Validation and Visibility: Affinity Groups as Collective Professional Learning Spaces for Leaders of Color

Abstract: 

Leaders of color can benefit from professional learning spaces that attend to racialized dynamics of school leadership, and affinity groups have emerged as a critical source of this support, with the potential to mitigate isolation, provide a pathway to sustainable collective leadership, and effectively address the unique needs of leaders of color. Our new brief explores how professional learning within affinity spaces differs from traditional professional learning and how it serves as a source of validation and visibility for leaders of color.

Author: 
Melissa Virrueta-Peters
Quennie Dong
Soraya Sablo Sutton
Publication date: 
October 7, 2026
Publication type: 
21CSLA

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