SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS’ OPINIONS OF LGBT-INCLUSIVE INSTRUCTION: A POLICY CASE STUDY OF CALIFORNIA’S FAIR EDUCATION ACT IMPLEMENTATION by Anthony Garces-Foley A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of George Mason University in Partial Fulfillment of The Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Education Committee: Chair Program Director Dean, College of Education and Human Development Date: Fall Semester 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA School Superintendents’ Opinions of LGBT-Inclusive Instruction: A Policy Case Study of California’s FAIR Education Act Implementation A Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at George Mason University by Anthony Garces-Foley Master of Theological Studies Franciscan School of Theology, 1998 Bachelor of Arts University of Notre Dame, 1994 Director: Penelope Earley, Professor College of Education and Human Development Fall Semester 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA This work is licensed under a creative commons attribution-noderivs 3.0 unported license. ii DEDICATION I dedicate this dissertation to my wife, Kathleen, who has been a constant source of support and encouragement during the challenges of graduate school and life. Her love, support and constant patience have taught me so much about unconditional love. Without lovingly providing the encouragement and voice of reason to move me forward, I would not have achieved this goal. I also dedicate this dissertation to my mother Eva, my brother Alvin, and to my three children, Jonah, Evie, and Elijah, without whom my life and motivation to write this dissertation would not hold as much meaning. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Penelope Earley, who supported me throughout my coursework and research for this dissertation with kindness, patience, and wisdom. To my committee members, Dr. Anastasia Samaras and Dr. Nancy Holincheck, for their encouraging words, thoughtful advice, time and attention throughout this process. To all of my students who taught me that the most important things are those learned beyond the textbook. And to my colleagues and friends who continually inspire me to teach and care for the most marginalized and disenfranchised children in my classroom. Finally, and most importantly, I thank my family for their support and encouragment throughout this process. Especially to my loving wife, Kathleen, and children, Jonah, Evie and Elijah, who sacrificed time with me so I could finish my coursework and dissertation. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... vi List of Figures ................................................................................................................... vii List of Abbreviations ....................................................................................................... viii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. ix Chapter One .........................................................................................................................1 Chapter Two .......................................................................................................................20 Chapter Three .....................................................................................................................57 Chapter Four ......................................................................................................................77 Chapter Five .....................................................................................................................106 Appendices .......................................................................................................................130 REFERENCES ...............................................................................................................186 v LIST OF TABLES Table Page Table 1. Number of Responses from Each School District Stratum ..................................66 Table 2. Interpretation of Cohen's Kappa ..........................................................................71 Table 3. Symmetric Measures of Agreement between Amenta and Garces-Foley ...........72 Table 4. School District Income and Achievement Levels 2015-2016 .............................80 Table 5. Superintendent Responses to Questions Related to LGBT-Instruction ...............81 Table 6. Superintendent Responses to Issues Related to FAIR Implementation ...............83 Table 7. School District Size * Support of FAIR Implementation Crosstabulation ..........86 Table 8. Means and Standard Deviations for Three School District Sizes on FAIR .........87 Table 9. Tests of Between-Subjects Effects of School District Size Groups on FAIR .....88 Table 10. Multiple Comparisons of School District Size Groups on Support of FAIR ....90 Table 11. Ranking of School District Size Groups on Support of FAIR ...........................91 Table 12. Superintendent Responses to Questions Related to FAIR Needs .....................93 Table 13. Means and Standard Deviations for Three School District Sizes on Needs ....100 Table 14. Tests of Between-Subjects Effects of School District Size Groups on Needs 101 Table 15. Multiple Comparisons of School District Size Groups on FAIR Needs .........102 Table 16. Levene's Test of Equality of Error Variances on FAIR Needs ........................103 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page Figure 1. Evans' Five Dimensions of Change ...................................................................49 Figure 2. Bolman and Deal's Four Frames ........................................................................50 Figure 3. Bolman and Deal's Structural and Human Resource Frames ............................52 Figure 4. Banks' Four-level Approach to Multicultural Curriculum Reform ....................54 Figure 5. Filtered Curricular Reform Decision-Making ....................................................56 vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS Analysis of Variance ............................................................................................... ANOVA Annual Measurable Objectives .................................................................................... AMO California ......................................................................................................................... CA California County Superintendents Educational Services Association ................. CCSESA California Healthy Kids Survey .................................................................................. CHKS California's Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful Education Act ......................... FAIR Center for Disease Control ............................................................................................ CDC Democrat ............................................................................................................................. D Filtered Curricular Reform Decision-Making ............................................................ FCRD Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender or Questioning ............................................. GLBTQ Gay, Lesbian, & Straight Education Network .......................................................... GLSEN Gay-Straight Alliance ................................................................................................... GSA Grade Point Average ..................................................................................................... GPA Lesbian, Gay, or Bisexual ..............................................................................................LGB Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgender ..................................................................... LGBT Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender or Questioning ............................................. LGBTQ Limited English Proficient ............................................................................................. LEP Next Generation Science Standards ............................................................................ NGSS No Child Left Behind .................................................................................................. NCLB Office for Civil Rights .................................................................................................. OCR Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports ................................................................. PBIS Preventing School Harrassment Survey ......................................................................... PSH Republican .......................................................................................................................... R Senate Bill ......................................................................................................................... SB Student-Parent Advisory Council ............................................................................... SPAC Stastical Package for the Social Sciences ..................................................................... SPSS viii ABSTRACT SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS’ OPINIONS OF LGBT-INCLUSIVE INSTRUCTION: A POLICY CASE STUDY OF CALIFORNIA’S FAIR EDUCATION ACT IMPLEMENTATION Anthony Garces-Foley, Ph.D. George Mason University, 2017 Dissertation Director: Dr. Penelope Earley, Professor This study explores the opinions