Jennifer
E. Obidah is an associate professor of urban schooling at UCLA. Her
area of research is the socio-cultural contexts of schools and students'
lives. Dr. Obidah is co- author of the book Because of the Kids: Facing
Racial and Cultural Differences in Schools published by Teachers College
Press. She has published research papers in distinguished journals such
as the Harvard Educational Review Journal, Teachers College Record, and
The Journal of Negro Education. Her paper published in the Harvard Educational
Review Journal was selected, as part of an edited volume for a Critics
Choice Award by the American Educational Studies Association in November,
2000. Because of the Kids: Facing Racial and Cultural Differences in Schools,
received the 2001 Gustavus Myers Outstanding Book Award which "recognizes
works that increase understanding of intolerance and bigotry, and most
importantly, that inspire and inform strategies and actions that can lead
to greater equity in our society". Dr. Obidah is currently the Principal
Investigator of a five year study of urban school reform aimed at increasing
college access for economically disenfranchised African American and Latino
students. She can be reached at obidah@gseis.ucla.edu.
Christina A. Christie is an associate professor at the Claremont Graduate University's School of Organizational and Behavioral Sciences. She can be reached at christina.christie@cgu.edu.
Patricia M. McDonough is a professor in the Higher Education and Organizational Change Division, Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, University of California, Los Angeles. Her research is in the areas of college access, organizational culture, and equity. Dr. McDonough has conducted research on students' college choice decision making, high school counseling, the impact of college rankings of students' college choices, access for African-American and Latino students, rural college access, access in historically black colleges, private college counselors, college rankings, affirmative action, and college admissions officers. Dr. McDonough did the first analyses of high school's college cultures and pioneered research on how to develop college cultures in elementary, middle and high schools. She can be reached at mcdonough@gseis.ucla.edu.