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For decades, the term ‘school culture’ has been widely used in scholarly, policy, and popular discussions of education, school reform, and school leadership. Yet, school culture remains an abstract term, and different definitions abound. Moreover, important research on aspects of the school environment often does not fall under the purview of school culture research. Drawing from recent work in organizational sociology and cultural sociology, we develop a model that is both more expansive and more specified, accounting for different sources (formal, informal, environmental) and forms (meanings, practices) of school culture. This model views school culture as not onlyofficialandtop-downbut also asemergentandsituatedand highlights the role of alignment across key elements of a school’s culture. Examples from two very different schools – a ‘no excuses’ charter middle school and a ‘progressive’ high school – illustrate elements of the model and patterns of alignment/misalignment. This model can aid scholars, policymakers, and practitioners interested in understanding and, ultimately, improving school culture. 

The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent school closures forced educators to seek new means of engaging students, especially in schools serving low-income communities hit hard by the pandemic. This exploratory virtual ethnography, part of a larger study on the culture of progressive (or student-centered) schools, follows one innovative urban high school as it shifted from in-person to remote schooling. It documents how the school attempted to use Instagram to reach students and counter the social isolation associated with the COVID-19 shutdown. We find the school used virtual spaces to enact culturally sustaining pedagogical practices in the absence of ‘real world’ interactions. The school’s Instagram emphasized positive relationships, celebrated resilience in the face of challenges, and affirmed student cultures and identities. Our data suggest that this forum played an important role in sustaining school culture and student-adult connections during an extremely challenging period for the school community.