the fifteenth annual
ALUMNI OF COLOR CONFERENCE
March 2-4, 2017
Harvard Graduate School of Education
MISSION & THEME
2017. The air is toxic. The politics are messy. We adults mill about,
wringing our hands about those on the other side of the fence. Our youth are
caught in the verbal crossfire. What sense are they making of our inability to
create and sustain equitable, liberating opportunities? If we are true to the
values and foundations set by the social justice leaders on whose shoulders we
stand, we would spend as much time doing as we do discussing. And we would
act alongside and not over the young leaders who will inherit the positions of
influence we now hold.
In spite of the mess and the noise—or perhaps because of it— highly visible
efforts for change have recently helped reanimate youth and adult activism
alike. In solidarity, we are taking bolder, more courageous steps to resist the
oppressive systems we see on the daily, and the 2017 Alumni of Color
Conference (AOCC) raises that banner. Educators and activists of all kinds - join
us.
The AOCC aims to inspire and transform education by convening scholars,
researchers, young people, practitioners, policymakers, students, activists, and
agents of change committed to challenging the racial and intersecting injustices
that adversely impact our communities of color. This year’s conference,
“Define. Defy. Dismantle.: Forging Our Legacy Through Activism,” will provide
participants the opportunity to learn and leverage current social justice efforts
for their own practice. By highlighting the roots of structural inequities, various
methods of resistance, and tools to deconstruct oppressive systems, AOCC
2017 will move attendees to strengthen their actions for social justice.
2 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
4 // Welcome
7 // Conference Agenda Overview
9 // Award Winners
10 // Keynote - Dr. Peter T. Keo
12 // Breakout Session 1
15// Breakout Session 2
18 // Breakout Session 3
22 // Askwith Panel
26 // Saturday Morning Featured Panel
28 // Breakout Session 4
32 // Keynote - Dr. Rhonda Williams
33 // Breakout Session 5
38 // Breakout Session 6
42 // Keynote - Dr. Bettina Love
43 // Acknowledgments and AOCC Staff Biographies
3
WELCOME FROM THE DEAN
Dear Alumni, Presenters, Faculty, Students, and Guests:
I am delighted to welcome you to the 15th annual Alumni of Color Conference
(AOCC). The AOCC has long been one of the most integral parts of the HGSE experience.
As educators, we have a responsibility to understand the legacy of racism in education—
and concomitantly, to understand the power of education to combat racism. This conference offers our community the opportunity to closely and courageously examine these
issues, so that we might be better prepared to do our part in advancing racial equity.
And this mission is more important than ever. In recent months, I have seen a
groundswell among this community—students, faculty, staff, and alumni who have already
dedicated themselves to the work of social justice asking what more they can do. That is
why I was delighted to see this year’s conference theme, Define. Defy. Dismantle. Forging
our Legacy through Activism, designed to tap into this incredible energy and a shared desire to take action. I would like to thank the AOCC Steering Committee—especially trichairs Kimberly Osagie, Alfatah Moore, and Rashaida Melvin—for the wisdom and hard
work they have put in to organizing the AOCC this year.
I am also pleased to welcome this year’s keynote speakers—Dr. Rhonda Y. Williams, Dr. Bettina L. Love, Simran Noor, Dr. Peter Keo, Dr. Arshad I. Ali, Albino Garcia, Michael Blake—as well as Brandon Marshall, the recipient of the 2017 AOCC Courage Award.
The conference promises to be an extraordinarily engaging conversation not just about
race but about activism driven by a wide spectrum of identities and experiences.
I look forward to seeing many of you over the coming days, and I would like to
thank you all for reminding me how grateful I am to be a part of this community.
Sincerely,
James E. Ryan
Dean of the Faculty
Charles William Eliot Professor
Harvard Graduate School of Education
4 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
WELCOME FROM THE OFFICE OF STUDENT AFFAIRS
Dear AOCC Attendees,
It gives me great pleasure to welcome all attendees to the 2017 Alumni of Color Conference. Now in its
15th year, the Alumni of Color Conference has become one of the most anticipated events here at HGSE. I
am delighted to have worked with this year’s tri-chairs, Al Moore, Kimberly Osagie, and Rashaida Melvin,
and I commend them for their leadership and hard work in making this year’s conference a
success. Along with the rest of their committee members and numerous volunteers, these students have
worked for months to ensure an impactful conference for everyone.
In the face of trying and uncertain times in our nation and the world, issues of equity, justice and
inclusion for all people become all the more important. By bringing together more than 300 current
students, alumni, and practitioners from the field, AOCC seeks to elevate these conversations while
digging deeper into the roots of injustice in the United States.
The program for this conference is filled with many meaningful and poignant panels, workshops, and
speakers that we hope will transform the way these issues are considered. We thank you for your
attendance and look forward to seeing you throughout this weekend.
Best,
Liz Thurston, Ph.D.
Director of Student Affairs
Harvard Graduate School of Education
123 Gutman Library
6 Appian Way
Cambridge, MA 02138
Ph: 617-496-1334
[email protected]
5
WELCOME FROM THE TRI-CHAIRS
Dear Alumni, Presenters, Faculty, Students, and Guests:
On behalf of the Steering Committee and the leadership team, we welcome
you to the 15th Annual Alumni of Color Conference (AOCC). In the next couple of
days, over 500 researchers, scholars, practitioners, students, activists, organizers,
youth, and community members will convene in exploration of issues of race, class,
education, and various forms of social injustices. As organizers of AOCC, we are
humbled by the overwhelming support and enthusiasm we have encountered through
the course of our planning. We stand on the foundations laid by AOCC gatherings of
the past, and by the dedication of our alumni, co-founders, and former chairs.
This year’s conference theme, “Define. Defy. Dismantle.: Forging Our Legacy
Through Activism,” provides participants the opportunity to examine systems of
oppression, break down barriers, and discover ways to create a fair society for all.
With our country’s current political climate, we want this conference to be a space
where like-minded individuals may come together and find actionable steps that one
may use within their respective fields and during times of personal activism. We
believe that our dynamic program of panels, workshops, and performances speaks to
the desire of participants to learn actionable and peaceful steps to work towards
equality for all.
To all of our conference presenters and attendees, we want to express our
deepest gratitude for your support and presence here at AOCC 2017. To the AOCC
Steering Committee and volunteer team, we thank you for your tireless work and
commitment to making this conference a success. We hope that you find AOCC 2017
to be an energizing space that celebrates growth, fosters reflection, and provides
specific action steps that you may use within your own communities. Thank you for
supporting the 15th Annual Alumni of Color Conference!
In solidarity,
Rashaida Melvin
Alfatah Moore
6 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Kimberly Osagie
DAY 1
THU, MARCH 2ND
5:00pm-5:30pm
Opening Performance
Gutman Conference Center
5:30pm-6:30pm
Opening Keynote
Gutman Conference Center
6:30pm-7:30pm
Reception
Gutman Conference Center
DAY 2
FRI, MARCH 3RD
12:00pm-1:00pm Youth Opening
Gutman Conference Center,
Area 2 & 3
1:00pm-2:15pm
Breakout Session 1
Various
2:30pm-3:45pm
Breakout Session 2
Various
4:00pm-5:15pm
Breakout Session 3
Various
5:30pm-5:40pm
Tri-Chair Opening
Askwith Hall
5:40pm-5:50pm
Dean Ryan Welcoming
Askwith Hall
5:50pm-6:00pm
Courage Award
Askwith Hall
6:00pm-7:30pm
Askwith Panel
Askwith Hall
7:30pm-8:30pm
Reception *
Gutman Conference Center
7
DAY 3
SAT, MARCH 4TH
8:15am-9:00am
Breakfast
Longfellow, Eliot Lyman
9:00am-10:15am Breakout Session 4 // Saturday Panel
Larsen G08
10:30am11:45am
Various
Breakout Session 5
11:45am-3:30pm Youth Creative Space
Longfellow 319/320
12:00pm-1:00pm Lunch
Gutman Conference Center
1:00pm-2:00pm
Saturday Keynote
Askwith Hall
2:15pm-3:30pm
Breakout Session 6
Various
3:45pm-4:45pm
Breakout Session 7
Various
3:45pm-4:45pm
Youth Reception
Longfellow 319/320
5:00pm-5:30pm
Awards & Closing Performance
Askwith Hall
5:30pm-6:30pm
Closing Keynote
Askwith Hall
6:30pm-10:00pm Closing Reception
Gutman Conference Center
* hosted by the HGSE Alumni Council
Please reference this high level agenda with
programming described on pages 10 to 42.
8 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
AOCC 2017 AWARDS
Courage Award
BRANDON MARSHALL
Alumni Achievement Award
CERONNE B. DALY
Kolajo Paul Afolabi Award
for Commitment to Educational Justice
JESSICA FEI
Tina Hansar Award
for Educational Equity
KIDUS MEZGEBU
9 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
OPENING PERFORMANCE AND KEYNOTE
Thursday, 5:00pm-6:30pm // Gutman Conference Center
PERFORMANCE // "Auctioneer": The Education of a Black Woman Auctioneer Whose
Ancestors Were Auctioned
This performance will integrate the presenter’s perspective (in artistic form) as an African
American woman circumnavigating the globe by ship, serving as an auctioneer, and confronting
historical oppression and present-day implications of oppression. The power of poetry, spoken
word, and other creative art forms to defy oppression in education and promote liberation
should not be underestimated.
SUZANNE M. CADE
KEYNOTE // Critical Humanity, Social Justice, and a Moral Revolution of Values
DR. PETER T. KEO
This kick-off keynote presentation examines the triple giants of racism, poverty, and the
systematic erasure of large segments of vulnerable people in America. The discussion will be
framed around issues of social justice, particularly considering a new presidential administration
built on a foundation of aggressive atavism: a set of retrograde policies that threaten to drag us
back to a time of deep hate, violence, and division. In addressing issues of social justice, the
presentation will focus on broader systems-level questions: What does it mean to have a moral
revolution of values? How can love, mercy, and compassion defeat hate, violence, and division?
How can we promote an edifice in which basic humanity is at the heart of our value system? How
can we bring these values inside the classroom, and into the streets of activism and justice? To
substantiate these claims, empirical evidence—K-12 and higher education, criminal justice,
workforce, and health—will be shared. Data will be disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and
age. “Critical Humanity, Social Justice, and a Moral Revolution of Values” aims to shed light on
the marginalized and vulnerable, as we mobilize, together, for a truly inclusive and just America.
10
DR. PETER T. KEO’s research explores the intersection of
race, equity, diversity, and inclusion for marginalized
communities, with a particular focus on Asians and Pacific
Islanders (APIs). His work empirically and theoretically
interrogates the causes and consequences of inequality and
the forces that shape structural barriers to educational and
workforce entry. A second-generation Cambodian-American,
his work is influenced drastically by personal experiences of
war, genocide, trauma, concentrated poverty, racism, social
injustice and neighborhood violence. He is particularly
interested in understanding how these factors combined
impact learning at school, and the pathways for success or
failure across multiple contexts.
