The Journey from De-Culturalization to Community Cultural Wealth: The Power of a Counter Story-Telling Curriculum and How Educational Leaders Can Transform Schools

Abstract

Generations of Latino students have been negatively impacted by de-culturalizing policies, epistemologies and pedagogies in the U.S. educational system. This article examines the impact of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in the classroom. In this article I give my testimonio documenting my educational journey and how I have been transformed as an educational leader by conducting research on the power of CRT in practice. My research demonstrates a revolutionary way to engage Latino students. By exploring their personal counter-stories, their testimonios, Latino students were able to 1) tap into their Community Cultural Wealth (CCW), 2) provide insight of their social context, and 3) repair some of the wounds caused by a racist and oppressive educational system. Replication of this curriculum could redefine educational leadership with disenfranchised Raza youth by creating academic opportunities for Latino students that would counter the racist and oppressive educational system.