Skip to main content
Log in

Disarming Privilege to Achieve Equitable School Communities: A Spiritually-Attuned School Leadership Response to Our Storied Lives

  • Published:
Interchange Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This conceptual paper addresses the nature of white male privilege within school administration and how that privilege, through an examination and clarification of equity as justice, can be checked, interrogated and possibly moderated by a reflection on the spiritual nature of leading for democratic change.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alston, J. A. (2005). Tempered radicals and servant leaders: Black females persevering in the superintendency. Educational Administration Quarterly, 41(4), 675–688.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aristotle. (1980). Nicomachean ethics. (W. D. Ross, Trans.). New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. (Original work published ~ 334-323 BCE)

  • Author. XXX. (2006). Redressing the balance of community schooling and religion in the USA. Journal of Beliefs & Values: Studies in Religion and Education, 27(2), 191–202.

    Google Scholar 

  • Author. XXX. (2009). Faith and schooling: A school leadership response. Academic Exchange Quarterly, 13(3), 71–74.

  • Bernhardt, V. L. (2004). Data analysis for continuous school improvement. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonhoeffer, D. (1954). Life together: The classic exploration of christian in community. New York: Harper & Row Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brookfield, S. (2005). Learning democratic reason: The adult education project of Jürgen Habermas. Teachers College Record,107(6), 1127–1168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, R. (1988). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups. Oxford: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bruner, J. (1991). The narrative construction of reality. Critical Inquiry,18(1), 1–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buber, M. (1937). I and thou. Edinburgh, UK: T. & T. Clark.

    Google Scholar 

  • Childress, S. M. (2009). Six lessons for pursuing excellence and equity at scale. Phi Delta Kappan,91(3), 13–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coleridge, S. T. (1907). Biographical sketches of my literary life and opinions. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dalia, D. (2007). Spirituality and school leadership. Paper presented at the 12th Annual UCEA/CSLE Values & Leadership Conference. State College, Pennsylvania.

  • Dantley, M. E. (2002). Uprooting and replacing positivism, the melting pot, multiculturalism, and other impotent notions in educational leadership through an African American perspective. Education & Urban Society,34(3), 334–352.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dantley, M. E. (2005). African American spirituality and Cornel West’s notions of prophetic pragmatism: Restructuring educational leadership in American urban schools. Educational Administration Quarterly,41(4), 651–674.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dantley, M. E. (2008). The 2007 Willower family lecture reconstructing leadership: Embracing a spiritual dimension. Leadership and Policy in Schools,7(4), 451–460.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darder, A. (1991). Culture and power in the classroom: A critical foundation for bicultural education. Westport CT: Greenwood Publishing Group.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dawkins, R. (2000). Unweaving the rainbow: Science, delusion and the appetite for wonder. New York: Mariner Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dickens, C. (1981). David Copperfield. New York: Bantam Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dionne, E. J. (2012). Our divided political heart: Our battle for the American idea in an age of discontent. New York: Bloomsbury.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drago-Severson, E., & Blum-DeStefano, J. (2014). School leaders’ requested supports: Pressing needs for sustaining and improving developmentally-oriented leadership. Paper presented at UCEA Annual Meeting, Washington D.C., November.

  • Elmore, R. F., & McLaughlin, M. W. (1988). Steady work. Policy, practice, and the reform of American education. Santa Monica, CA: The Rand Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fenstermacher, G. D. (1990). Some moral considerations on teaching as a profession. In J. I. Goodlad, R. Soder, & K. A. Sirotnik (Eds.), The moral dimensions of teaching (pp. 130–151). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fenstermacher, G. D., & Amarel, M. (1983). The interests of the student, the state, and humanity in education. In L. S. Shulman & G. Sykes (Eds.), Handbook of teaching and policy (pp. 392–407). New York: Longman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, A. L. S. (1996). A matter of black and white: The autobiography of Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foster, L., & Tillman, L. C. (2009). African American perspectives on leadership in schools: Building a culture of empowerment. UCEA Monograph. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foucault, M. (1972). The archeology of knowledge and the discourse on language (S. Smith, Trans.). New York: Pantheon Books. (Original work published 1969).