Peter is currently Fellow, RISE Boys and Men of Color
Project, at Dr. Shaun R. Harper’s Center for the Study of Race
and Equity in Education, University of Pennsylvania. In that capacity, he is building the RISE
Data Center, a national public portal which disaggregates data for Asians and Pacific Islanders,
Blacks, Latinos, and Natives. Prior to that, he was Research Associate at the Metropolitan
Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools, New York University
Steinhardt. While at NYU, Peter worked with Dr. David E. Kirkland, and was Principal
Investigator (PI) of a research study that explored K-12 educational outcomes for low-income
Southeast Asian American students. He also co-authored a manuscript with Dr. Pedro Noguera
entitled, From the Margins to the Center: Unpacking the Experiences of “Asians” in Black and
Brown Discourses on Masculinity.
Peter also has over 15 years of experience in international development. Among other
responsibilities, Peter served as Vice President of the University of Cambodia, and Senior
Adviser to Dr. Kol Pheng, the former Minister of Education, Kingdom of Cambodia, in which
they co-authored a draft of the Education Law for the Kingdom. He joined CambodianAmerican expatriates in rebuilding the country after decades of war and genocide. Dr. Keo
holds a doctorate of education from Teachers College, Columbia University, a master of
education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a Master of Arts (social
sciences) from The University of Chicago. He is the proud son of Cambodian political refugees.
11 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
BREAKOUT SESSION 1
FRI, 1:00PM-2:15PM
PANEL & YOUTH // Youth Practitioners on Youth Advocacy and Organizing
These panelists bring a wealth (truly amazing, wow!) of experience, research, and/or advocacy in
the field of youth organizing. This panel should lift up their experiences, research, and
perspectives in a way that informs audience members' efforts to organize and empower youth.
WOOHEE KIM, CARLOS ROJAS, KEITH CATONE, ALAIN BALAN
Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
YOUTH // To You, 85 Cents Might Not be A Lot...
This session will argue for using the classroom as a space that promotes civic education and
engagement through writing. Students will lead this session, outlining the issues that they have
identified within their community experiences with public transportation and sharing their
findings and concerns to inform the city-wide campaign to improve the MBTA by 2040. They will
also discuss their experience writing letters to the community & working with 826 Boston to
publish a book. This workshop will illustrate how public organizations set up systems for soliciting
community input that perpetuates "fixes" that continue to serve certain populations more than
others.
NAKIA HILL, TARA BARNES, JEREMIAH E. BURKE H.S. & O’BRYANT H.S. STUDENTS
Gutman Conference Center Area 3
Putting Racism on the Table: Experiencing a Racial Equity and Cultural Competency Training and Case
Consultation Model for Child Welfare (and other) Practitioners
This interactive workshop will describe and demonstrate a Case Consultation/Training Model
developed for Child Welfare workers in New York City that assists practitioners in developing key
skills related to addressing racial disproportionality in child welfare services. While the audience
for this training model were child welfare social workers and supervisors, this model also has
implications for the training of educators and other health/mental health professionals who
intend to engage children and families of color in settings where race, language and culture are
linked to disproportionality and achievement gaps. This workshop will describe the model and
present the findings of a mixed methods study of the model. In addition, the workshop will
include a participatory simulation of the case consultation model which will engage audience
members in analyzing a case through a racial justice framework.
ANTHONY DE JESUS, JOAN ADAMS, JANE HOGAN
Gutman 302
12 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
They are NOT TOO YOUNG!: Dismantling Racism in the Elementary School through Deliberate
Curriculum
Come hear about how one elementary school moved from "talking about race" with adults to
implementing a K-5 curriculum that explores the themes of identity, bias, power, privilege,
oppression, racism and critical next steps. Explore with them the challenges of pervasive
unconscious bias even in very young children, and the work they have done to bring teachers
and parents together to create structures for change.
MARY ANTÓN, EFE IGHO-OSAGIE, BETH GLICK, BIANCA PERDIZ, JAIME SMITH
Gutman 303
Indigenous Resistance: From AIM to #NoDAPL
One visible movement for racial justice in the past year has been the water protectors’ fight
against the Dakota Access Pipeline. This workshop will explore the methods of resistance and the
legacy of indigenous resistance in the United States. We will discuss methods used to obstruct
this project that threatens to take a disproportionate toll on indigenous communities.
DANIELLE LUCERO, MEGAN RED SHIRT-SHAW, KACI MORGAN (MCCLURE)
Larsen 203
Leading While Black and Brown: Staying Woke in the Workplace
Beyond discrimination and access, one challenge Students of Color face when transitioning into
the workplace is balancing how to use one’s power and platform to advocate for their community. It is crucial that Professionals of Color find their voice and become agents of change in ways
that affect and empower Communities of Color. In addition to classroom teaching and school
leadership, there are several roles within the field of education which People of Color are occupying in order to obtain decision-making power, influence policy, and push for conversations
around racism. By attending this panel, current HGSE students, alumni, and community members
will hear about recent alumni’s experiences defying and dismantling oppressive structures as
Professionals of Color in K-16 spaces. By discussing their work in different education sectors,
they aim to inspire attendees to continue doing the good, yet challenging work of defying and
dismantling systems of oppression once they leave HGSE.
DEREK TERRELL, ELAINE TOWNSEND UTIN, ESTEFANIA RODRIGUEZ,
TONI MORGAN, TRACIE JONES
Larsen G08
BREAKOUT SESSION 1 13
Dare to Run: Queer Women and Women of Color Running for Public Office
The purpose of this session is to identify the unique challenges for women of color and queer
women interested in running for political office, and develop strategies for overcoming those
challenges. While there are resources increasingly available for women interested in being public
servants, there is a gap in information available for queer women and women of color, who are
likely to face specific challenges related to their social identities. We hope that audience
members will actively engage in discussions and utilize the resources we share in order to leave
the session with a better understanding of how to organize in favor of queer women and women
of color interested in running and perhaps even take interest in running themselves.
COURTNEY WOODS, RAVEN STUBBS
Gutman 440
Sharpening Your Listening Skills to Build Your Work As An Activist and Leader
Who are you as a listener? Deep listening, not a passive modality of acceptance or nonresistance, is actually a tool for intensifying political consciousness and vitality: unearthing
deeper levels of self-realization and capacity to "see" The Other, in ourselves and in each other.
In this highly-interactive, practice-oriented workshop, activists and leadership coaches Kirsten
Olson and Valerie Brown will lead you through an exploration of your own listening lineage: how
to prepare for and enter deeper levels of listening; and how to use your body as a fine-tuned
instrument for listening. In these profoundly challenging and tumultuous times, we explore how
listening can "raise the heat" in defining root causes of oppression, and makes these elements
more explicit and mobile in uprooting the causes of oppression. We welcome all, especially
youth leaders, and anyone who is interested in deepening their listening practice. Let's learn
together.
KIRSTEN OLSON, VALERIE BROWN
Longfellow, Eliot Lyman
PHOTO INSTALLATION // Orangeburg: Educational Realities in Rural America
Through this photo-documentary of students from Orangeburg, South Carolina, I hope to
offer a glimpse into what it means to grow up as a student of color in a town where the
confederate flag is still flown in the town center and where segregation is reflected in the
composition of the schools and the layout of the town. I invite the audience to reflect on
the resilience and strength of these students, and the ways in which they choose to become
agents of change.
CHLOE SUBERVILLE
Gutman Library Lobby
14 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
BREAKOUT SESSION 2
FRI, 2:30PM-3:45PM
YOUTH // Restorative Justice in Schools: A Practical Approach to Programming
Given the historical trend in the United States in which schools have replicated societal
inequities regarding people of color and their treatment and over-representation in
disciplinary systems, the need to re-frame, restructure, and relate differently to students has
come to the forefront of our work in urban education. In order to better support our youth,
Prospect Hill Academy uses a restorative approach to school culture and discipline to
dismantle these oppressive structures and discontinue the school-to-prison pipeline. This
session will begin with a 45-minute presentation on the theory and implementation of
Restorative Justice in schools using our experience at Prospect Hill Academy, an urban charter
school in Cambridge, MA. The case study will be followed by a Q&A segment with a panel
consisting of students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Both sections will address our
approach to the design shifts, curricular developments, and community education necessary
for this transition, and, most importantly, our struggles and triumphs along the way to a truly
restorative school culture.
CHRISTINE DOUGLAS, J.D. FERGUS
Gutman Conference Center Area 3
YOUTH // Art(ticulating) Activism: Art and Activism in Our Everyday Lives
How do we define, defy, and dismantle oppression through performance art? This panel
seeks to understand the connection between art and activism as mutually reinforcing
aspects of our everyday lives. As both producers and consumers of performance art, we
will discuss the intermingling of the two and how this connection can create opportunities
for resistance against oppression. The panelists will not only discuss the relationship
between art and activism in their lives, but they will also share their works of music and
poetry that embody their resistance against oppression.
LUMUMBA SEEGARS, JONATHAN MENDOZA, CLINT SMITH, AMANDA TORRES
Larsen 203
15
YOUTH // Educating within the Pipeline: Systems, Practices, and Levers
The Juvenile Justice Education Research Initiative’s discussion has three goals: To introduce the
students and teachers within the bottleneck of the school to prison pipeline, i.e., juvenile justice
facilities; to define what is known and unknown regarding the best methods of effective
instruction within juvenile justice settings; and to begin to dismantle root causes obstructing
positive educational outcomes for incarcerated and transitioning youth. Incarcerated students
are often overlooked or misrepresented in conversations about improving educational outcomes,
as are their teachers in conversations about educator experience. The range and nature of the
learning and social-emotional needs of children within this setting presents problems unique to
juvenile justice facilities, and must be addressed with strategies specific to the setting itself. This
panel will highlight the need for research, support, and a professional learning community for
juvenile justice educators, and will encourage attendees to contribute to it through scholarly
work, education, and advocacy.
PAMELA MASON, LYNETTE TANNIS, RIA FAY-BERQUIST, HERNAN CARVENTE, BRIDGET CICHELLO
Larsen G08
"Auctioneer": The Education of a Black Woman Auctioneer Whose Ancestors Were Auctioned
This session will integrate the presenter’s perspective (in artistic form) as an African American woman
circumnavigating the globe by ship, serving as an auctioneer, and confronting historical oppression
and present-day implications of oppression. A critical lens will be used to discuss what it means to
identify and defy systemic oppression of people of color using creative work/art forms. The power of
poetry/spoken word and other creative art forms to defy oppression in education and promote
liberation should not be underestimated.
