Solving Disproportionality and Achieving Equity: A Leader's Guide to Using Data to Change Hearts and Minds

When the numbers don’t lie, this is your guide to doing what’s right

According to federal data, African American students are more than three times as likely as their white peers to be suspended or expelled. As a school leader, what do you do when your heart is in the right place, but your data show otherwise? 

In Solving Disproportionality and Achieving Equity, Edward Fergus takes us on a journey into disproportionality by engaging our hearts and minds on the presence of biases that create barriers to the success of students of color. If your school is faced with a disproportionate rate of suspensions, gifted program enrollment, or special education referrals for students of color, this book shows how you can uncover the root causes and rally your staff to face the challenge head on. You will:

• Understand through compelling vignettes and case studies how bias affects policies and practices even in good schools
• Know what questions to ask and what data to analyze to get to the root cause
• Create your own road map for becoming an equity-driven school, with staff activities, data collection forms, checklists, and progress monitoring tools

If you are interested in developing a deep understanding of the policy, practice, and beliefs necessary for schools to address disproportionality and achieve equity, this book delivers all that and more.

"Through careful analysis of data obtained from real cases, Edward Fergus shows how disproportionality is manifest and how it can be thoughtfully addressed. For educators and policy makers seeking solutions to these complex issues, this book will be an invaluable resource." 
―Pedro Noguera, Distinguished Professor of Education
UCLA, Graduate Schools of Education and Information Studies

Dr. Edward (Eddie) Fergus is Professor of Urban Education in the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University – Newark. Prior to joining Rutgers University – Newark, Dr. Fergus was Associate Professor of Urban Education and Policy at Temple University (2017-2022) and Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy at New York University (2013-2017), and Deputy Director of the Metropolitan Center for Urban Education at New York University (2004-2013).  As a former high school social studies teacher, program evaluator, and community school program director, Dr. Fergus is continuously approaching research with an attention to its application within educational settings. Dr. Fergus’ work is on the intersection of educational policy and outcomes with a specific focus on Black and Latino boys’ academic and social engagement outcomes, disproportionality in special education and suspensions, and school climate conditions. He has published more than four dozen articles, book chapters, evaluation reports, and five books including  Skin Color and Identity Formation: Perceptions of Opportunity and Academic Orientation among Mexican and Puerto Rican Youth (Routledge Press, 2004), co-editor of Invisible No More: Disenfranchisement of Latino Men and Boys (Routledge Press, 2011), co-author of Schooling For Resilience: Improving Trajectory of Black and Latino Boys (Harvard Education Press, 2014), author of Solving Disproportionality and Achieving Equity (Corwin Press, 2016), co-editor of forthcoming book Boyhood and Masculinity Construction in the US (Routledge Press, forthcoming). Fergus has worked with over 120 school districts since 2004 on educational equity and school reform, specifically addressing disproportionality in special education and suspension. Fergus partners with state education departments and serves on various boards such as NY State Governor’s Juvenile Justice Advisory Group (2010-present), appointed in 2011 to the Yonkers Public Schools Board of Education (2011-2013 and 2019-2021), National Center on Learning Disabilities (2020-present), and is an expert consultant for the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division on Educational Opportunities (2014-2016), New York State Attorney General’s Office (2022), and NAACP Legal Defense Fund (2018).

Dr. Fergus received a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Secondary Education – Broad Field Social Studies from Beloit College and a doctorate in Educational Policy and Social Foundations from the University of Michigan.