“There’s So Much That Young People Need to Learn That Only the Community Can Teach Them”: A Conversation With Dr. Arnetha F. Ball

Abstract

The current moment in schooling and socio-political contexts has prompted many educators to pause and reflect on what it might take to create a “new normal” for educating young people, particularly in underserved, urban communities. This article centers an interview with Dr. Arnetha F. Ball given her expertise in the field of teacher education, specifically with students in urban schools. We draw connections from the dialogue to existing literature related to urban education, Black students, and community engaged teaching and learning with an emphasis on centering Dr. Ball’s contributions to this literature. Based on our insights, this article proposes action-based recommendations for a community-centered approach to teacher preparation for urban schools that synthesize our hopes for more liberatory and transformative practices therein.