SUZANNE M. CADE
Larsen 106
A Seat at the Table: Testimony from Teachers of Color
It is rare when testimony and personal narrative are used to create concrete strategies for
administrators, district leaders, and white colleagues hoping to recruit and retain educators of
color. We hope that by asking educators and students of color about their lived experience in the
classroom we can identify common needs and frameworks for supporting and empowering
minority teachers. In our workshop, “A Seat at the Table: Testimony from Teachers of Color,” we
will share the experiences of teachers and students of color from urban districts in the Northeast in
order to identify how to recruit and retain our communities in the classroom.
ESTEFANIA RODRIGUEZ, EDVERETTE BREWSTER
Gutman 303
16 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Public Boarding Schools: Rethinking Education for Underserved Populations
This workshop will look at the Urban Boarding School Model as a dismantling mechanism.
Specifically, participants will analyze whether this model is an alternative to the conventional way
we do education in under-served neighborhoods and whether or not the model has the propensity
to better serve students in under-served neighborhoods by mitigating and controlling external
stressors.
JASMINE PORTER-RALLINS
Gutman 440
Your Personal System of Self-Sabotage and How It Maintains White Supremacy
You have the perfect, personal system for preventing yourself from achieving the thing(s) you
deeply want to achieve – be they professional or personal outcomes. In this session, we’re going to
make that invisible system more visible, and then we’re going examine in what ways your system
links to and maintains white supremacy tendencies, archetypes, culture and behaviors. Together,
we will dig into your system through personal and group reflection, and then use the power of
collective thinking to determine possible implications, action steps, and solutions for dismantling
our systems and rebuilding them in more liberatory ways.
LAURA BREWER
Larsen 214
Looking Back and Looking Forward: Portrait(s) of Action
In this panel, we intertwine two portraits of young people as they chart their own paths into and
through social justice work. The authors each wrote a portrait of a young person grappling with
questions of identity and belonging in a context of transnationalism, and of the process of
navigating personal and community expectations to find a path into social justice. We plan to copresent the portraits with the two subjects of the portraits, and will share more details of their
names and biographies during the panel.
CELIA REDDICK, VIDUR CHOPRA, ANASTASIA AGUIAR
Gutman Conference Center Area 1
Tools of Strength
This interactive workshop will examine how voices and powerful identities of oppressed people
have been silenced through systemic oppression of altering our self-image, self esteem, and
historical narrative. We will learn core practices for examining identity, and building community
and strategies for organizing through creative arts, multi-media, and theater. We will both
demonstrate and engage in ways that we can defy and disrupt that silence and replace it with true
voices of s/heroism. We will move through ways to create a safe space to process topics of race,
discrimination, divestment, and genocide through playing games, visual text analysis and Theater of
the Oppressed. We’ll explore how Social Justice Pedagogy can help us examine the power in our
personal identity that can equip us with tools to re-tell OUR story in larger society.
NAMIBIA DONADIO, AUGUSTINA WARTON
Longfellow 320
BREAKOUT SESSION 2 17
BREAKOUT SESSION 3
FRI, 4:00PM-5:15PM
YOUTH // High School Youth Do the Knowledge and Kick the Truth
In this workshop/panel high school students from the Met School in Providence, Rhode Island
will address issues surrounding racism and systems of oppression. They will discuss and
demonstrate how such challenging topics can be turned into deeper learning, organization and
action. Both Sabrina Smith and Danique Dolly will highlight the structures and plans created in
order to allow students to turn moments of awareness, learning and expression into authentic
action.
DANIQUE DOLLY, THE MET STUDENTS, SABRINA SMITH
Gutman Conference Center Area 1
YOUTH // Anti-racist Student Activism: A Toolkit to Ignite Institutional Transformation
This workshop is facilitated by undergraduate and graduate students from Boston College who
have developed the Eradicate Boston College Racism Movement, an anti-racist student
activism group that strives to combat institutional racism at Boston College and beyond. Using
interactive methods, we will leave participants with a clearer understanding of institutional
racism, including its causes and manifestations, and share our experiences, challenges, and
victories as anti-racist student activists. In response to requests from students at various
institutions across the U.S., members of Eradicate will explore how students can replicate
work like ours on their campuses. We developed the Eradicate Institutional Racism Campus
Toolkit as a resource for initiating anti-racist activism on college campuses and want to
provide participants with this resource so as to support them in addressing the institutional
oppression that exists at their own institutions.
KIMBERLY M. ASHBY, CHAD OLLE, AMELIE DAIGLE, CHRISTINA (TT) KING
Gutman Conference Center Area 3
18 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
YOUTH // Threads of Social Justice: Finding Your Political Voice
While it is of no surprise that Black people have been subjected to a multitude of injustices within
the short span of American history, the current social climate underscores the lack of progress that
has been made as it pertains to issues of race. The recent election has brought White America’s
deeply rooted feelings about race, religion, sexism, immigration, as well as their disdain and
resistance to change to the forefront. Instead of crumbling under the weight of this newfound
awareness, it is imperative that there be productive outlets to channel this energy of resistance.
This workshop will serve as a tool to help you understand the complex tapestry of your own
personal and cultural identity within the current political climate. Drawing on your creative minds
and unique ideas, this workshop will ask you to reimagine a political future where your voice carries
this nation forward. Using fabric and basting glue, participants will design a social justice quilt block
reflective of the people, places, and things they have witnessed and want to change moving
forward.
SARA TRAIL, JULISSA MUNIZ
Gutman Conference Center Area 2
Beyond “Competency”: Designing and Advocating for Cultural Inclusion in the Arts
This collaborative workshop is for artists, educators, activists, and professionals looking to
implement inclusive practices in arts and cultural organizations. In this interactive learning
experience, participants will work together in small groups to co-develop tools and resources to
address challenges and needs for cultural inclusion in individual and organizational practice.
Facilitators will also share resources they have designed to serve as tools in their work.
ALYSSA MACHIDA, LINDSEY TOMIKO KUNISAKI
Longfellow 320
Reimagining Integration: How We Can Get More and Better Diverse and Equitable Schools
In 1974, Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote “Unless our children begin to learn together, then there
is little hope that our people will ever learn to live together.” Those words feel prophetic in a
country with increasingly resegregated schools, routine police violence against people of color, and
escalating racist political rhetoric. Reimagining Integration: Diverse and Equitable Schools (RIDES) is
an HGSE project which aspires to find ways to increase the number and quality of the settings
where “our children can learn together” so “our people [can] learn to live together.” Part 1 of this
interactive session will introduce tools and frameworks for building diverse and equitable schools
that are committed to dismantling racism; Part 2 will share powerful journey stories from teachers,
administrators, and parents from local schools working with these tools.
LEE TEITEL, STACY SCOTT, REGINALD JOHNSON, MARY ANTON-OLDENBURG,
UCHE AMAECHI
Longfellow, Eliot Lyman
BREAKOUT SESSION 3 19
Teach Truth to Power: Critical Consciousness in Classrooms of Privilege
This session will focus on defying and dismantling oppression by developing critical consciousness
in children who occupy identities of privilege and who, without intervention, can maintain and
protect structures and belief systems which (deliberately or not) benefit their lives while
maintaining the gross inequities of American society. Workshop participants will explore the myth
of white saviorism and the “paradox of suffering” and apply these concepts to the need for
teaching antiracism to students of privilege. I will make an argument for why more actively
antiracist teachers should consider working in communities of privilege and describe my initial
steps in designing curricula in world and U.S. histories that provide windows and mirrors for my
students and promote reflection on identity, privilege, and power. I will also describe the unique
challenges of doing so in private educational settings, as well as how I plan to teach social studies
under the Trump administration. Finally, participants will engage in an open discussion of their
experiences of teaching truth to power. This is an opportunity for reflection, feedback, and
building support networks.
MARK NELSON
Gutman 303
Salem High Speaks Out!
The unit’s culminating project is a poetic presentation of their “family trees,” inspired by Clint
Smith’s poem “Counting Descent.” Their presentation reflects on how their family histories and
current lives intersect with the ramifications of immigration and systemic racism.
ABIGAIL WILLIAMSON, ANDRE FONSECA
Larsen 106
PANEL // Narratives and the Power of Voice
This panel focuses on the sharing of stories as a method for organizing, inspiring, and acting to
subvert oppression. The panelists are educators and activists who work with youth and/or adults
to uplift voices as a primary means to undo oppression.
SARA AHMED, SARAH MATSUI, MK KIRIGIN, PEGGY CHU
Larsen 203
20 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Disproportionality in Special Education: A Call to Action
Culturally and linguistically diverse student populations are disproportionately classified
as having a disability, placed in segregated special education classes, and involved in
disciplinary actions such as suspensions and restraints. This panel of researchers and
practitioners brings their rich and diverse experiences in local, state, and national
educational leadership, research, and non-profit work focused on the civil rights of
students classified with a disability. Panelists will define the issues and discuss their work
to dismantle the negative effects of a policy meant to protect the civil rights of students
with disabilities.
LEANNE TRUJILLO, LAUREN KATZMAN, RON WALKER, ALEXIS MORGAN,
CAROLINE E. PARKER
Larsen 214
HGSE School Leadership Program Presents: Using Photography to Explore Racial
Identity
Based on the work of Alexandra Lightfoot, earlier this year students from the School
Leadership Program created a photography exhibit that showcased both how they
understand their racial identity, and an imagining of how their life would be different
had they been born a different racial identity. In this session, participants will be walked
through a similar process in which they will learn about the project and how it could be
utilized in schools or other educational spaces as a means to explore identity and start
discussions about race. Finally, participants will start to draft their own photography
project based on both their real and imagined racial identity.
SAM SPENCER-MURA, RANDI STONE, VANESSA BISHOP,
ALICIA GAYNOR, FELICIA AIKENS
Larsen G08
BREAKOUT SESSION 3 21
ASKWITH PANEL
FRI, 6:00pm-7:30pm // Askwith Hall
TAKE ACTION: ADVANCING JUSTICE AND EQUITY IN
TODAY'S CLIMATE
Dr. Arshad I. Ali, Michael Blake, Albino Garcia,
& Simran Noor
Moderator: Christina Villarreal
Dismantling oppressive structures in society and in education requires not just
passionate individuals, but also coordinated action. We have seen that citizens who
take action and work for social justice can change the status quo. As part of the
annual Alumni of Color Conference at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, we
endeavor to highlight the role of activism and other critical issues in education that
effect students, teachers, and educators in communities across our country. How can
we develop a deeper understanding of the roots of oppression and the current
democratic processes? How, within those contexts, can we build systems of
sustainable activism to ensure lasting change? Like an efficient assembly process,
systems of activism require each individual to play a unique role and to make a
specific contribution. Panelists will share their personal and professional experiences
with activism and collective action, as illustrations of how to forge a legacy through
activism. By bringing together policymakers, scholars, researchers, and practitioners
in dialogue around this important issue, social justice advocates will learn new ways
to leverage their practice in mobilizing current and future social justice efforts in their
communities.
