In a new blog post featured on the National Policy Board for Educational Administration website, The Leadership Academy President & CEO Nancy B. Gutiérrez talks with three exceptional school principals in her home community of East San Jose, CA about how they’re creating caring communities for their students, staff, and families through culturally responsive leadership. Vince Iwasaki of Renaissance Academy at Mathson, Tracy Leathers of Ocala STEAM Academy, and Viviana Cabrales Garcia of Dorsa Elementary School share their powerful leadership stories to illustrate what culturally responsive leadership looks like in practice.
Gutiérrez also reflects on her own experience with a culturally-responsive middle school educator, Mr. Lovelace, who encouraged and ignited in her a love of learning that transformed her life.
“Mr. Lovelace did for me and my classmates what we at The Leadership Academy encourage leaders to do every day: to lead in ways that are culturally responsive, to create spaces for learning that make young people feel seen, respected, affirmed, and provide opportunities to both grapple with difference and build bridges with others. It is in those environments, science tells us, that our brains are best able to process and retain information, to think critically and creatively and engage actively in learning,” Gutiérrez writes.