Books

Item Description

A signed copy of CCI Board Chair Sue Naimark's book, The Education of a White Parent: Wrestling with Race and Opportunity in Boston Public Schools.

"It’s often said that in school we need to treat all children as if they were our own. Susan Naimark takes this command seriously. Her extraordinary memoir chronicles a life of commitment to racial equality and social justice. Anyone concerned with schools and equality will be challenged but also inspired by the stories in The Education of a White Parent." - Bill Bigelow, Editor, Rethinking Schools

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Soon after enrolling her older son in a Boston public elementary school, Susan Naimark began to see that opportunities offered to her kids were often unavailable to their classmates of color. In The Education of a White Parent Naimark candidly describes her sometimes faltering efforts to create change in the school system, tracing what turns out to be the gradual transformation of a dismayed parent into a parent leader, school board member, and advocate for equal opportunities for all students. She acknowledges that the problem of racial privilege is overwhelmingly complex and freighted with awkwardness and frustration, but she asserts with humble confidence that it is not intractable. Alongside compelling stories about her experiences, Naimark discusses numerous national studies, identifying the pattern of inequities in public schools and some signs of progress. In a clear, conversational tone, Naimark shares what she has learned about navigating school bureaucracies, collaborating across race, and achieving results that benefit all kids.

More praise for the book:

"For nearly twenty years, Boston was ground zero for the major controversies surrounding race and education in the United States. As an observer, parent and local policymaker in many of the dramas that have unfolded there, Susan Naimark has unique insights that she shares with candor and compassion in this important book."
- Pedro A. Noguera, Ph.D., Professor of Education, New York University

"This book is a must-read for all those looking for a frank and refreshingly candid conversation about racial and class dynamics and politics in America."
- Karen L. Mapp, Ed.D., Lecturer on Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education, and co-author of A Match on Dry Grass: Community Organizing as a Catalyst for School Reform

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