22 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
DR. ARSHAD I. ALI is Assistant Professor of Educational
Research at the Graduate School of Education and Human
Development at The George Washington University. Dr. Ali is
an interdisciplinary scholar who studies youth culture, race,
identity, and democratic engagement in the lives of young
people. Dr. Ali is currently completing a book manuscript
examining the cultural geography of Muslim student
surveillance in the United States. Dr. Ali is also co-editor of the
forthcoming volume At War: Challenging Racism, Militarism, and
Materialism in Education (Fordham University Press), a collection
of essays commemorating the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr.’s speech, “Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break the
Silence.” His research has been published in Anthropology and
Education Quarterly, the International Journal of Qualitative
Studies in Education, and Critical Education. He is the recipient of
the 2016 Early Career Award from the American Educational
Research Association (AERA) Research on the Education of Asian
and Pacific Americans Special Interest Group. He served as Scholar-in-Residence at Harvard College in
2016. Prior to pursuing a Ph.D, he served as the founding director of MAPS, a university based outreach
and political education program working with students in South Los Angeles. He currently serves as an
executive board member for the People’s Community Organization for Reform and Empowerment.
ASSEMBLYMAN MICHAEL BLAKE is the
representative for the New York City District 79 in the
Bronx, New York. His goal is to transform South Bronx
into the urban metropolis of the world. He set records
for his fundraising campaign for his first election and
Assemblyman Blake has recently won reelection in his
district. He was able to bring even more attention to
the problems with profiling due to an occurrence with
the NYPD. He wishes to strengthen women and
minority-owned businesses so that they have great
access to capital, contracting, and opportunities. He has
worked for the organizations Green for All and Operation Hope. Blake was the Iowa Deputy Political
Director for Barack Obama. He is currently running a campaign to be the Vice Chair for the Democratic
National Committee.
23 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
ALBINO GARCIA is the Founder and Executive
Director of La Plazita Institute. He describes himself as a
BTDT— “Been There, Done That.” He brings a remarkable
range of life and program experience to his role, including
being a consultant, trainer, and program manager for over
two decades. In 1990, Garcia founded Rivals in the
Redwoods, a gang intervention program out of Salinas,
California. In 1992, he created the GANAS, or Gang
Alternative North and South. Following that, in 1994, he cofounded the “New School” in Watsonville, California to give
youth a second chance for education in an alternative
setting more conducive to their needs. Garcia also has years
of experience as the lead program coordinator at Barrios
Unidos in Santa Cruz, California, where he initiated school
based, community-based, and institutional programming. He has served as an education trainer and community
liaison for the Center for Learning and Public Service at the University of New Mexico and was Deputy Director
of Training at Youth Development Inc. in New Mexico. In 1995, he was one of 41 people chosen for the
prestigious Kellogg Fellowship, which awarded him $130,000 over three years to make a difference in
addressing major social issues in the United States and beyond. As a Fellow, Garcia had the opportunity to
travel extensively, meeting with noted thinkers and leaders; including President Jimmy Carter, Bishop Samuel
Ruiz, the Dalai Lama, Parker Palmer, and many others. He visited and participated in forums around civic
engagement, leadership, and global issues in Brazil, Turkey, Greece, Peru, Guatemala, Belize, South Africa,
Mexico, and cities across the United States. He is currently the Quad-Chair in JDAI Reducing Racial & Ethnic
Disparities, an Ordained Native American Chaplain at the New Mexico State Prison in Santa Fe and at the
Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center, as well as a Certified Acudetox Specialist at La Plazita
Institute.
Today, Albino Garcia Jr. serves as the executive director of La Plazita Institute, Inc., a non -profit
grassroots organization in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He directs the organization to engage New Mexico’s
youth, elders, and communities in comprehensive, holistic, and cultural approaches. Designed around the
philosophy of “La Cultura Cura” or culture heals, La Plazita’s programs engage the people they serve to draw
from their own roots and histories to express core traditional values of respect, honor, love, and family. In his
work, he is a trainer and consultant, teaching skills and workshops in Drug and Gang Intervention, Cultural
Diversity, Community Services, Racial Equity, Juvenile Justice Strategies, Agricultural Programming, Traditional
Healing Practices & Services, Multiple Worlds Curriculum, Boys & Men of Color Programming, Rites of Passage
Programming, and Community Organizing.
Garcia and La Plazita Institute have been recipients of several different awards, including those from
the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement at the 22nd Annual NACOLE Conference, the
National Association of Social Workers for outstanding contributions and exemplary leadership in serving New
Mexico’s children and families, and the Gloria J. Jenkins Award for Outstanding Contributions to Juvenile
Detention reform by a Community Organization from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Most recently, the work
done by Garcia and La Plazita Institute has been published in a newly released book titled Overcoming
Disparity: Latino Young Men and Boys, edited by Frank de Jesús Acosta and Henry A. J. Ramos. Garcia is a
committed member of his community. He has participated in numerous networks and professional affiliations,
including the Latino Network, Violence and Injury Prevention Project, Educational Leadership Institute,
Community Action Network, and many more. He is Apache and Chichimeca in origin and is recognized as an
outstanding leader and spiritual activist in Albuquerque.
24
SIMRAN NOOR is Vice President
of Policy & Programs at the Center for
Social Inclusion. In this role, Noor’s
primary responsibilities include
programmatic strategy, planning,
implementation, staffing, and
evaluation. In her role, Noor leads CSI’s
Program team which, in turn, ensures
the delivery and impact of CSI’s
programs. In her past work at CSI as
Coordinator of Advocacy and Director of
Policy & Strategy, Noor designed and
facilitated dozens of workshops in
collaboration with national and local
community and government groups focused on applying a structural race analysis as well as
specific policy issues including transparency and accountability, transportation, food and health
equity. In addition to workshops, Noor is a regular speaker on issues of racial equity, frequently
featured at conferences and public meetings. During her time at CSI, Noor has worked directly
with local and national advocates across the country, including in Detroit, New York City, and
Seattle. Prior to joining the Center for Social Inclusion, Noor served as Program Manager at the
W.K. Kellogg Foundation where she worked with the Food, Health & Well-Being, Racial Equity,
and Civic & Community Engagement portfolios. She also served as Program Assistant at the Annie
E. Casey Foundation, where she supported the Policy Research and KIDS COUNT teams. Noor is
deeply committed to youth development, having worked in organizational development and as
frontline staff for the Holistic Life Foundation, a Baltimore-based yoga and mindfulness program,
and as a language arts and community engagement teacher for middle school students through
the Middle Grades Partnership. Noor has written and commented for a variety of media including
the Detroit Free Press, The Times-Picayune, and City Limits Magazine. She also has been a
featured panelist on MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry. She holds a dual bachelor’s degree in
American Studies and Political Science from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and a
dual master’s degree in Public Administration and Social Policy from the University of
Pennsylvania.
CHRISTINA VILLAREAL currently serves as the Director of History and Social Studies
Education and Lecturer of Education at Brown University and also continues in her role as an
Adjunct Lecturer at HGSE teaching the Ethnic Studies & Education course. She holds a B.A. in
Ethnic Studies from UC Berkeley, an Ed.M. from HGSE (’05), an M.A. in Ethnic Studies from SF
State and is presently pursuing her Ph.D. in Social Studies Education at Teachers College, where
her research focuses on exploring racial literacies and humanizing pedagogies in secondary social
studies classrooms through portraiture. Previously, Villarreal spent nearly a decade teaching and
learning with the beautiful youth of East Oakland, California.
25 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
SATURDAY PANEL
Define, Defy, and Dismantle Oppression Through Sports, Entertainment &
Activism
Saturday, 9:00am-10:15am // Larsen G08
Professional athletes and entertainers are often criticized and even threatened
when they use their visibility to advocate or protest. For people of color, there
are tangible consequences for speaking out against injustice: the potential of
losing jobs, sponsorships, etc. What risks are associated with defying and
dismantling oppression from your vantage point?
JOISELLE CUNNINGHAM is a federal policy advisor, award-winning educator and
consultant who has worked in the United States, Europe and Latin America. Joiselle
currently serves as a Senior Advisor and consultant at Teach For Sweden, Empieza por
Educar as well as other social impact and education organizations. Joiselle recently
served in the Obama Administration as a Special Advisor in the Office of the Secretary at
the United States Department of Education and managed educator engagement for the
White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans. Joiselle has
previously worked with several education organizations, including the New York City
Department of Education, KIPP and America Achieves. In 2009, she contributed to and
was featured in Steven Farr’s Teaching as Leadership, and highlighted specific strategies
used to help students to achieve at high levels. During that same year, Joiselle was
awarded Teach For America’s Sue Lehmann Excellence in Teaching Award. Joiselle
recently contributed to Rick Hess’ Cage Busting Teacher, highlighting specific stories in
teacher leadership and advocacy. Joiselle studied Public Policy and Economics at Duke
University where she received the Reginaldo Howard Memorial Scholarship for academic
achievement. She holds an MST from Pace University and is currently a doctoral
candidate at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, where she continues her work
with social impact organizations within the Harvard community.
26
BRANDON MARSHALL is a linebacker for the Denver Broncos. He led the
Broncos in tackles in 2014 and was part of the Super Bowl winning squad in 2015. He
was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada and majored in criminal justice at the
University of Nevada. Since signing with the Broncos in 2013, he has received the
Darrent Williams Good Guy Award for exemplifying enthusiasm, cooperation, and
honesty when dealing with the press and was named a Broncos Community
Ambassador in 2015. Off the field, Mr. Marshall is an advocate for survivors of
domestic violence and has hosted several clothing drives for domestic violence
shelters in Denver. After receiving criticism for kneeling during the National Anthem,
Mr. Marshall set up a meeting with the Denver Police Chief. After that productive
conversation, Mr. Marshall has continued to be involved in efforts to improve
community policing and eliminate police violence against people of color.
DAVID J. JOHNS is a consultant, thought leader and the former executive
director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans
in the Obama Administration. The Initiative works across federal agencies and with
partners and communities nationwide to produce a more effective continuum of
education programs for African American students. Prior to joining the Department,
Johns was a senior education policy advisor to the Senate Committee on Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) under the leadership of Sen. Tom Harkin, DIowa. Before working for the Senate HELP committee under Chairman Harkin, Johns
served under the leadership of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass. Johns also was a
Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Fellow in the office of Congressman Charles
Rangel, D-N.Y. Johns has worked on issues affecting low-income and minority
students, neglected youth and early childhood education and with Historically Black
Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). His research as an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow
served as a catalyst to identify, disrupt and supplant negative perceptions of black
males within academia and society. Johns is committed to volunteer services and
maintains an active commitment to improve literacy among adolescent minority
males. Johns obtained a master’s degree in sociology and education policy at
Teachers College, Columbia University, where he graduated summa cum laude while
simultaneously teaching elementary school in New York City. He graduated with
honors from Columbia University in 2004 with a triple major in English, creative
writing and African American studies. Johns was named to the Root100 in both 2014
and 2013, selected as a member of the Ebony Power 100 in 2015 and received an
early career award from Columbia University, Teachers College in 2016.
