School, university, and community collaboration to promote equity through inclusive cultural competence

Abstract

In a series of action-research forums university researchers/faculty, school, family, and community stakeholders engaged collaboratively to explore and identify effective practices and ongoing needs related to the development of inclusive cultural competence for pre-service and in-service teachers, and the institutions that develop and employ them. Forum participants discussed plans for future collaborative projects focused on equity and social justice in local schools and community organizations. The collaborative relationships extended beyond the forums to include additional projects focused on equity. Researchers used a qualitative analysis of forum input and researcher field notes, including deductive category application of codes derived from literature and modeling of intersections of theory and forum output to identify problem areas, analyze themes of best practice, and formulate ideas for future action.