“We’ve Gone 100 Years Back:” School Counseling District Leaders’ Making Sense of Their Lived Experiences Navigating DEI Restrictions in K-12 Education

Over the last several years, K-12 education has seen a renewed focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives followed by a substantial counter response through anti-DEI laws, often developed and implemented via anti-democratic processes, targeting students based upon racial, ethnic, sexual, cultural, and gender identities. While research has focused on the experiences of educational administrators such as principals or superintendents, there exists very little literature that illuminates the experiences of other district leaders. This study sought to examine one substantially understudied group of district leaders, those who oversee school counseling, and how they have made sense of their work within an anti-DEI context. Using critical sensemaking as a framework, this study sought to answer the question, “How do school counseling district leaders (SCDLs) make sense of their lived experiences working in locations restricting educational diversity, equity, and/or inclusion (DEI)?” The results indicate that SCDLs perceive the existence of organizations working to dismantle public education through over-scrutiny of DEI initiatives, building coalitions under the banner of “Parents’ Rights,” and through the proliferation of misinformation. This is compounded by challenges from within the district such as oppressive school climates, cultures labeled as “toxic,” and leader burnout. This leaves district leaders caught between both internal and external pressure from stakeholders. Implications include the importance of establishing relationships across a community and proactive communication for district leaders, the inclusion of coursework on managing divisive topics and thorough reviews of civil rights and LGBTQ + laws at federal, state, and local levels for education leadership preparation programs.