This study examined students' and teachers' attitudes toward using black dialect (BD) in a community college writing program. White educators completed a Language Aptitude Survey and followup interviews. African American students completed interviews. Teachers held Standard English (SE) in high regard and did not agree with using Ebonics in English classrooms. Their attitudes toward ebonics were positive in many areas (e.g., they did not consider it an inferior language and felt it should be considered an influential part of U.S. culture). They tended to agree that children who spoke Ebonics were able to express ideas as well as children who spoke SE and that Ebonics did not have a faulty grammar system. Although teachers disagreed that the scholastic level of a school would fail if teachers allowed Ebonics to be spoken, they generally felt that teachers should not allow black students to use Ebonics in class. Teachers made some statements that could possibly hinder student learning (e.g., it is a student's choice to accept SE or not, and thus to fail or not). Students tended to find English class frustrating because it felt like "learning another language". They believed they were being real when using BD. All students discussed feeling alienated during their education and few had learned much about African American history in school. (Contains 23 references.) (SM)