Anti-Racist Policy Decision-Making in Schools: A Framework to Root Out Racism in Education

Although democracy is a fundamental ideal in U.S. public education, this value has been contradicted since the inception of public education. Because public schools were deliberately designed for privileged identities across race, class, gender, sexual identity, ability, language, and religion, leaders must directly address school policies and practices which persist in creating unjust and unequal environments for students marginalized, excluded, and oppressed by schools. In this chapter, we detail the research-practice partnership (RPP) wherein we engaged with a team of leaders at a diverse high school in the Midwest. The RPP uses our anti-racist policy decision-making protocol to identify the racial implications of a particular policy problem. Working with the RPP, we begin by examining definitions of democracy and anti-racism in education, along with potential threats to these transformative theories. Then, we introduce the anti-racist policy decision-making protocol. By narrating the process our RPP underwent as they worked through the six steps of the protocol–assembling teams, setting expectations, understanding sociopolitical and racial contexts, conducting critical policy and leadership reviews, and planning taking action–we illuminate how messy the work of anti-racist change can be. We elaborate on the intricate navigation of racial politics during the process and share the political realities of our ongoing anti-racist RPP. In conclusion, we underscore the significance of school leaders incorporating critical reflection processes, such as the anti-racist policy decision-making protocol, into their leadership approach. Ultimately, this continuous interrogation of racism within school policies and practices should become innate to leadership.