In this study we revisit the question of black representation on city councils and school boards using a novelO ver the past several decades, social scientists interested in questions of race and representation in American politics have paid considerable attention to black representation on city councils and local school boards. These investigations have focused almost exclusively on two explanatory factors: the voting strength of the black population and local electoral institutions. This focus is predicated on conventional assumptions that given a choice, black voters prefer electing black candidates and that blacks come closer to achieving proportional representation as their share of the electorate increases. Electoral institutions are believed to condition the "seats/population" relationship with at-large election (AL) systems impeding the election of minorities, particularly in the South where racial voting has been most pervasive.Extant research espouses this relatively simple model of representation despite mixed empirical results. Specifically, although many studies find that the likelihood of attaining proportionality increases as the share of the black population increases and that blacks are less proportionally represented on city councils and school boards when The authors wish to thank three anonymous referees and the editor for their comments and suggestions.elected at large rather than from single-member districts (SMD), important exceptions exist (Alozie and Manganaro 1993;Welch 1990;Welch and Karnig 1978). Further, despite similarities in the models and methods employed to study black council and board representation, results suggest that blacks are more proportionally represented on boards (Meier and England 1984;Welch and Karnig 1978).More generally, the literature reflects two enduring puzzles. First, given the higher incidence of AL arrangements in municipalities and school districts and the fact that blacks are a minority in most jurisdictions in America, what accounts for blacks' representational gains over the past several decades? Second, if electoral structure and voting strength play identical roles in council and board contests, why do empirical studies find more "equitable" representation on boards than councils? Do mechanisms other than the size of the black population and SMD arrangements matter for black representation in local governing bodies?

No abstract

No abstract

Decades of research suggest that parental involvement is vital for positive student academic achievement and thus one often-proposed solution to alleviate the poor educational outcomes of minority students is to increase their parents' participation in school. Building on a psychological motivation argument, I investigate how the symbolic effects of minority representation impact minority parent involvement. Copyright (c) 2009 by the Southwestern Social Science Association.