UC Berkeley

Abstract

African American Parent Involvement:

An examination of the characteristics that determine the most successful school and parent relationships between lower socioeconomic, African American parents and highly effective schools

by

Marcheta Ganther-Williams

Doctor of Education

University of California, Berkeley

Professor Ingrid Seyer-Ochi, Chair

The literature contains extensive research that focuses on parent involvement and parent involvement programs. The past decade and a half has warranted some parent involvement programs that focused on the student populations of African American students and lower socioeconomic status students. In schools in which the African American student population is small, establishing an African American parent group can help to develop relationships between families and the school to support students. This is especially important in schools in which the African American student population represents a low percentage of the school. In this study of three elementary schools, African American families are identified and their relationships with schools within the African American parent group are examined. In a review of the literature it was determined that continued study of how social status and social capital may moderate the effects of different types of parent involvement. Teachers, principals, and parents were examined.

Using a case study format, this study focuses on three schools that have established

African American parent groups. Through staff and parent interviews and observations, the study focuses on how the group develops and builds relationship between African American parents, the school, the principal and the school community.

The findings of the study show that an effective group has structures in place that support the sustainability of the group over time. Principal and parent commitment is an important factor to ensure the stability and focus of the group. Other factors, such a unity among the group, are needed in order for the group to function in an optimal way. By being united in numbers, the group will prosper and be able to gain the support necessary to be successful. The influence of effective African American parent groups in schools in which the African American parent population is proportionally small can have important implications for district policies and practices.