Emergent Bilingual Newcomers: Fostering Culturally Responsive Welcoming Practices and Integration into School and Community

Newcomers to the United States face numerous obstacles. This article examines the perceptions and practices of school personnel in one Texas K–12 school district concerning culturally responsive leadership (CRL) and school practices for emergent bilingual (EB) newcomer students with refugee backgrounds. The two research questions guiding this paper include (1) What are the perceptions of K–12 school personnel about the policies, programs, and practices that shape the experiences of EB newcomer students with refugee backgrounds? and (2) How do K–12 school personnel perceive and practice culturally responsive leadership to create inclusive schools for EB newcomers? Despite robust scholarship on refugee education and culturally responsive leadership (CRL), less is known about how school personnel interpret policy and organizational constraints and subsequently translate those interpretations into everyday leadership and pedagogical practices. Following a qualitative case study research design, this study used interviews, focus groups, and vignette discussion prompts with teachers, administrators, and district representatives to show how personnel interpreted policy, categorization, and accountability pressures and how they reported responding through welcoming, relational, and culturally responsive practices. Findings are reported at the level of personnel perceptions and reported practices rather than student outcomes. The study offers practical implications for schools and districts seeking to better support the integration of EB newcomer students with refugee backgrounds into schools and communities.