27 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
BREAKOUT SESSION 4
SAT, 10:30AM-11:45AM
YOUTH // ARTIVISM: Using the Arts As Social Activism
Many people think of the arts in terms of performances of music and dance or exhibitions of
artwork. But the arts have the power to amplify voices and can be tools for social activism and
social justice. In this session, you will be introduced to the field of Artivism, learning how to use the
arts as a form of social activism, and see how artists around the country are raising awareness of
issues and policies via the arts. We will highlight the work of citizen artists in Memphis and across
the country.
LINDA STEELE
Larsen G01
YOUTH // Following the Rulebook: An Interactive Performance Experience on Society's Expectations of
Youth
The Boch Center Teen Leadership Council will present their original performance that unpacks
social expectations of youth. Workshop participants will have the opportunity to step into the story
with the Teen Leaders through an interactive workshop that examines and redefines the
expectations of youth. This youth-led performance and workshop will also include an overview of
this unique school-year creative youth employment program.
KELLY PRESTEL, AYSHA UPCHURCH
Larsen G06
YOUTH // Social Location Space: Interactive Environments for Learning and Dialogue about Structural
Oppression and Intersectional Vulnerability
This interactive, youth-led workshop explores whether the installation of a dynamic learning space
about power, structural location, and social transformation yields productive outcomes in young
peoples' and adults' analysis and practices to address intersectional vulnerability. In this workshop,
young people from two communities, Pittsfield, New Hampshire, and Providence, Rhode Island,
invite you experience their co-created social location space. They will share their insights about how
this pedagogical tool has created unique opportunities for youth and adults across both a rural,
predominantly white working class community and an urban, working class community of color to
think together about effective approaches to learning and dialogue about structural oppression and
intersectionality.
KRISTY LUK, THAINA MERLAIN, LATIFAT ODETUNDE, MISSY OTTUN, SYDNEE GROSS, COURTNEY
BUTLER, JESSICA RAINVILLE, AMBER RICCI, PEGAH RAHMANIAN,
COURT KING, MOLLY MESSENGER, CHRISTOPHER MARCOTTE
Larsen G08
28 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
The Role of Teacher Residency Programs in Recruiting, Training, and Retaining Teachers of Color
This panel brings together five Black teachers to discuss their experiences working in historically
under served schools and communities in Boston and Oakland. The educators on this panel work
inside the education system to dismantle oppressive educational structures that marginalize
students of color and unduly burden teachers of color. What unites the educators on this panel is
their connection to two urban teacher residency programs aimed at diversifying the teacher
workforce—the Boston Teacher Residency & Aspire Teacher Residency (CA). Panelists will examine
the ways residency programs seek to recruit teachers of color and rigorously prepare them for
successful careers in the classroom.
NICHOLAS WHITE, VITALIS OBIDI, WISLINE FRANCOIS, CHIMA IKONNE,
ADDIS SUMMERHILL, CHRISTIAAN SUMMERHILL
Longfellow 320
Community Walks: Student-Led Professional Development
Community walks are a much-cherished tradition at Oakland International High School, in which
students and parents lead our staff through a day of learning and exploration throughout the city.
These professional development experiences allow teachers to learn about our families'
immigration experiences, needs, assets, and supports directly in the community. Every organization
has the capacity to coordinate community walks in their own cities, which allow for incredibly deep
and authentic learning experiences for both students and educators. In this workshop, you will
learn about the structure we use to organize our community walks, and you will begin planning
your own community walks with others in your region.
SAILAJA SURESH
Gutman 303
Education, not Incarceration: Using Higher Education to Challenge Mass Incarceration
U.S. Prison populations have grown at an alarming rate of more than 500% over the past 40 years.
There are currently more than two million people incarcerated in the United States. Education is a
vital component of successful rehabilitation and largely contributes to increasing rates of attrition
in recidivism. This workshop will generate dialogue about current criminal justice & legislative
practices, barriers faced by formerly incarcerated populations (FIPs) as they re-enter society, and
provide an opportunity to hear first-hand personal narratives from FI individuals whose lives have
been transformed by education.
BETO VASQUEZ , JOHNNY PEREZ, LOUIS REED, SANDY LOMONICA, RYAN RISING, RAIYAH HARRIS
Larsen 106
BREAKOUT SESSION 5 29
Defining, Defying, and Dismantling a “World of Whiteness”: Search, Hiring, and Climatic Strategies
of a Diverse, Inclusive Social Justice-Focused Education Faculty
In this session, four faculty members in the Department of Educational Administration at The
University of Texas at Austin (dubbed the “Brofessors”) discuss how one academic department
employed scholarship, practice, and vision to defy structural oppression in the academy by
intentionally diversifying the faculty on the axes of race, ethnicity, and gender. We describe how
pre-search, recruitment, and search processes place inclusion at the forefront and purposefully
disrupt processes that favor upper middle class, cisgender, straight, White men in faculty search
processes. Finally, we will present strategies that keep our collective vision of an inclusive
scholarly community centered on social justice central to our work as scholars, community
members, and practitioners.
RICHARD J. REDDICK, MARK ANTHONY GOODEN, TERRANCE L. GREEN,
JOSHUA CHILDS
Gutman 440
Resilience to the Front: Using Trauma-Informed Practices to Uplift LGBTQ Youth
“There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.” - Audre
Lorde. LGBTQ youth, particularly of color, face diverse and significant challenges to thriving in
traditional school settings. In this session we will explore the devastating developmental impacts
that violence and trauma can have on children and youth generally, while integrating what we
know about the layered experiences of LGBTQ+ youth of color. We will use tools that expand
thinking on violence, trauma, gender identity, sexuality and resilience-building to practice traumainformed approaches to working alongside LGBTQ+ youth.
KRYSTAL TORRES-COVARRUBIAS, MIE FUKUDA
Longfellow 228
PANEL // Resisting Institutional Oppression
American public institutions, from schools to the courts, hospitals to legislatures, are heirs to a
racist past. This panel brings together several experts with insights as witnesses to institutional
inequity, and experiences resisting and dismantling oppressive actions and policy.
LOKELANI CUMMINGS-WATANABE, AISHATU YUSUF, BRIANNA BAKER,
JENNIFER MOORE, VINCE MARIGNA, KELVIN ROLDAN
Larsen 203
30 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Muslim Youth Voices: Marginalization and Resistance
This presentation raises awareness about the impact of Islamophobia on Muslim
youth in the U.S. Through counter-narratives, Muslim students define themselves
and defy dominant narratives. Participants will develop strategies to support
Muslim youth, dismantle stereotypes, and create equitable learning environments
for students of all identities.
BARBARA SAHLI
Larsen 214
Breaking Walls : Empowering Our Undocumented Community
Our session seeks to create awareness around the various assets and challenges in
undocumented communities, especially for youth in the education system.
Through a conversation with a panel of professionals, educators, and students we
will support participants to ask questions, participate in roundtable discussions,
and share their own experience. Ultimately, our goal is to facilitate network and
coalition building to continue our conversations outside of the session by sharing
resources and creating a supportive network.
WILLIAM Y. MARROQUIN, NAOMI FORTIS,
FEDERICO BUSTAMANTE, STEPHANY CUEVAS,
DIANA ORTIZ GIRON, ARTHUR MOLA
Longfellow, Eliot Lyman
BREAKOUT SESSION 5 31
SATURDAY KEYNOTE
Saturday, 1:00pm-2:00pm // Askwith Hall
DR. RHONDA Y. WILLIAMS is a professor in the History
Department at CWRU. She is the Founder and Director of the Social
Justice Institute at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), and the
Founder and Director of CWRU’s Postdoctoral Fellowship in African
American Studies. She is an accomplished author of two single
books: Concrete Demands: The Search for Black Power in the
20th Century (2015) and the award-winning The Politics of Public
Housing: Black Women’s Struggles against Urban Inequality (2004). Her
research interests include the manifestations of race and gender
inequality on urban space and policy, social movements, and illicit
narcotics economies in the post-1940s United States. Dr. Williams is also
the co-editor of the Justice, Power, and Politics book series with
University of North Carolina Press, as well as the co-editor of Teaching
the American Civil Rights Movement (2002).
As a former journalist, educator, researcher, and scholar-activist,
Dr. Williams has worked to broker understanding of issues regarding
marginalization, inequality, and activism. She explains her teaching
philosophy this way: “It is my belief that the practice of history should be
part of a broader liberation project—one that arms students and scholars with the necessary analytical
tools and information to combat social, cultural, and political myths and to address historical and
contemporary issues.” Also known as “Dr. Rhonda,” she has most recently been engaged in local
community efforts focused on police and criminal justice reform.
32 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
BREAKOUT SESSION 5
SAT, 2:15PM-3:30PM
YOUTH // Exploring The Masks that Show up in Today's Classrooms
Through presentation, hands on activities, and film, this workshop will introduce participants to the
world of gender support groups, with a focus on young men. Participants will experience The Ever
Forward Club’s signature workshop, Taking off the Mask, which provides a space for educators to
get real about the challenges that they are facing as educators in this work. We believe that there
needs to be shift in our educators that will help them deepen their connection to themselves, their
teams, and the youth they work with.
ASHANTI BRANCH, CHRISTIAN GREEN, DANA WILLIAMS, DESHUN J. SMITH
Larsen G01
YOUTH // The "Voiceless" Heroes: Creating Equity through Restorative Practices The Alliance School
Way
The circle keepers from The Alliance School of Milwaukee will share their understanding of
Restorative Practices (RP) as well as their school's model of RP via a video that they co-created.
They will also facilitate circles so that everyone will have the opportunity to share their stories and
articulate their understanding of and experience with oppression, share ways that they work to
defy it, and create a concrete plan to partner in dismantling structural oppression using non-violent
action.
HEATHER SATTLER
Larsen G06
YOUTH // Navigating Intersectionality through Spoken Word Poetry
In order to fully own our narratives and use them for positive social change, we must be able to
navigate the intersections of our identities. Join us in diving into intersectionality through the art of
spoken word. We will define intersectionality for ourselves, study spoken word poetry, and tap into
our own intersectionality by writing our own spoken word poem. At the end, we will commit to
bringing this knowledge and experience to our own communities!
