Amber B. Sansbury, a doctoral candidate in Mason's School of Education, received $24,576 from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the project: "Racial Identity Development of Young Black Children in Early Childhood Education: The Roles of Teachers and Families."
Colleen Vesely, Associate Professor, College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), is serving as Sansbury's adviser.
In this qualitative dissertation study, Sansbury will explore how family engagement vis-a-vis relationships between African American teachers and African American families supports racial socialization and young children's emergent racial identity.
This study is guided by the following research questions: 1) How do African American teachers and African American families build relationships to support African American children’s racial identity development? 2) How are these relationships reflected in African American teachers’ and African American families’ cultural values, race-related beliefs, and family-centered practices regarding their roles in racial identity development of African American young children?
The Educare model of Head Start provides high-quality instruction, intensive family engagement, and enriching learning environments with positive academic, behavioral, and social-emotional outcomes for children overall. A key component is the intensive family engagement that includes regular home visits, wraparound community and medical support, child development classes for families, and advocacy opportunities.
Sansbury is prioritizing family engagement by advancing how the field conceptualizes the race-related and cultural dimensions of family–school relationships for African American teachers and economically vulnerable African American parents in early care and education (ECE) settings specifically. A race-conscious model of family engagement is essential to understand how responsive relationships between African American parents and African American teachers might contribute to African American young children’s healthy racial identities by leveraging shared sociocultural assets.
Funding for this project began in Sept. 2023 and will end in Sept. 2024.
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