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In the News: Sean J. Drake

Student Alienation in Schools Goes Beyond Low Achievement

Sean J. Drake and Jeffrey Guhin
This brief summarizes findings from a study drawing on over two years of ethnographic fieldwork in two different high schools in Los Angeles, California. The authors identify four types of alienation students experience: feeling like they don't belong, being in schools that can't support their goals, pursuing futures schools don't recognize, and succeeding in someone else's story.
November 19, 2025

See related: United States

Public School Districts Should Close Their ‘Alternative’ and ‘Continuation’ High Schools

Sean J. Drake

“Alternative” high schools are meant to help struggling students catch up on credits, but they often function as dumping grounds that perpetuate inequality. 

November 5, 2025

See related: United States

The Achievement Narrative and Alienation in School: A Typology of Academic Disconnection

Sean J. Drake, Jeffrey Guhi

The study, co-authored by Assistant Professor of Sociology Sean Drake, was published in Sociology of Education.

October 30, 2025

Maxwell Panel Weighs the Implications of the Proposed Dismantling of the Department of Education

The Center for Policy Research’s latest ‘What’s at Stake’ discussion explored the potential effects on public schools, Title IX, higher education accessibility and more. 

March 13, 2025

RSF Grant Supports Research on Youth Poverty, Housing and International Migration

Maxwell sociologist Sean J. Drake is exploring the neighborhood and school experiences of refugee and other migrant youth in Syracuse and New York City.

October 27, 2023

Research on Racial Disparities in Education by Professors Drake, Shi and Zhu Cited in NY Times

The work of Sean Drake, assistant professor of sociology, Ying Shi, assistant professor of public administration and international affairs, and Maria Zhu, assistant professor of economics, was referenced in the article, "Asian American Students Face Bias, but It’s Not What You Might Think."

November 1, 2022

Drake Talks About Academic Apartheid on FreshEd Podcast

Sean Drake, assistant professor of sociology, was interviewed on the FreshEd podcast about academic apartheid and race and the criminalization of failure in U.S. schools. 
June 21, 2022

New Books

In this selection of recently published books, faculty explore insurrections in Mexico, the intersection of race and class, the longevity of China's Communist Party, the effect of culture and social context on parenting, the origin of the farmer's address, race and borders in the Colonial Caribbean, and disaster and health  

June 15, 2022

Drake Addresses Long-Standing Problems of Educational Inequality in New Book

Sean J. Drake

In his new book, "Academic Apartheid: Race and the Criminalization of Failure in an American Suburb" (University of California Press, 2022), Sean J. Drake looks at how race and class intersect, contributing to educational inequality and modern school segregation. 

February 25, 2022

Maxwell School Announces New Chairs, Faculty

The Maxwell School welcomes several new faculty members and announces the appointment of four department chairs.
September 9, 2021
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