  • Foucault, M. (1978). The history of sexuality: An introduction (Vol. 1). Paris: Gallimard.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fry, L. W., & Altman, Y. (2013). Spiritual leadership in action. The CEL story: Achieving extraordinary results through ordinary people. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fullan, M. (2003). The moral imperative of school leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furman, G. C. (2003). Moral leadership and the ethic of community. Values and Ethics in Educational Administration,2(1), 1–8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furman, G. C. (2004). The ethic of community. Journal of Educational Administration,42(2), 215–235.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gilkey, L. (1993). Nature, reality, and the sacred. The nexus of science and religion. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graff, C. S., & Vazquez, S. L. (2014). Family resistance as a tool in urban school reform. In E. B. Kozleski & K. K. Thorius (Eds.), Ability, equity, & culture: Sustaining inclusive urban education reform. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greene, G. (1962). The power and the glory. London: Penguin Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gutmann, A. (1994). Preface. In A. Gutmann (Ed.), Multiculturalism: Examining the politics of recognition (pp. 9–15). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Habermas, J. (1970). Toward a rational society. Boston: Beacon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Habermas, J. (1992). Autonomy and solidarity: Interviews with Jügen Habermas (Rev ed.). London: Verso.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hauerwas, S. (1983). Casuistry as a narrative art. Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology, 37(4), 377–388.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hursh, D. (2007). Assessing no child left behind and the rise of neoliberal education policies. American Educational Research Journal,44(3), 493–518.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keyes, M., Hanley-Maxwell, C., & Capper, C. (1999). `Spirituality? It’s the core of my leadership’: Empowering leadership in an inclusive elementary school. Educational Administration Quarterly,35(2), 203–237.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kozleski, E. B., & Thorius, K. K. (2014). Ability, equity, & culture: Sustaining inclusive urban education reform. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ladson-Billings, G. (1996). The dreamkeepers: Successful teachers of African American children. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lambert, L., Walker, D., Zimmerman, D. P., Cooper, J. E., Lambert, M. D., Gardner, M. E., et al. (2002). The constructivist leader (2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Larson, C. L., & Ovando, C. J. (2001). The color of bureaucracy: The politics of equity in multicultural school communities. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leistyna, P. (2002). Defining and designing multiculturalism: One school system’s efforts. Albany, N Y: SUNY Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewin, K. (1936). Principles of topological psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, C. S. (1960). The four loves. New York: Harcourt Brace.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacIntyre, A. (1981). After virtue. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCarthy, M. M., & Kuh, G. D. (1997). Continuity and change: The educational leadership professoriate. Columbia, MO: University Council for Educational Administration.

    Google Scholar 

  • McIntosh, P. (1988). White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack. In M. L. Andersen & P. H. Collins (Eds.), (2010). Race, class and gender: An anthology. (7th ed). (pp. 99–104). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

  • Meier, D. (2010). Leadership and democracy in schools. Learning & Teaching in Educational Leadership,18(1), 1–10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitra, D. L. (2004). The significance of students: Can increasing “student voice” in schools lead to gains in youth development? Teachers College Record,106(4), 651–688.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitra, D. L. (2008a). Balancing power in communities of practice: An examination of increasing student voice through school-based youth-adult partnerships. Journal of Educational Change,9(3), 221–242.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitra, D. L. (2008b). Student voice in school reform: Building adult-youth partnerships that strengthen schools and empower youth. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noddings, N. (1996). On community. Educational Theory,46(3), 245–267.

    Google Scholar 

  • Noguera, P.A. (2000). The role of research in challenging racial inequality in education. Retrieved May 2008, from http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/pnpd1.html.

