Dissertation

Abstract
This study explored Black women’s lived experiences as teachers in urban schools during the era of 21st-century education reform. It centers around the relationships between Black women teachers (micro), their working conditions in low-performing urban schools (mesa), and neoliberal education policies (macro) that affect their work. The theoretical frames were Black feminist thought and critical race theory. The research questions were as follows: first, what are the working experiences of Black women teachers of tested subjects in low-performing urban public schools and, second, how do socio-political factors affect their working conditions? The research design was qualitative and included narrative inquiry and life history. Key findings were leadership, teacher autonomy, camaraderie, and collaboration, and student behavior. The Black women of this study want better leadership, autonomy, a pathway that does not lead to principalship but out of the classroom, self-care, and wellness. The implication for social change is educational leadership that uses adaptive leadership and social justice leadership that requires leaders to have emotional intelligence, social-political awareness, and activism. Educational leadership must stop taking its cues from big corporations, politicians, and businesspeople. The practice of standardized testing as ruler of all things public education must cease because it negates the human experience. The implication for practice is to honor the experiences and voices of Black women teachers, retain current Black women teachers, and recruit new Black women teachers otherwise Black women teachers are on the verge of extinction. Innovation in public education must include new ways for students, teachers, and leaders to thrive in an ever-changing world. Future research needs to include more qualitative data from Black women teachers’ working conditions and experiences through the lenses of critical race theory and Black feminist thought. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive (https://aura.antioch.edu/) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).