ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a counterstory clarifying the continual code-switching and stereotype navigation that a Black male educator balances as daily practice serving in anti-Black school leadership roles. This is followed by an outline of the research methodology geared towards studying Black leaders, including an ethic of care that framed individual and focus group interviews—most often in comfortable settings with home-cooked food—to foster camaraderie and critical friendship. Demographic data, such as age, years teaching, and leadership roles held is presented. The chapter then introduces the 13 participating African American and/or Black educational leaders and initial quotations to provide a grounding in their positionalities and orientations towards social justice and Black-affirming education. The chapter concludes by mapping participant leadership trajectories, demonstrating that Black educators often take up to a decade to transition from classroom teaching to school leadership roles.