TONY DELAROSA, EMMANUEL OPPONG-YEBOAH
Larsen G08
33 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Building Place, Juntos: Creative Placemaking for Equity
This workshop investigates how the practice of Creative Placemaking can be a tool for social and
restorative justice. Using the case study of Activating Vacancy Arts Incubator the workshop will
demonstrate how the practice of partnering artists with municipalities and local stakeholders can
be a powerful resource for capacity building in marginalized communities. The session will also
include exercises and advice for how artists, planners, and educators can work together to build
more just and equitable communities.
CHRISTINA PATIÑO HOULE
Gutman 440
Teaching Resistance and Possibility
Without question, critical pedagogy and education calls upon teachers to be activist agents of
change. Subsequently, in this historical moment, we need teachers to be activists as much as ever.
This panel/workshop session seeks to complicate, but also concretize, teacher activism by offering
various perspectives and analyses of teacher activist pedagogy drawn from empirical studies of
teacher praxis. We will not offer any prescribed formula for teacher activism (and contend that
there is none) but instead, will paint multifaceted layers of pedagogy that undergird teachers’
efforts to change and transform the world. Through a series of short academic paper presentations,
breakout sessions, and large group discussion and debrief, participants will be able to reframe and
rethink the role of teachers as activists and understand new ways in which to think about the ways
teachers can defy structural oppression and dismantle oppressive structures.
KEITH C. CATONE, CHRISTINA “V” VILLARREAL, NATALIA ORTIZ
Longfellow 228
A Problem That Need Not Be: Reversing Underachievement through a Pedagogy of Confidence
This interactive workshop is designed to engage educators interested in pedagogical activism in
conversations about practice. We will explore and engage in topics such as the role of race and
systemic racism in the academic underachievement of students of color in urban schools, the
power of mediation as a tool for reversing the underachievement of students of color, and
practical, research-based practices and strategies designed and selected for engaging students in
the learning process.
STEFANIE B ROME
Longfellow 229
BREAKOUT SESSION 6 34
Voices of the Other: A Program That Empowers Student Voice Through Dialogue and Action Based on
Social Justice
Voices of the Other is a social justice program that provides students a space to discuss pertinent
issues that affect them and their reality, commit to service and empowerment, and challenge
microaggressions, all while breaking down barriers and social perceptions. Students from a diverse
suburban high school and urban magnet high school come together to discuss the need for this
program in their respective educational settings, while evaluating its impact on their social,
emotional, and academic growth.
MARYAM WASSIL-WARDAK, ASIA CLAREMONT
Larsen 214
Boston Basics: A Community-Approach to Closing Achievement Gaps Before They Start
School-achievement related skill gaps between racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups are
apparent in national data by the time that a birth cohort is two years old. Research has established
a number of early childhood experiences that differ by group and contribute to these gaps. In
response, a public-private partnership, led by four men of color in Boston including the Harvard
Kennedy School’s Ron Ferguson, has spearheaded an initiative called the Boston Basics Campaign
(www.bostonbasics.org). It is designed to use an “ecological saturation” approach to reach parents
and caregivers with key insights and examples of ways to ensure their children get off to a strong
start.
In this workshops, we will familiarize participants with the research on early achievement gaps, an
overview of the Boston Basics campaign, and solicit participants’ feedback and their ideas for
additional ways to achieve the goal of ecological saturation in Boston or their own communities.
Participants would also be invited to consider ways in which they might like to be involved in the
Boston-based project or in emerging efforts around the country.
RON FERGUSON, SARAH MCLEAN
Gutman 303
Femmes Only: Unearthing the Power Hidden in Healing
This workshop is tailored to exploring how femmes of color successfully navigate oppressive spaces
without compromising sense of self and sense of safety. While engaging in performative arts such
as theatre, spoken word, and music, Femmes Only strives to emphasize the importance of
community healing through unbridled artistic expression.
MORGAN BUTLER, AYANNA FLORENCE, MICHELLE MUTISYA
Gutman Conference Center Area 3
35 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Dismantling Classroom Oppression Through Equity-Oriented Pedagogies and Universal
Design for Learning Strategies
This program introduces 10 research-based strategies that instructors can apply to increase
equity, access, and inclusion in college classrooms. We will also provide various ways to
integrate access technologies into curricula to support diverse students’ success. These
strategies originate from an equity-oriented pedagogy that hybridizes democratic,
multimodal, universal design for learning, assessment-driven, and game-based instruction.
Since 2010, we have applied design-based research methodologies to formulate, evaluate,
and refine this pedagogy. Ongoing mixed-methods studies have identified 10 teaching and
assessment strategies that helped instructors address diverse students’ needs, expand
students’ learning preferences, and earn average 7/7 course ratings. These practices have
increased equity by improving 1000+ students’ engagement, collaboration, positive psychosocial variables (e.g., resilience, hope, confidence, sense of self-efficacy, self-concept), and
academic performance. In addition, this equity-oriented pedagogy has helped reduce
stereotype threat and increase a greater sense of community and inclusion in the
classroom.
ANDREW ESTRADA PHUONG, JUDY NGUYEN, EILEEN BERGER, DENA MARIE, SHAHANA
FAROOQI, CLAIRE BANG, MATTHEW COURTNEY
Gutman G05
Leveraging Your Voice for Equity: Equity Narratives
Equity Narratives provides a space for individuals to reflect on and share their personal
stories of racial equity and inequity with one another. Over the course of our workshop,
you will engage in facilitator led discussions on the challenges of tackling inequity. You will
learn how to create and develop narratives for leadership for racial equity. You will also
leave this session feeling more connection to your individual purpose in equity-based
initiatives; feeling a deeper connection to others, and feeling better prepared to engage in
leadership with others to dismantle inequity.
DARNISA AMANTE, DAISY HAN, ELIZABETH ALBANY
Larsen 203
BREAKOUT SESSION 6 36
The Learning Lab: An Innovation Course that Promotes Black Women’s Self-Agency
In this workshop, we are defining oppression as others setting limitations on the personal
aspirations of Black girls and women by making them believe they have no power, skills, or
resources to affect change. The facilitators will walk the audience through these tools that are
approaches that can be used in the classroom, community organizing and afterschool learning
programs to dismantle the oppressive structures that are designed to impede Black girls and
women. It is also important to note that these tools are applicable to a wider range of
marginalized people who are silenced. The facilitators of this workshop will speak through the
lens of Black Women while encouraging audience members to think about developing selfagency within their respective target group.
MORISKA V. SELBY, ARAVIA PATTERSON, DE'ASIA RHYNE, CHARELL WILLIAMS,
DEJA WILLIS, DENEISHA GILLARD, JOURDAN MONTGOMERY, TYARA BROWN
Larsen 106
In Solidarity: The AAPI Struggle and Building Coalitions of Color
This session is designed to define the obstacles that AAPI individuals face in higher education,
whether they are students or working professionals. While also increasing awareness of how
detrimental the model minority myth is to AAPI communities and of ways to overcome this
stereotype. Lastly, this session seeks to identify actionable plans for AAPI to overcome the
inequalities they face in higher education and different ways the AAPI can support other
communities of color so that we all can be uplifted.
NELSON PHAM, FRANCES NAN
Longfellow, Eliot Lyman
Transforming Hostile Campus Climates to Healing Spaces: Utilizing Performance Art as a
Therapeutic Intervention to Cope with Race-Based Trauma
This interactive workshop experience will (1) address the needs of students of color at PWIs who
experience race-based trauma and offer concrete research findings that highlight the importance
of acknowledging the effects of race-based trauma on students of color and (2) facilitate
discussion about using creative expression to cope with race-based trauma experiences.
SHAKIERA CAUSEY, AMANDA BARNES, DOMONIQUE EDWARDS, TIERA MOORE, NEISHA
WASHINGTON
Gutman Conference Center Area 1
37 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
BREAKOUT SESSION 6
SAT, 3:45PM-4:45PM
YOUTH // Closing and Reception
This space consists of a celebration of youth participants at AOCC 2017. Dr. Gretchen
Brion-Meisels, youth advocate and Harvard Lecturer, will prompt youth and adult
allies to reflect on their takeaways. To close out, The youth of Boston Pulse will
present a spoken word performance alongside educator and Boston Pulse founder,
Tony De La Rosa.
DR. GRETCHEN BRION-MEISELS, TONY DE LA ROSA, YOUTH OF BOSTON PULSE,
MANYA SINGH, ALAIN BALAN, STEPHANIE FERNANDEZ, KACI MCCLURE
Longfellow 319 & 320
Anti-Yellow Racism, A Seductive Shape-Shifter
Anti-yellow racism obscures its ugly face with distracting masks: funny ones, seductive
ones, and ones that lull us into a false sense of comfort and privilege. As a JapaneseAmerican man, teacher educator, and a yellow education scholar, I often experience and
observe this deception. In this workshop, we will collaborate to bring form to the elusive,
shape-shifting system of anti-yellow racism. We will then examine three root causes of this
system: (1) the muddled image of anti-yellow racism; (2) the seduction of racist love; and
(3) how yellow lacks staying power on the color palate of race discussions.
ROI KAWAI
Larsen 203
38
A Romantic Revolution: Dating, Courting, and Marriage in Communities of Color
During this highly-interactive workshop designed to challenges our notions about love, romance,
and activism, participants will explore the role of “love” in the destruction and restoration of the
family unit. Participants will also examine how the rediscovery and use of “love” in communities of
color can lead to our social, economic and political advancement.
SHARNETTA & KHALID DAVID
Longfellow 228
The Role of Mentor Teachers in Increasing Teacher Diversity in Boston Public Schools
In the last five years, the Office of Human Capital (OHC) in Boston Public Schools (BPS) has made a
concerted attempt to recruit and retain teachers of diverse backgrounds that reflect the ethnic,
linguistic, and cultural backgrounds of students in BPS. One of the programs that came from this
initiative is the Accelerated Community to Teacher (ACTT) program which was created under the
premise that the next generation of BPS teachers are in our classrooms or are presently in the
homes and community organizations in the City of Boston. As members of the ACTT design team
and current classroom practitioners, we understand the importance of providing our students with
an exceptional education. To this end, it is necessary to prepare, place, and support talented
teachers in classrooms who come from as many different cultures and heritages as their students.
YARIMA ARIZA, MAURA DONLAN, CHIMA IKONNE, JULIAN A. MCNEIL
Larsen G06
¡Si Se Puede! Elementary Students Learn To Be Social Justice Activists
Elementary school students can and should be prepared to participate in the struggle for justice.
Chris Hoeh will share his extensive experience developing his second grade students for this role.
