Achieving Equal Educational Opportunity for Students of Color

Valencia presents the most comprehensive, theory-based analysis to date on how society and schools are structurally organized and maintained to impede the optimal academic achievement of low-SES, marginalized K–12 Black and Latino/Latina students—compared to their privileged White counterparts. The book interrogates how society contributes to educational inequality as seen in racialized patterns in income, wealth, housing, and health, and how public schools create significant obstacles for students of color as observed in reduced access to opportunities (e.g., little access to high-status curricula knowledge). Valencia offers suggestions for achieving equal education (e.g., implementing fairness of school funding, improving teacher quality, and providing students of color access to multicultural education) by disrupting structural racism. Considering the rapid aging of the White population and the sharp decline of White youth—coupled with the explosive population growth of people of color—this book argues that the “American Imperative” must be to assiduously mount an effort to provide an excellent education for students of color, upon whom the nation will depend for a sizable proportion of its work force.

Book Features:

• Examines how society and schools are failing Black and Latino/Latina students, principally Mexican Americans who are by far the largest Latino/Latina group.
• Uses theoretical frameworks that draw from analysis of structural inequality, critical race theory, anti-deficit thinking narratives, class-by-race covariation, and an asset-based perspective of students of color.
• Discusses the “American Imperative” and the personal and economic consequences of not investing in students of color.

Richard R. Valencia, a professor emeritus of educational psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, is a recognized national and international specialist on race and education.

“In this magnificent volume, Richard Valencia describes the complex nexus of factors that create the structure of educational inequality—school funding, inadequate curriculum, segregation between and within schools, poorly prepared teachers—and points to how the maintenance of these unequal systems not only fails Black and Brown students . . . it fails the nation. This is an important cautionary tale!”
—Gloria Ladson-Billings, professor emerita, University of Wisconsin–Madison, and immediate past president, National Academy of Education

“The trouble with most school- and district-endorsed antiracist efforts is that they rely on misunderstandings of the context, causes, and scope of racism—this is why we’re more likely to find grit initiatives than antiracism commitments in schools that desperately need antiracism. The power in Achieving Equal Educational Opportunity for Students of Color is both in Richard Valencia’s ability to examine in painstaking detail the nooks and crannies of racism’s context, causes, and scope, laying bare an unjust system, and, just as importantly, in his ability to offer clear, poignant visions for transforming what is into what ought to be.”
—Paul C. Gorski, founder of the Equity Literacy Institute and co-author (with Katy Swalwell) of Fix Injustice, Not Kids and other Principles for Transformative Equity Leadership

“Weaving scholarship across multiple disciplines together with research insights honed over an exceptional career, Richard R. Valencia exposes why the persistent undereducation of students of color is morally unconscionable, economically irresponsible, and ultimately unsustainable. He reminds us to move beyond the distractions of deficit thinking and highlights examples of interventions that unapologetically aim to disrupt structural racism. Scholars, policymakers, and practitioners should take up Valencia’s urgent call to action, and those who do will be expertly guided with this comprehensive resource.”
—Tara J. Yosso, professor and associate dean, School of Education, University of California, Riverside

"This book powerfully lays out the myriad ways racism is embedded within U.S. schools and has led to the inequitable experiences and outcomes for communities of color. Through a comprehensive and data-driven analysis, Valencia compels us with the moral and economic imperative to invest in the education of students of color."
—Rita Kohli, professor, school of education, University of California, Riverside

“Richard Valencia once again sharply names and exposes the entrenched use of the deficit narrative that negates the lives of linguistically and culturally diverse children and their families. Dr. Valencia’s examination of contemporary and harmful schooling practices provides a thorough sociohistorical and interdisciplinary lens that is essential for educators seeking to foster equal educational opportunities. This publication leaves no stone unturned and is fundamental to any argument and effort that seeks to dismantle racism and, in its place, provide viable pathways for improving access and academic achievement for all students.”
—Cinthia Salinas, Ruben E. Hinojosa Regents Professor in Education, The University of Texas at Austin

“Achieving Equal Educational Opportunity for Students of Color provides an essential, historical map of the persistent inequities that have defined the schooling of Children of Color for generations. It is a must-read for all those seeking to understand the issues that are most pressing for us to address as we strive to ensure the thriving of Children of Color and their families and communities, particularly those who are the most vulnerable to the social problems that U.S. institutions have failed to confront. As Richard Valencia makes clear, policymakers, school and district leaders, educators, and activists have a pressing, moral obligation to fight these inequities. This book provides a powerful framework for understanding the tools needed for that fight.”
—Marcos Pizarro, dean, College of Education, California State University, Los Angeles