) and a range of selected artifacts (research briefs and fact sheets; statements, petitions, testimonies; media and art work; and public events and symposiums).Collectives and the Commons is needed today more than ever. The current assault on education is an assault on teachers and students, and on the welfare of everyone. This book should be read by every scholar interested in seeing social justice applied to schools, classrooms and students. It can also be adopted in a variety of courses in Colleges of Education.Perfect for courses such as: Introduction to Education, Educational Equity, Educational Leadership, Educational Policy, Foundations of Education, Multicultural Education, Race and Education, Research Methods, Social Justice and Education, Teacher Education