The workshop will use the example of an engaging, multi-disciplinary, project-based, inquiry-driven,
thematic social studies curriculum on the theme of Cotton Clothing: From Seed to Shirt, that
promotes academic development, the skills of the social sciences and illuminates stories and
organizing strategies of people overcoming oppression and securing human rights. Participants will
learn more about this model curriculum, receive an overview with sample lessons, see and hear
examples of student work, as well as explore ways to incorporate social justice activism instruction
in other topics.
CHRIS HOEH
Larsen G08
39 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
Race to the Bottom: A Critical Lens on the Disparity of Literacy Education
Though literacy is often reduced to a handful of decontextualized cognitive skills, the
persistent marginalization of minority students in ELA classrooms across the United States
suggests the inadequacy and, indeed, harmfulness of such formulations. This workshop, led
by three middle school educators, will deal with the subject of literacy in two major ways:
first, it will share how traditional approaches to literacy education within the United States
perpetuate opportunity divides between minority learners and their White peers; second,
it will use case studies to prompt workshop participants to rethink how marginalized
students engage with the processes of reading and writing. We hope this session will
encourage participants to reframe the experiences and practices of underserved students
as assets rather than hindrances to the process of literacy acquisition and consider ways in
which literacy education may be used as a powerful lever for social change.
ANKHI THAKURTA, AISHA BEVERLY, CHLOE DIAMOND
Larsen 214
Black Girls and the School-to-Confinement Pipeline: From Theory to Practice
The experiences of black girls mirror social constructions of our society, especially whiteness,
femininity, and heteronormativity. In this session, we will identify ways that black girls have been
filtered into the justice system, and discuss policy reform, community organizing, and pedagogical
strategies for closing the black girls’ school-to-confinement pipeline.
ADELIA WILDER-DOCTOR, COURTNEY WOODS, LORRY HENDERSON,
JOCELYN JOHNSON
Gutman 303
Whose Promise? Resisting Institutional Erasure Through the Arts
In October 2015, five students enrolled at the Harvard Graduate School of Education challenged the
university’s commitment to diversity and inclusion. What became known as “the counter
exhibition” initiated a student-led movement to resist the institutional erasure facilitated by a
photography exhibition celebrating 62 writers, 58 of whom were white (and mostly men), heralded
as some of “the most celebrated contributors to our literary heritage.” The panel, comprised of
three of the original five students, will present a short documentary chronicling and exploring the
events, as well as the context in which they took place. Panelists will then discuss and field
questions which aim to explore art as a means of resistance and the ways in which narrative,
representation, and imagination act as sites of radical inquiry, accountability, reclamation, and
healing.
MICHAEL LEE, SHANAE BURCH, TONI MORGAN
Larsen 106
BREAKOUT SESSION 7 40
Understanding Tribal Sovereignty & Reclaiming the Narrative in Education
What is the experience of being a Native student in a majority non-Native classroom? How does it
feel to be given the choice of either dressing as an “Indian” or a “Pioneer” when your class is
preparing to “celebrate” the anniversary of your state’s land run of 1889? For many students, this is
not a cause for celebration, but a reminder of a deeply unjust and tragic event. Stemming from our
experience as Oklahomans, this session seeks to stimulate discussion and greater understanding of
Tribal Nations as economic powerhouses and progressive educators, including efforts to create
better education experiences for Native students in majority non-Native school settings. During this
session, we invite you to help shape the future of an online simulation with the intent of helping
students understand the roots of oppression and prompting their engagement in current efforts to
further social justice.
ALLISON MEE, ELIZABETH PAYNE, EMMA KINCADE, MASHELI BILLY
Longfellow 229
PANEL // Key Issues for Social Leaders of Color
Organizational leaders of color working in the social sector possess a variety of
unique assets - culturally, personally, collectively - while facing particular challenges
given the reality of racism within systems of power (i.e. school districts, non-profits,
government/civic organizations, agencies, funders, etc.). This panel will lift up the
voices of effective leaders of color - entrepreneurs, executive directors, managers,
principals, district leaders, elected officials, and/or emerging leaders - who have
wisdom to share about navigating the perils and opportunities for people of color in
social sector work.
DEAWEH BENSON, R.D. LEYVA, NELSON PHAM, ALISON WELCHER,
ZEINA FAYYAZ KIM, ALYSHA ENGLISH
Gutman 440
PANEL // Intersectionality and Multiplicity of Identities
This panel will discuss the intersections of identity. Race, gender, sexuality, and many
other forms of identity mix to make us who we are. And then, within those identities,
there is often more complexity than singular adjectives like "cisgender", "multiracial",
or "gay" may suggest. It's messy, and it's who we are. Join for this panel to hear
reflections from educators and activists on intersections of identity.
MARISSA ALBERTY, AMIR WILLIAMS, TATIANNA CANNON, BEN WILD, ASIL YASSINE,
BEN WEST, ALEJANDRO GARCIA FERNANDEZ
Gutman G05
41 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
CLOSING PERFORMANCE AND
KEYNOTE
Saturday, 5:00pm-6:30pm // Askwith Hall
DR. BETTINA L. LOVE is an award-winning author and Associate
Professor of Educational Theory & Practice at the University of Georgia. Her
research focuses on the ways in which urban youth negotiate hip -hop music
and culture to form social, cultural, and political identities to create new and
sustaining ways of thinking about urban education and intersectional social
justice. Her research also focuses on how teachers and schools working with
parents and communities can build communal, civically engaged, anti -racist,
anti-homophobic, and anti-sexist educational, equitable classrooms. For her
work in the field, in 2016, Dr. Love was named the Nasir Jones Hiphop Fellow
at the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard
University. She is also the creator of the hip-hop civics curriculum GET FREE.
In April of 2017, Dr. Love will participate in a one-on-one public lecture with
bell hooks focused on the liberatory education practices of Black and Brown
children.
Dr. Love is one of the field’s most esteemed educational researchers
in the area of hip-hop education for elementary aged students. She is the
founder of Real Talk: Hip Hop Education for Social Justice, an after school
initiative aimed at teaching elementary students the history and elements of
hip-hop for social justice through project-based learning. Dr. Love is a sought
-after public speaker on a range of topics including: hip -hop education, Black
girlhood, queer youth, hip-hop feminism, art-based education to foster youth civic engagement, and issues of
diversity. In 2014, she was invited to the White House Research Conference on Girls to discuss her work focused on
the lives of Black girls.
Dr. Love is one of the founding board members of The Kindezi School, an innovative school focused on small
classrooms and art-based education. Finally, she is the author of the book Hip Hop’s Li’l Sistas Speak: Negotiating Hip
Hop Identities and Politics in the New South. Her work has appeared in numerous books and journals, including
the English Journal, Urban Education, The Urban Review, and Journal of LGBT Youth. In 2017, Dr. Love
edited a special issue of the Journal of Lesbian Studies focused on the identities, gender performances, and
pedagogical practices of Black and Brown lesbian educators. She is currently working on her second book, We Want
to Do More Than Survive: A Pedagogy of Mattering.
PERFORMANCE // How I Got Over: A Cultural Journey of Faith
Dancers of the Mojuba! Dance Collective will present a piece from our cornerstone production “How I Got Over A Cultural Journey of Faith,” which chronicles the story of African people from the motherland, through the
middle passage, slavery, post emancipation, civil rights and present day in America, and the collective faith in
God and in one another by which we have persevered and continue to overcome as a people. Through the pieces
in the production, dancers bring to life practices used in oppressive institution of slavery, such as the abuse of
black bodies, raping of women, separation of families, shackling of feet and hands and banning of drumming and
dance, and demonstrate the resilience and creativity with which our ancestors resisted and created new forms of
music, means of protest, expressions of faith and standards of beauty that paved the path of progress.
ERRIN BERRY AND THE MOJUBA! DANCE COLLECTIVE
42 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
In 2003, the Alumni of Color Conference emerged from the shared vision of a small
group of educators convening to create a safe space for discussing race and equity
issues. Since then, AOCC has evolved into an annual signature event that attracts
hundreds of students, faculty members, alumni and scholars from all corners of the
country. Throughout the past decade, AOCC has served as an important venue for
scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to engage in meaningful dialogue about
educational equity.
This year, we would like to express our gratitude and appreciation for the following
individuals and organizations, without which AOCC 2017 would not have been
possible:
CASEY BAYER
KEVIN BOEHM
PATRICIA BROWN
ANISSA CONNER
CAROLYN CROISIER
ALEX GALINDO
MARITZA HERNANDEZ
SARAH HOCKING
TRACIE JONES
JODIE SMITH-BENNETT
DR. LIZ THURSTON
STEVE RAGNO
IMAN RASTEGARI
DEAN JAMES RYAN
SARAH TIMMINS
MATT WEBER
HGSE DEVELOPMENT AND ALUMNI RELATIONS OFFICE
HGSE OFFICE OF STUDENT AFFAIRS
HGSE OPERATIONS
REBECCA’S CAFÉ
Logo Design: RICARDO JARA
Program Design: GRACE SHIN
43
AOCC FOUNDERS
In the last 15 years, the landscape of HGSE students and faculty has transformed to
better reflect the diversity of the changing face of the population. While there is still
much work to be done, in honor of our 15th Anniversary, we would like to recognize
the hard work and efforts of the AOCC founders that helped bring us here today.
Their courage and successes have inspired us all:
ANJALI ADUKIA
ELIZABETH HOLLIDAY
RICHARD REDDICK
LAURA CARMEN ARENA
KEISHANA HOWSE
LOUIE F. RODRIGUEZ
WANDA BAILEY
CAROL HSIAO
JEREMY BROWN
JULIA HUNTER CAVANAUGH
TARA BROWN
KEISHIA KEMP
DORINDA CARTER
SUN KIM
CAROL STRICKLAND
MARTHA CASAS
ERIN LEWIS
PHITSAMAY SYCHITKOKHONG
ANISHA DESAI
KIA MARTIN
ROBERT FOWLER
ROYSTONE MARTINEZ
KHADIJAH SALAAM
STEVE SONG
FRANK TUITT
DYAN WATSON
ANTONIO GARCIA
FRANK GAYTAN
VICTOR MILNER
MARCIA WELLS
KATRINA MITCHELLE
HOPE WILLIAMS
LAMONT GORDON
AARON PARK
DAREN GRAVES
HEATHER HARDING
WENDY PEREZ
44 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
AOCC 2017 STEERING COMMITTEE
ALFATAH MOORE TRI-CHAIR
DOCTORATE OF EDUCATION
is an educator, entrepreneur, and researcher who is passionate about reading and the
mechanisms by which it develops for atypical readers. He is interested in how cognitive
neuroscience, developmental psychology and learning theory inform the
conceptualization of automaticity and the interventions to support it for struggling
readers. Al is Founder & Executive Director of Acelin Learning Solutions, a company that
provides support to students who struggle academically; in particular, those with reading
disabilities. Acelin provides programs for students and families, and training and
professional development to school teams. Al has also served as Executive Director for
Johns Hopkins University’s Talent Development Secondary, an organization that improves
education for students in low-performing schools through research-based reform and
student supports. Al managed Talent’s programs and operations in the Boston region,
including city-wide implementation of Diplomas Now, a $30 million DOE study. Al is
Harvard Presidential Fellow and has earned distinctions such as The 40 Under 40 Award for Extraordinary Philanthropic and
Professional Work and the Harvard Graduate School Leadership Institute fellowship. Al holds a Master of Education Degree
from Harvard University and obtained his undergraduate degree, as well as a Master of Science Degree, from the School of
Public Affairs at American University in Washington, D.C.
