Since the Civil Right Movement in the United States, African Americans and other diverse students have forged through “integrated” educational systems to terminal graduate degrees. Some studies suggest racial integration in U. S. schools made White participants less prejudiced toward others, although the data showed that after schooling, many Whites again lived (and still do) in segregated neighborhoods with separation in places of employment, churches, and social groups (Wells, Holme, Revilla, & Atanda, 2004). One diverse participant in this study asked whether, after decades of integration, there has been any real progress, citing excellent educational experiences with all Black teachers within the all Black schools where he grew up. Is it truly progress for diverse students when they are bussed across town to be treated as minorities in mostly White schools? More diverse students do graduate from college; however, the diversity rate of professors is still abysmal. This study reports the contextual experiences of three African American (one an administrator) and one Latina faculty member with decades of experience in the public educational system and as they engaged in the culture of higher education struggling with a moral multiculturalism—whether worldviews (therefore free speech) could be morally determined and whether they as diverse faculty truly belong and are truly respected.

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This research is an ethnography (Murchison, 2010) that describes the lived experiences of a university professor and former public school superintendent. The work explores racial integration and desegregation of America’s public school system. Through a series of seven semi-structured interviews, background information has been collected about the educational leader’s ethnic identity, personal experiences as a student in public schools and professional background. Descriptions of the challenges, issues, and success of racial integration are presented from the professional experience of the educational leader along with existing contemporary challenges.

Common Core English Language Arts Standards and changing technologies have shifted the ways students and teachers select and read text. Reasons for the lack of digital literacy implementation in instruction are due to the large amount of choices available without sufficient background information on how to critically evaluate literacy applications. This article presents the framework of the Common Core English Language Arts Standards and how they are used to enhance literacy instruction through implementation of literacy technology applications. Limitations and advantages of digital applications are explored, descriptions of the applications are provided, and strategies for implementation in the English/ Language Arts classroom are discussed.

Core English/Language Arts classrooms. This study provides insights into the utility of using digital literacy in order to provide K-12 readers and writers with engaging texts at instructionally appropriate levels. Findings indicate K-12 teacher candidates and teachers had positive experiences in implementing digital technology, and offered solutions for associated challenges. Three themes emerged from teacher candidates and teacher responses: implications for content and assessment, student found that integrating the literacy applications helped their students. The applications recorded student progress, recommended lessons, and automatically matched the student to texts at their appropriate reading level. Recommendations provided by teachers were ongoing professional development and effective classroom management prior to implementation. Further research is needed in connecting readers with authentic digital literacy applications for enjoyment and comprehension.