Locating Equity in Principals’ Pandemic Decision-Making Practices

The COVID-19 pandemic shed light on the prevailing inequality in the US, as traditionally marginalized groups were disproportionately affected by the disease. This paper seeks to understand how K-12 principals across a southern state in the United States, made decisions in light of these considerations. Specifically, we examined the major decisions principals were responsible for making, the underlying factors influencing these decisions, and the processes they used to make these decisions. We analyzed qualitative data from 173 surveys and 49 interviews using qualitative content analysis. Guided by Smith and Riley’s crisis response framework, our findings revealed that principals made critical decisions relevant to addressing equity gaps for students, reopening schools, training teachers for virtual learning, and enforcing state and district mandates. These decisions were often informed by what was in the best interests of students, safety, and the general well-being of their teachers. This study is important because it highlights the factors informing principals’ decisions, in addition to informing us about the decisions principals were forced to make throughout the pandemic. The limitations and implications are discussed.