Katherine Cumings Mansfield
Biographic Data
| ID | 664787 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Katherine Cumings Mansfield |
| GIVEN NAMES | Katherine Cumings |
| FAMILY NAME | Mansfield |
| SIGNATURE | MANSFIELD K C |
| AFFILIATIONS | Virginia Commonwealth University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-3395-0761 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 15 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 90 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 15 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
The rise of uncertified teachers and emerging impacts on educational leadership: Findings from a mixed-methods pilot study
Teacher shortages and staffing challenges are major concerns for educational leaders globally. For example, in several countries, population growth expands the demand for teachers; while concurrently, teachers are leaving the profession due to heavy workload, perceived lack of respect, and low morale ( Durden, 2023 ). This leaves head teachers, principals, and other educational leaders in vulnerable positions as they work to meet the needs of stu…
The precarities of teaching “race, gender, and class issues in education” in a state that limits DEI initiatives
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to share how two professors of graduate programs taught a required course on race, gender and class issues in education while also navigating recently enacted state laws limiting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at state universities. Design/methodology/approach Data collection included duo-ethnographic journal entries and publicly available documents and recordings that detail faculty struggles nav…
Culturally responsive leadership: A critical analysis of one school district’s five-year plan
Centering the need for culturally responsive leadership (CRL), this study engages in a critical analysis of one large urban school district’s 5-year plan that aims to be culturally responsive and equity focused. We first define the various facets of CRL, connect its major components to culturally responsive teaching/pedagogy (CRTP) and student voice (SV), and offer an original, integrative framework as a tool for analysis. We argue that CRL is no…
Higher Education Access for Undocumented Students in the United States: Mapping the Policy Terrain
This article focuses on higher education access for undocumented immigrants in the United States. Since individual states develop and govern their own policies, the political landscape around college access is always in a state of flux. This is confusing to school counselors, families, and students. We use cartography to make sense of this increasingly complex policy terrain. In addition to displaying a state-by-state overview of access and fundi…
Working alongside students, parents, and families
The question of achieving equity remains an enduring concern for K-12 teachers and school leaders. Work toward equity and social justice in K-12 schools requires the authentic participation and engagement of racially marginalized students and families. Van Lac, Érica Fernández, and Katherine Cumings Mansfield offer real-life examples of what it looks like to foster student and parent leadership with/alongside teachers and school leaders. They con…
The Politics of Student Voice: The Power and Potential of Students as Policy Actors
Historically and contemporarily students have been critical to bringing issues of justice in education policy to the fore. Yet, there have been limited formal spaces that elevate student voice scholarship in educational policy. In response, this Politics of Education Association (PEA) Yearbook Issue of Educational Policy aims to serve as a platform for opening up new areas for investigation, especially connections between theory to practice speci…
“This is Not Who We Are”: Students Leading for Anti-Racist Policy Changes in Alexandria City Public Schools, Virginia
This paper centers the voices of students who successfully struggled alongside justice-minded school board members and other concerned citizens to create anti-racist policy changes in Alexandria City Public Schools, Virginia. Specifically, we examine the history behind, and political processes involved with, changing the names of two local schools due to the racist political commitments of their namesakes. Lessons learned include the need to care…
Leadership in the Time of Covid: Connecting Community Resources to Meet the Needs of North Carolina Students
The purpose of this brief research report is to share what we learned conducting an exploratory pilot study on how school leaders in North Carolina responded to changes wrought by the onset of the novel Coronavirus in early 2020. In many ways, North Carolina is a distinctive case because it exists in what is commonly referred to as the Urban/Rural Divide; but, it is also similar to other cases in that educators must be adaptable and flexible in a…
More than Just an Academic Exercise: Conjoining Critical Policy Analysis and Community-Engaged Research as an Embodiment of Political Action
