Parental educational involvement is a multidimensional construct, including school and home activities. Although studies have indicated positive benefits of fathers’ home and school involvement, Black fathers remain understudied in the literature. This investigation explored the intragroup variation of school and home involvement using a person-centered approach among a sample of Black American fathers ( N = 648; Mage = 38.16; SD = 11.32) with a child between the ages of 10 and 17 ( M age = 12.10; SD = 2.92). Using a Polytomous latent class analytic approach (PoLCA), three distinct school-based involvement classes were identified ( Event-Oriented School Engagers , Visible School Engagers , and Distant School Engagers ), while 3 home-based involvement classes ( Proactive Home Engagers , Infrequent Home Engagers , and Routine Home Engagers ) emerged in our analyses. Findings revealed some demographic variation (e.g., marital status, students’ school stage) in paternal involvement among classes. Joint occurrence analysis demonstrated an interplay between the distinct classes of school- and home-based involvement. Overall, findings highlight variation in Black fathers’ home and school involvement. Impact Statement This study highlights the diverse ways Black fathers are involved in their children’s education, spanning school and home contexts. Findings provide insights that can inform policies and programming to better support fathers, promote their engagement in schools and at home, and ultimately benefit children’s academic success.
Gibson et al. (Thu,) studied this question.