The purpose of this qualitative life narrative study was to describe the themes and patterns in which religio-spirituality influences the leadership process for four Black American principals. The study explored how these women leaders navigated intersecting oppressions as they engaged in social justice in their schools and the role of…

Historically, the Black Church has been an institutional stronghold in the Black community and has thereby sustained a cultural ethos that has enabled African Americans to combat racial prejudice and hostility for generations. Therefore, this article will unearth Yosso's notion of alternative capital that students of color have at their disposal…

This article draws primarily on qualitative data obtained in interviews with a socially activist urban pastor as part of fieldwork undertaken for a larger project on the relationship between religious involvement and educational outcomes among urban African American students. It demonstrates processes such as developing a critical consciousness…

A research synthesis was conducted including three meta analyses, a review of the relevant literature, and supplemental analyses examining the relationship between personal faith and the reduction of the achievement gap. Personal faith included belief and adherence to any religion. The results of the three meta-analyses indicated that: (a)…

This study examined the importance of spirituality and religion in daily life (i.e., only religion, only spirituality, both religion and spirituality, and neither religion nor spirituality) among a nationally representative sample of African Americans, Caribbean Blacks and non-Hispanic Whites. A majority in each group felt they were both important…

A growing number of Black teens are becoming religiously involved. This undoubtedly intersects with another trend in Black communities, the changing structure of the Black family. Research has shown that school-related dialogue between parent and child is an important factor in educational outcomes. This study set out to determine if there might…

This article investigates the relationship between religious identities of African American Muslims and school performance. We examined how understandings of religion inform how American Muslims view, behave, and imagine their role in school. The first author conducted interviews over the course of a year with four American Muslims, two of whom…

The educational outcomes of African American male students have been explored by several scholars. What has been lacking, however, is an examination of the role of spirituality and religion as it pertains to the educational experiences of African American male students, especially those who have been successful along the mathematics continuum. In…

How do teachers reconcile their religious identity with their teacher identity in diverse settings? Two case studies of K-8 teachers, drawn from the same religious community and teaching at the same school, are used to examine teacher dispositions and how they integrate religious dispositions with their life and work as teachers. This article…

This study examines aspects of Dr. Howard W Thurman's (1900-1982) career in higher education through the lenses of Black spirituality and critical race theory. The experiences of Howard Thurman offers distinct perspectives through which to interrogate the Black experience in American higher education and the intersections of race, religion and…

As the operational center of the Civil Rights Movement, the Black church fostered community, functioned as an educative space, and promoted collaborative efforts among churches. Similarly, the modern Black church has the opportunity to invest in educating, organizing, and mobilizing people within the church and the local community. By investing in…

Data from 2008 Monitoring the Future were used to test how well religious, family, and cultural social capital influenced 8th and 10th grade student aspirations, future plans, and prior academic experience. This study focused only on a sample of 4,273 African American students. Results indicated a strong association between family social capital…

This qualitative case study probes one African American school leader with a conservative religious upbringing as she works in a high school with a self-identified population of African American lesbian, guy, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students. The findings demonstrate that the participant's leadership practices were guided by her spiritual…

The historical tendency for educational institutions to symptomize behavior of African American children as dysfunctional or representative of mental disorder is well documented. However, recent scholarship illuminates the connection between oppression social injustice, racial trauma, and racial microaggressions as the core of stress, depression,…

The author explored spiritual identity constructions and intersections among 24 African American male undergraduate students enrolled across 12 different colleges and universities. The author drew on grounded theory, phenomenology, and case study approaches in all aspects of qualitative research design. After conducting semi-structured interviews,…