Critical policy analysis (CPA) is a means by which to critique policy and promote agency, equity, and justice. However, most CPA scholars examine political discourse from a distance rather than actively participate in political processes. Meanwhile, there is a growing interest in community-engaged research whereby academics partner with community members in their research endeavors. In this article, we consider the value of conjoining the philoso…
The Color of Giftedness: A Policy Genealogy Implicating Educators Past, Present, and Future
This article offers a critical rereading of gifted education in the United States using a genealogical framework as defined by postcolonial theory. Using genealogy is appropriate because it sets the education profession within a family research tradition, implies the close connection between past and present, and enables us to systematically trace the evolution of exclusionary practices. The purpose of this article is to (a) demonstrate the utili…
Courageous conversations about race, class, and gender: Voices and lessons from the field
The purpose of this paper is to present a qualitative secondary analysis of two empirical studies that focused on the leadership practices of female practitioners at the secondary level engaging in discourse and practices to disrupt educational inequities. The guiding research question is, “How do school leaders engage in courageous conversations to: (1) transform beliefs and practices concerning educational inequities, and; (2) engender equity t…
Giftedness as Property: Troubling Whiteness, Wealth, and Gifted Education in the US
The purposes of this article are to illumine the racist genealogy of gifted education policies and practices in the United States, to demonstrate how deficit discourses continue today, and to provide personal examples from the field of how educators can begin to question the status quo, resist taken-for-granted assumptions, and alternatively make substantive changes at the local level. I also aim to demonstrate how giftedness is an example of whi…
The intellectual landscape of critical policy analysis
What counts as critical policy analysis in education? Over the past 30 years, a tightening of national educational policies can be seen in the USA and across the globe. Over this same period of time, a growing number of educational policy scholars, dissatisfied with traditional frameworks, have used critical frameworks in their analyses. Their critical educational policy work has contributed to a unique intellectual landscape within education: cr…
Truth or consequences”: A feminist critical policy analysis of the STEM crisis
STEM education has received significant attention in the USA and is largely fueled by rhetoric suggesting the USA is losing its global competitive edge and that there is a lack of qualified workers available to fill growing STEM jobs. However, a counter discourse is emerging that questions the legitimacy of these claims. In response, we employed feminist critical policy analysis as both a theory and a method to further critique the STEM crisis di…
I Love These Girls-I Was These Girls: Women Leading for Social Justice in a Single-Sex Public School
The purpose of this article is to share the findings from a 2-year ethnography that examined female practitioners' experiences in the field. The article describes the intentions, discourses, actions, and repercussions of female administrators and teachers working to accomplish social justice for racial/ethnic minority girls from challenging economic circumstances. The discourse adjoining social justice intentions and actions is shared with descri…
The intellectual landscape of critical policy analysis
What counts as critical policy analysis in education? Over the past 30 years, a tightening of national educational policies can be seen in the USA and across the globe. Over this same period of time, a growing number of educational policy scholars, dissatisfied with traditional frameworks, have used critical frameworks in their analyses. Their critical educational policy work has contributed to a unique intellectual landscape within education: cr…
Truth or consequences”: A feminist critical policy analysis of the STEM crisis
STEM education has received significant attention in the USA and is largely fueled by rhetoric suggesting the USA is losing its global competitive edge and that there is a lack of qualified workers available to fill growing STEM jobs. However, a counter discourse is emerging that questions the legitimacy of these claims. In response, we employed feminist critical policy analysis as both a theory and a method to further critique the STEM crisis di…
Giftedness as Property: Troubling Whiteness, Wealth, and Gifted Education in the US
The purposes of this article are to illumine the racist genealogy of gifted education policies and practices in the United States, to demonstrate how deficit discourses continue today, and to provide personal examples from the field of how educators can begin to question the status quo, resist taken-for-granted assumptions, and alternatively make substantive changes at the local level. I also aim to demonstrate how giftedness is an example of whi…
I Love These Girls-I Was These Girls: Women Leading for Social Justice in a Single-Sex Public School
