Date
9-17-2026
Department
Rawlings School of Divinity
Degree
Doctor of Education in Christian Leadership (EdD)
Chair
Michael Grayston
Keywords
black Christian parents, independent schools, enrollment trends, enrollment decisions, school choice, diversity, private schools, public school
Disciplines
Christianity
Recommended Citation
Gatling, Rosalyn C., "School Choice and the Black Family: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Why Black Christian Parents Choose Public Schools" (2026). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 8905.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/8905
Abstract
A lack of growth in enrollment is noticeable in Faith-based schools, even more so with black student enrollment in Christian schools (NCES, 2024). Black student enrollment continues to remain at a low percentage and has not increased in over 15 years, with leaders striving to discover solutions to elevate growth in the future and avert further enrollment loss, and stagnation (Harsh, 2018). The major reasons why black Christian parents choose public schools over Christian schools vary; therefore, the purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to discover the perspective of black Christian parents and what they believe are the major reasons for choosing to enroll their children in public schools instead of Chrisitan schools. Various researchers have investigated numerous variables connected with the national enrollment decline, however, there is a noticeable gap in the literature that explores the feelings of minority parents to garner their perspectives from a culturally diverse point of view to receive insight from parents. In this qualitative phenomenological study, the researcher interviewed 12 black Christian parents from five different Christian churches in the Central Pennsylvania area to explore why they chose to enroll their children in public schools instead of private schools. Via recorded phone interviews, the participants shared their perspectives and stories that impacted their school choice decisions. Even though the participants had more than one impactful factor, the major reasons given were the cost of tuition, diversity and equity, lack of available information, lack of supported services, and the challenging application process.
