There is a dearth of educational leadership literature on the experiences of Canadian Black women school and system leaders. The absence of their voices in positions of leadership serves to keep invisible the ongoing systemic oppression that these leaders experience in their schools and boards. Additionally, the absence allows this oppression to evade dominant discourse on how racism and sexism operates in educational leadership in the Canadian context. Most importantly, such omissions result in systemic barriers failing to be explicitly addressed by school boards. Through an analysis of two qualitative studies with educational leaders focused on the factors contributing to the intersecting oppressions of being Black and female in education, this paper will reveal the ways in which dominant conceptualizations of educational leadership hinder opportunities for Black female educators and create challenges for aspiring leaders and those who are successfully placed in these roles.
A widely held belief is that positive black role models—mainly black male teachers—can assist black youth to achieve higher levels of education and life success. Yet, little research explores the experiences of Toronto black male teachers as both professionals and potential role models. My research examines the following: How do black male teachers in Toronto experience their education environments (e.g. students, colleagues, administrators and local communities)? How do black male teachers understand the intersection of race and masculinity in their teaching experiences? What are the perspectives of black male teachers on any existing and needed support systems in Toronto schools?