The purpose of this article is to share the findings from a 2-year ethnography that examined female practitioners' experiences in the field. The article describes the intentions, discourses, actions, and repercussions of female administrators and teachers working to accomplish social justice for racial/ethnic minority girls from challenging economic circumstances. The discourse adjoining social justice intentions and actions is shared with descri…
Courageous conversations about race, class, and gender: Voices and lessons from the field
The purpose of this paper is to present a qualitative secondary analysis of two empirical studies that focused on the leadership practices of female practitioners at the secondary level engaging in discourse and practices to disrupt educational inequities. The guiding research question is, “How do school leaders engage in courageous conversations to: (1) transform beliefs and practices concerning educational inequities, and; (2) engender equity t…
The Color of Giftedness: A Policy Genealogy Implicating Educators Past, Present, and Future
This article offers a critical rereading of gifted education in the United States using a genealogical framework as defined by postcolonial theory. Using genealogy is appropriate because it sets the education profession within a family research tradition, implies the close connection between past and present, and enables us to systematically trace the evolution of exclusionary practices. The purpose of this article is to (a) demonstrate the utili…
More than Just an Academic Exercise: Conjoining Critical Policy Analysis and Community-Engaged Research as an Embodiment of Political Action
Critical policy analysis (CPA) is a means by which to critique policy and promote agency, equity, and justice. However, most CPA scholars examine political discourse from a distance rather than actively participate in political processes. Meanwhile, there is a growing interest in community-engaged research whereby academics partner with community members in their research endeavors. In this article, we consider the value of conjoining the philoso…
I Love These Girls-I Was These Girls: Women Leading for Social Justice in a Single-Sex Public School
The purpose of this article is to share the findings from a 2-year ethnography that examined female practitioners' experiences in the field. The article describes the intentions, discourses, actions, and repercussions of female administrators and teachers working to accomplish social justice for racial/ethnic minority girls from challenging economic circumstances. The discourse adjoining social justice intentions and actions is shared with descri…
The intellectual landscape of critical policy analysis
What counts as critical policy analysis in education? Over the past 30 years, a tightening of national educational policies can be seen in the USA and across the globe. Over this same period of time, a growing number of educational policy scholars, dissatisfied with traditional frameworks, have used critical frameworks in their analyses. Their critical educational policy work has contributed to a unique intellectual landscape within education: cr…
Truth or consequences”: A feminist critical policy analysis of the STEM crisis
STEM education has received significant attention in the USA and is largely fueled by rhetoric suggesting the USA is losing its global competitive edge and that there is a lack of qualified workers available to fill growing STEM jobs. However, a counter discourse is emerging that questions the legitimacy of these claims. In response, we employed feminist critical policy analysis as both a theory and a method to further critique the STEM crisis di…
Courageous conversations about race, class, and gender: Voices and lessons from the field
The purpose of this paper is to present a qualitative secondary analysis of two empirical studies that focused on the leadership practices of female practitioners at the secondary level engaging in discourse and practices to disrupt educational inequities. The guiding research question is, “How do school leaders engage in courageous conversations to: (1) transform beliefs and practices concerning educational inequities, and; (2) engender equity t…
Giftedness as Property: Troubling Whiteness, Wealth, and Gifted Education in the US
The purposes of this article are to illumine the racist genealogy of gifted education policies and practices in the United States, to demonstrate how deficit discourses continue today, and to provide personal examples from the field of how educators can begin to question the status quo, resist taken-for-granted assumptions, and alternatively make substantive changes at the local level. I also aim to demonstrate how giftedness is an example of whi…
The Color of Giftedness: A Policy Genealogy Implicating Educators Past, Present, and Future
This article offers a critical rereading of gifted education in the United States using a genealogical framework as defined by postcolonial theory. Using genealogy is appropriate because it sets the education profession within a family research tradition, implies the close connection between past and present, and enables us to systematically trace the evolution of exclusionary practices. The purpose of this article is to (a) demonstrate the utili…