  • Nussbaum, M. C. (1990). “Finely aware and richly responsible”: Literature and the moral imagination. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paris, D. (2012). Culturally sustaining pedagogy: A needed change in stance, terminology, and practice. Educational Researcher,41(3), 93–97.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pollock, M. (2006). Everyday antiracism in education. Anthropology News,47(2), 85–86.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rawls, J. (1971). A theory of justice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rawls, J. (1993). Political liberalism. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rebell, M. A. (2007). From adequacy to comprehensive educational equity: Toward a realistic agenda for equity and excellence. Providence, RI: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University, Annenberg Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reeves, D. B. (2008). The learning leader/Challenging inequity, insisting on excellence. Educational Leadership,66(2), 85–86.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scheurich, J. J., & Skrla, L. (2003). Leadership for equity and excellence. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sen, A. (1999). Globaljustice: Beyond international equity. In I. Kaul, I. Grunberg, & M. A. Stern (Eds.), Global public goods: International cooperation in the 21 stcentury (pp. 116–125). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sergiovanni, T. J. (1994). Building community in schools. San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simon, C. J. (1997). The disciplined heart. Grand Rapids, MI.: Eerdmans.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skidelsky, R. (2000). John Maynard Keynes: Fighting for freedom, 1937–1946. New York: Penguin Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skrla, L., Scheurich, J. J., Garcia, J., & Nolly, G. (2004). Equity audits: A practical leadership tool for developing equitable and excellent schools. Educational Administration Quarterly,40(1), 133–161.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sleeter, C. E., & Grant, C. A. (1988). Making choices for multicultural education: Five approaches race, class, and gender. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smyth, J., & McInerney, P. (2014). Becoming educated: Young people’s narratives of disadvantage, class, place and identity. New York: Peter Lang Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Starratt, R. J. (2003). Centering educational administration: Cultivating meaning, community, and responsibility. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strike, K. A. (2007). Ethical leadership in schools. Creating community in an environment of accountability. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strike, K. A., Haller, E. J., & Soltis, J. F. (1998). The ethics of school administration (2nd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strike, K. A., & Soltis, J. F. (1998). The ethics of teaching (3rd ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • The Color of Fear (1994). Ukiah, CA: StirFry Seminars.

  • Theoharis, G. (2009). The school leaders our children deserve: Seven keys to equity, social justice, and school reform. New York: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tillman, L. C. (2006). Transformative leadership for social justice: Concluding thoughts. Journal of School Leadership,16(2), 207–209.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyack, D., & Cuban, L. (1995). Tinkering toward utopia: A century of public school reform. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Hesteren, F., & Walker, K. (2008). Higher is better: Tennis as a metaphor for authentic compassionate leadership. Paper presented at the 13th Annual UCEA/CSLE Values & Leadership Conference. State College, Pennsylvania.

  • Warnock, M. (1976). Imagination. Oakland, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Washington Post, The. (2007. Tuesday, 23 January) President Bush’s 2007 state of the union address (as delivered in the House chamber). Retrieved August 6, 2009, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2007/01/23/AR2007012301075.html.

  • Weil, S. (1951). Waiting on God. Abingdon-on-Thames, UK: Routledge Kegan Paul.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wells, A. S. (2014). Seeing past the “colorblind” myth of education policy: Addressing racial and ethnic inequality and supporting culturally diverse schools. Boulder, CO: National Education Policy Center.

    Google Scholar 

  • West, C. (2001). Race matters. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willie, C. V. (2006). The real crisis in education: Failing to link excellence and equity. Voices in Urban Education, 10, 11–19.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wise, T. (2008). White like me. Reflections on race from a privileged son. (revised and updated). Brooklyn, NY: Soft Skull Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yun, J. T., & Moreno, J. F. (2006). College access, K–12 concentrated disadvantage, and the next 25 years of education research. Educational Researcher,35(1), 12–19.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This study used no funding and none of the authors received funding to support this work.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to J. Edward Frick.

Ethics declarations

Ethical Approval

This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Frick, W.C., Parsons, J. & Frick, J.E. Disarming Privilege to Achieve Equitable School Communities: A Spiritually-Attuned School Leadership Response to Our Storied Lives. Interchange 50, 549–568 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10780-019-09375-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10780-019-09375-z

Keywords

Navigation