Negotiating Power: How youth organizers recast the debate about school reform. Issue 8 (25th November 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Rosen, Sonia M.; Conner, Jerusha
• Other Names: Christens Brian D. guestEditor.; Gupta Jyoti guestEditor.; Speer Paul W. guestEditor.
• Is Part Of: Journal of community psychology. Volume 49:Issue 8(2021)
• Page Start: 3017
• Page End: 3032
• Publication Date: 2019-11-25
• Subjects: Clinical psychology -- Periodicals; Social psychiatry -- Periodicals; Community Mental Health Services -- Periodicals; 362.2205
• DOI: 10.1002/jcop.22286
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0090-4392

Abstract

Abstract: In the context of a neoliberal policy landscape, urban high school students who are constructed by policymakers as either dependents or deviants have little to no agency in the larger policy debates that shape what kinds of educational opportunities and choices are available to them. In this article, we explore how the Philadelphia Student Union (PSU), a youth organizing group, engaged in the debate around educational change and attempted to shift public opinion and understanding. Specifically, we examine how PSU derived and deployed power in a contest with school policymakers about educational reform. Understanding this exercise of power as a means of advancing youth voice and developing equitable systems of public accountability for all stakeholders can help us better appreciate the role youth can play in negotiating the terms of the debate over how best to improve the schools serving our nation's most vulnerable students.