More than Just an Academic Exercise: Conjoining Critical Policy Analysis and Community-Engaged Research as an Embodiment of Political Action
Critical policy analysis (CPA) is a means by which to critique policy and promote agency, equity, and justice. However, most CPA scholars examine political discourse from a distance rather than actively participate in political processes. Meanwhile, there is a growing interest in community-engaged research whereby academics partner with community members in their research endeavors. In this article, we consider the value of conjoining the philoso…
Leadership in the Time of Covid: Connecting Community Resources to Meet the Needs of North Carolina Students
The purpose of this brief research report is to share what we learned conducting an exploratory pilot study on how school leaders in North Carolina responded to changes wrought by the onset of the novel Coronavirus in early 2020. In many ways, North Carolina is a distinctive case because it exists in what is commonly referred to as the Urban/Rural Divide; but, it is also similar to other cases in that educators must be adaptable and flexible in a…
The Politics of Student Voice: The Power and Potential of Students as Policy Actors
Historically and contemporarily students have been critical to bringing issues of justice in education policy to the fore. Yet, there have been limited formal spaces that elevate student voice scholarship in educational policy. In response, this Politics of Education Association (PEA) Yearbook Issue of Educational Policy aims to serve as a platform for opening up new areas for investigation, especially connections between theory to practice speci…
“This is Not Who We Are”: Students Leading for Anti-Racist Policy Changes in Alexandria City Public Schools, Virginia
This paper centers the voices of students who successfully struggled alongside justice-minded school board members and other concerned citizens to create anti-racist policy changes in Alexandria City Public Schools, Virginia. Specifically, we examine the history behind, and political processes involved with, changing the names of two local schools due to the racist political commitments of their namesakes. Lessons learned include the need to care…
Working alongside students, parents, and families
The question of achieving equity remains an enduring concern for K-12 teachers and school leaders. Work toward equity and social justice in K-12 schools requires the authentic participation and engagement of racially marginalized students and families. Van Lac, Érica Fernández, and Katherine Cumings Mansfield offer real-life examples of what it looks like to foster student and parent leadership with/alongside teachers and school leaders. They con…
Culturally responsive leadership: A critical analysis of one school district’s five-year plan
Centering the need for culturally responsive leadership (CRL), this study engages in a critical analysis of one large urban school district’s 5-year plan that aims to be culturally responsive and equity focused. We first define the various facets of CRL, connect its major components to culturally responsive teaching/pedagogy (CRTP) and student voice (SV), and offer an original, integrative framework as a tool for analysis. We argue that CRL is no…
Higher Education Access for Undocumented Students in the United States: Mapping the Policy Terrain
This article focuses on higher education access for undocumented immigrants in the United States. Since individual states develop and govern their own policies, the political landscape around college access is always in a state of flux. This is confusing to school counselors, families, and students. We use cartography to make sense of this increasingly complex policy terrain. In addition to displaying a state-by-state overview of access and fundi…
The precarities of teaching “race, gender, and class issues in education” in a state that limits DEI initiatives
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to share how two professors of graduate programs taught a required course on race, gender and class issues in education while also navigating recently enacted state laws limiting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at state universities. Design/methodology/approach Data collection included duo-ethnographic journal entries and publicly available documents and recordings that detail faculty struggles nav…
The rise of uncertified teachers and emerging impacts on educational leadership: Findings from a mixed-methods pilot study
Teacher shortages and staffing challenges are major concerns for educational leaders globally. For example, in several countries, population growth expands the demand for teachers; while concurrently, teachers are leaving the profession due to heavy workload, perceived lack of respect, and low morale ( Durden, 2023 ). This leaves head teachers, principals, and other educational leaders in vulnerable positions as they work to meet the needs of stu…
Sociology (13 works) · Political science (11 works) · Law (9 works) · Pedagogy (6 works) · Gender Studies (5 works) · Law (5 works) · Politics (5 works) · Public relations (5 works) · Social science (5 works) · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies (5 works)