Know History, Know Self: The Importance of Honoring the Humanity of Our Students & Ourselves

How does who we are impact how we do in the ongoing struggle for justice and liberation? Through storytelling, this session will focus on the relationship between knowing history and knowing self, and interrogating the ways that educational institutions - and those of us that work within and in spite of them - both affirm and deny the dignity and lived experiences of young people. Creating humanizing experiences for the young people we seek to serve requires each of us to allow our full humanity to show up in the work that we do.

Christina Villarreal spent nearly a decade teaching and learning with the youth of East Oakland, CA where she taught middle school social studies and served as an assistant principal. Currently, Villarreal serves as the faculty director of the Teacher Education Program and continues to teach the Ethnic Studies and Education course at HGSE. She also serves as a radical healing trainer with Flourish Agenda, and as a consultant with Acosta Educational Partnership. Her research explores enactments of humanizing pedagogies, racial literacy, and radical healing in secondary social studies classrooms through portraiture.

Creating Action at a Distance

Facilitated by Philip Dituri, Ph.D., Director of Education at the not for profit, Financial Life Cycle Education and educational consultant for various schools and districts.

Teachers, parents, students and school leaders are all feeling overwhelmed by the idea of engaging students in distance learning. Come speak with former professor, teacher and academic coach Philip Dituri, Ph.D. about the issues facing us as educators, the tools we have at our disposal, and how to frame this moment in education. In this talk, we will think critically about how to help teachers and educators navigate this new paradigm, how can we leverage this moment to improve our practice both now and in the future, and how future generations of students may benefit from our current struggles.

Dave Mcdonough and Sarah Carrol - St. James School (Philadelphia, PA)

Reinventing School Culture - a Team Approach.

Opportunities arise every day, especially in the midst of a dual national crisis: COVID-19 and the "awakening" of America to the racial inequities baked into our nation's origins. St. James is taking time this year to dedicate resources ( people, time, schedule, space, etc...) to take a team approach to analyzing and recreating our school culture with the goal of creating a truly safe school environment for children of color.

Getting Your Message Out - Developing a Sustainable Communications Plan

Facilitated by Kelly McMurray/2communiqué

Your school has a mission statement, you know who you need to reach, and what you need to say—now the question is how? An effective communications plan is imperative for engaging with families and clarifying your message. Taking into consideration that you are working with a lean staff and budget this session will cover best practice and take-aways for creating a sustainable communications framework. 

Equity Focused School Efforts

Facilitated by Randolph Carter, Founder and Associate Director of Eastern Educational Resource Collaborative

Randolph will host a conversation on equity focused school efforts, particularly in the areas of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment. 

East Ed will offer tools and strategies that address the unique environment our schools, communities and country is experiencing. The session will also consider the unique cultural experiences of diverse students, families, and school employees in achieving school and community goals.