Elementary School Principals' Experiences Marketing Dual Language Programs to Promote Diversity
Abstract
New York City schools are among the most segregated in the country, and NYC public-school leaders are faced with the challenge of diversifying their schools. These challenges stem from the current school climate of segregation exacerbated by changing neighborhoods, the expansion of charter schools, and the increased availability of school choice. Given the failure of other integration strategies, NYC school leaders are now being encouraged to integrate their schools by learning how to market their schools, especially with new and existing programs such as Dual Language. This research study used a qualitative research approach incorporating interviews with four purposefully chosen NYC elementary school principals, field observations, document review, and data collection from NYCDOE’s data system. Two theoretical frameworks shape this research study: Critical Race Theory in Education and Neo-Institutional Theory. The principals in this study believed that marketing their school was a necessary part of their job responsibility, but they lacked expertise and/or training in marketing; consequently, they lacked coherent marketing plans and utilized limited marketing strategies. They acknowledged that their experiences with race impacted the decisions they made about how they would market their school to promote diversity. Principals juggled multiple, often conflicting educational goals including diversifying the school, maintaining or growing enrollment, and offering more diverse programs. Principals wanted sustained and focused support with their marketing efforts from their District office and New York City Department of Education.
Subject Area
Educational leadership|Marketing
Recommended Citation
Daughtry, Dawnique D, "Elementary School Principals' Experiences Marketing Dual Language Programs to Promote Diversity" (2020). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI27955900.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI27955900