KIMBERLY OSAGIE TRI-CHAIR
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP DOCTORATE
studies Education Leadership as a doctoral candidate at Harvard, focusing on
developing educators' ability to teach and lead for racial equity. Formerly, she worked in
various capacities at Relay Graduate School of Education. Kimberly joined the organization
in 2010 as designer and instructor of the Diversity in the American School and Child
Development graduate courses, creating practical learning experiences for new teachers to
both discuss and implement culturally responsive pedagogy. She led professional
development stateside and abroad, from Harvard conferences to South Africa's Lebone
College. In 2012, Kimberly found the organization's partnership with the New York City
Teaching Fellows program, focusing on supporting secondary teachers in traditional district
schools. In two years, she oversaw the program's tripling in size, serving more than 200
new teachers in nearly 100 district schools across three boroughs.. In 2014, Kimberly’s role
expanded to Associate Dean – continuing to teach while developing a team of 15 faculty
members. Before joining Relay, Kimberly began her career in education in Harlem – first as a middle school Humanities
teacher at a traditional public school, then as a Founding Reading Department Lead and high school Reading teacher in the
charter arena. Kimberly received a Distinguished Majors B.A. in Political and Social Thought, English, and French from the
University of Virginia, and holds a Master of Science in Teaching Adolescent English. She is a proud Nigerian American, a lover
of Louisiana cuisine, and a member of the inaugural Pahara-Aspen Nextgen Fellow cohort.
45
RASHAIDA MELVIN TRI-CHAIR
MASTERS OF EDUCATION
is from Atlanta, Georgia and received a B.S. in Human Development and Family Sciences
from the University of Georgia. After joining Teach For America, she moved to North
Carolina where she taught elementary, middle, and high school students. Rashaida
received a M.A. in Middle Grades Education from East Carolina University and has
experience founding a school and creating curriculum. Currently, Rashaida is pursuing an
Ed.M. in School Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Rashaida is a
proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She enjoys dancing, reading, watching
movies, exploring new cities, and spending time with family and friends. Rashaida is
honored to serve HGSE as a chair for the 15th Annual Alumni of Color Conference.
TONY EMERSON
PROGRAMMING & PROPOSALS COMMITTEE LEAD
Born into foster care, Tony Emerson was introduced to social systems built for the
structurally vulnerable at the earliest possible age. When reflecting as a young adult on his
childhood and the opportunities he faced therein, Tony discerned that his purpose was to
fight to produce just, equitable opportunities for those like him. This in mind, he became
an educator directly after graduating from college and has spent the last decade leading
students, teachers, and communities in areas hardest hit by legacies of inequity and
discrimination. His professional roles have focused on the intersection of racial justice and
classroom pedagogy, recruiting and developing teachers of color, advocating for equitable
policy change, and most recently, workforce development for young people of color. The
structures and spaces for his work may vary - from schools to non-profits to social
enterprises - but the core values of equity, leadership, and progress continue to unify
Tony’s efforts behind the central task of social justice.
MANYA SINGH
YOUTH EMPOWERMENT AND ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE LEAD
is currently in the Ed.M. Prevention Science and Practice program at HGSE. Manya’s
passion for youth empowerment came from her pre-HGSE work in an education non-profit
– Minds in Motion – where she designed and implemented STEM workshops for lowincome and First Nations/Aboriginal schools in Calgary, Canada. This year, she is incredibly
excited to lead a committee that is dedicated to providing spaces for youth empowerment
and engagement within an integrated adult-youth conference format. In her spare time,
Manya loves to explore the outdoors through hiking, camping, and kayaking.
46 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
CRYSTAL PALMERO WAR
AWARDS COMMITTEE CO-LEAD
developed a fire for social justice and education as a teenager while attending an all-girls
private preparatory school. It was here she discovered the “gap” in education and
opportunity that exists along lines of race, socioeconomic status, and zip code. The
disparity between her public and private education experiences felt unfair and
unacceptable to Crystal, and she knew this was something she was committed to changing.
Crystal started her career in Washington, DC with Teach for America. Though many kids
thrived in her middle school classroom, she witnessed other students entangled in unfair
disciplinary policies that kept them out of school and negatively impacted their grades,
investment, and self-esteem. This drove her to seek a seat in leadership as the founding
dean of school culture of Achievement First Endeavor Elementary. Using her position of
influence, she worked hard to promote positive student-teacher relationships and support
the systems that increased student engagement and investment. Crystal’s school quickly
gained recognition for top academic achievement, strong parent satisfaction, and high teacher retention. Her unique
approach to school culture has become the blueprint for deans across the network and has been replicated for existing and
new schools alike. Most recently, Crystal led a network of 30 schools as the director of school culture. In two years of network
leadership, suspensions dropped by 50% while student enrollment grew by 12%, to serve over 10,000 students. Crystal is
currently a doctoral candidate in the Doctor of Education Leadership Program at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education.
JOISELLE CUNNINGHAM
AWARDS COMMITTEE CO-LEAD
is a federal policy advisor, award-winning educator and consultant who has worked in the
United States, Europe and Latin America. Joiselle currently serves as a Senior Advisor and
consultant at Teach For Sweden, Empieza por Educar as well as other social impact and
education organizations. Joiselle recently served in the Obama Administration as a Special
Advisor in the Office of the Secretary at the United States Department of Education and
managed educator engagement for the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence
for African Americans. Joiselle led diversity and inclusion policy and launched Our Students,
Our Leaders an initiative dedicated towards closing the demographic gap between
education leaders and American public school students. This initiative brought together
Chancellor of the District of Columbia Public Schools, Kaya Henderson, former Secretary of
Education Arne Duncan, Secretary John King, and over 200 national leaders to develop and
implement solutions. The initiative helped to create or support initiatives to increase the
number of senior leaders of color in organizations across the country, including philanthropic organizations and large
education nonprofit organizations. She holds an MST from Pace University and is currently a doctoral candidate at Harvard’s
Graduate School of Education, where she continues her work with social impact organizations within the Harvard community.
47
SERGIO MARIN
FINANCE & FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE LEAD
Sergio Marín Luna is the eldest son of immigrant parents and was born and
lived most of his life in Los Angeles. His experience growing up in one of the
largest multicultural cities in the United States has helped shape his social
viewpoint, and his work in education, human relations, and social justice.
Sergio has served as a program manager with Public Allies-Los Angeles, a
program specialist with the National Conference for Community and Justice
Education Department, and as a classroom educator at the intermediate
level. Before coming to Harvard, he focused on educational justice as
Assistant Director at the Draper Center for Community Partnerships at
Pomona College where he directly supported and collaborated with the
college community and a diversity of local youth and communities to advance sustainable change.
He has also designed and implemented engaging diversity and equity programs for various organizations in
the public and private sector, such as the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations, Shakespeare
Center Los Angeles, Leadership Development in Interethnic Relations Program, UC Riverside, the Museum of
Tolerance, Outfest LA, and the City of Culiacán (Mexico) Mayor’s Office. Program topics have included race,
age, gender, im/migration, the arts, leadership development, bias, privilege, and dynamics of oppression.
Throughout his career, Sergio has maintained an unwavering commitment to dialogue, education, and
systemic change.
KIDUS MEZGEBU
EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE LEAD
Kidus Mezgebu is passionate about identifying behavioral
interventions that help address critical issues in education and in
organizational efficiency. At the Harvard Graduate School of
Education, Kidus works as a faculty assistant and is currently an Ed.M.
candidate in the Education Policy and Management program. He has
done research on the Stereotype Threat and the effects narrative
constructions of group history have on intellectual performance.
Kidus is currently doing a study on the effects of loss and gain framing
on charitable giving. Kidus attended Denison University as a POSSE scholar and currently serves as on the
Board of the POSSE Foundation as well as the Haddis Girma Continuity Foundation.
48 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
AKIESHA ORTIZ
KEYNOTE SPEAKER COMMITTEE LEAD
As a teacher who dreamed of giving back to students with a similar upbringing to her
own, Akiesha Ortiz began working in Durham Public Schools immediately after graduating
Magna Cum Laude from North Carolina Central University. During her time with this
system, she held her students to high expectations as she thrived by writing grants for
original programs that she felt her students could be enriched by, earned a spot as a
Fulbright Educator taking a professional sojourn to Japan, and was honored by her peers
with the title of Teacher of the Year for her school. She later transitioned to Wake County
Public Schools where she held various leadership positions for her school community. At
one point, she was honored to be in the top 10% of the state behind the success of her
student's assessment scores. During her time with DPS, she became connected to Harvard
Graduate School's READs Summer Literacy Program in collaboration with Communities in
Schools as a pilot teacher. A short while later, the READs team recruited her to be a model
for their teacher training videos, a teacher trainer, a family engagement educator, and a consultant. She is currently in the
Human Development and Psychology program under the Child Advocacy Strand earning her Ed.M. degree.
AOCC 2017 COMMITTEE MEMBERS
RICARDO JARA
IHUDIYA OGBONNAYA-OGBURU
MONIQUE HALL
SOPHIA POMPILUS
KEYA WONDWOSSEN
MANISH PARMAR
SHIRLEY MAK
TONY VO
SANTI DEWA AYU
ALETHEA AMPONSAH
KENIA ALFARO
RUBY BHATTACHARYA
ALEJANDRO GARCIA FERNANDEZ
ALYSHA ENGLISH
GRACE SHIN
NAOMI FORTIS
PEGGY CHU
TAAHA MOHAMEDALI
ALAIN BALAN
ALICE LIOU
ANYA ROSENBERG
ASIL YASSINE
AUTUMN WHITE EYES
KACI MCCLURE
SARA TRAIL
STEPHANIE FERNANDEZ
SHEREE DIAL
RAVEN TUKES
ADELIA WILDER-DOCTOR
JEFF BAKER
49 AOCC // 2017 DEFINE. DEFY. DISMANTLE.
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2
3
1. Longfellow Hall
Askwith Hall
Eliot Lyman (2nd floor)
2. Larsen Hall
3. Monroe C. Gutman Library
Gutman Conference Center
Gutman Café
alumniofcolorconference.org
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