A Way Forward: Second Annual Conference on Zoom

For an informational video about the conference click here

2020 A WAY FORWARD: HEALING RACISM VIRTUAL CONFERENCE
DISMANTLING INSTITUTIONAL RACISM-FOCUS ON EDUCATION AND ACADEMIA

Increasingly we are living in a dystopian world and I want to live in a utopian world. I see no way of getting there except by first eliminating racism as manifest in all the institutions in our exosystem and the cultural definitions and values of our macrosystem. So, I wonder how might we in our various microsystems buoy one another, cooperating through the mesosystem to make change happen? Change is the goal of these A Way Forward: Healing Racism Conferences to dismantle the institutions of racism, the systems of oppression that arguably hamper the development and productivity of every last one of us. Today we will have the opportunity to employ emergent strategies to identify ways in which each of us, as stakeholders in the educational infrastructure of our country can identify and take steps to impact these systems, today, the educational system. In coming conferences we will address food deserts, housing, lending, environmental racism and criminal justice, including policing.

Today we will be able to empathize through the magic of 3-D technology with individuals living through racism in various situations. If we but will, we can remember how our history led to these scenarios with these outcomes. Racism is real; it has morphed through the ages in this land created to provide “equality and justice” for all. The promise of universal “life, liberty and happiness” has not been kept.

We will also learn that the trials and tribulations of racism persist in the 21st century America within the hallowed walls of academia. The campus climate in schools as well as colleges and universities diminishes the opportunity for learning and for teaching to the best of one’s ability. Unless we are ideologically committed to a belief that everything is just fine, and if we are open minded with open eyes and ears, then we know there is room for improvement in everything from building construction and textbooks to campus climate and staffing and everything in between in some cases, as we learned in the 2019 A Way Forward conference.

Even teachers in training experience racism, a travesty that fortunately does not dissuade all those who desire to teach from their calling. If we are as brave as those who dare to describe their reality, perhaps we can face that reality and strategies for bringing about revolutions in our practices can emerge from our dialogues.

Therefore, join us in the spirit that inspired the creation of our democratic nation, to wrestle with what we have wrought, and endeavor to bring us closer to the dream of a more perfect union.

Peace, light, and love,
Sandy Boyd, 2020
Conference Coordinator

2020 A WAY FORWARD: HEALING RACISM VIRTUAL CONFERENCE
DISMANTLING INSTITUTIONAL RACISM – 2020 FOCUS ON EDUCATION/ACADEMIA
PRESENTED BY THE CENTER FOR THE HEALING OF RACISM ON ZOOM
Saturday, October 17, 2020
8:30 am-4 pm

8:30 a.m. Welcome and Opening remarks – Cherry Steinwender, Executive Director of the Center for the Healing of Racism, and Larry Payne, Host of Dialogue Houston

Morning — Virtual Empathy application breakouts
9:30 – 11:30 a.m. Each participants will be able to view and dialogue in small groups about 2 of the three applications. Facilitators from The Center for Healing Racism will be in the Breakout Sessions.

Presenters:

Ruben Duran is Senior Developer, Web, Center for Learning Innovation CE XR Lab & Studio,
Director Center for Learning Innovation, Central Region
Edutube/Kaltura Administrator
Faculty, Digital Communications

Lynden Marshall is Lab Asst. II Teaching Learning Center

Traveling While Black is a cinematic VR experience that immerses the viewer in the long history of restriction of movement for black Americans and the creation of safe spaces in our communities. Visit historic Ben’s Chili Bowl and join patrons as they share and reflect on their experiences. Confronting the way we understand and talk about race in America, Traveling While Black highlights the urgent need to facilitate a dialogue about the challenges minority travelers still face today.

Messy Truth – is aVR Experience is an original virtual reality series that puts viewers in the shoes of people from other walks of life, in communities that may be unfamiliar to them. The Messy Truth VR Experience adds immersive VR to similar, but all new, stories, to create a powerful feeling of empathy and “being there.” Users have described viewing the episodes of The Messy Truth VR Experience as being visceral and eye-opening.

The Displaced— Nearly 60 million people are currently displaced from their homes by war and persecution- more than at any time since World War II. Half are children. This VR journey tells the story of three of them.

11:30 – noon LUNCH BREAK for everyone – Stay connected and join us for a Musical interlude during lunch with Blues artist, Sweet Mama Cotton.

Afternoon
noon – 1:30 p.m “Perchance” Sisters en la Lucha

Many Faculty of Color (FOC) find themselves seeking out other FOC for support in academic and social spaces. While whom they meet across their path may seem “perchance”; their active seeking for allies and one another is very intentional. This form of survival, especially in academic institutions, can make or break the tenure and retention process.

Presenters:

Marisol Diaz, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Education Studies SFASU
Tonya D. Jeffery, Ed.D. Assistant Professor Education Studies SFASU
Sarah M. Straub, Ed.D. Assistant Professor Education Studies SFASU

1:40 – 2:30 p.m. Future Teachers Experience Racism in the Classroom

Every year pre-service teachers begin and continue their journey toward classrooms of America’s children. More than we might care to acknowledge, pre-service teachers of color experience racism along every step of their journey. Join us for dialogue and insights into the lived experiences of brave students who share their stories. The racial battle-fatigue among educators of colors is well documented in scholarly literature. Here we are invited to an intimate sharing of what one woman has experienced in her journey to get there. We welcome sharing by others of their experiences in the classroom.

Presenter: Bernice Bright Dickey, MEd,
Ms. Dickey has over 35 years experience as a Bilingual Educator in Texas Public Schools. She has worked as a Bilingual Teacher in HISD and a Bilingual Elementary School Administrator in LAMAR CISD. She initially joined HCC as an ESL Teacher teaching immigrants conversational English so that they could improve their language skills and get better jobs. Currently she’s an Adjunct Professor in the Early Childhood Department with HCC preparing the next generation of future teachers. In addition, Bernice serves as the Principle Consultant at BRIGHT Educational Resources, LLC. an Educational Consulting firm for parents, teachers and school districts.

2:40 – 3:45 p.m. Stakeholders consider racism in education: Emergent thinking
What could happen if schools were joyful for every child? Join us in a scenario dialogue from the perspective of all the stakeholders who come to this zoom room. We will have an emergent dialogue, co-creating understanding of how various forms of racism show up in public K-12 education. And what we as individuals might DO to make that happen! Presenters will prompt dialogue that encourages participants to think about ways to use this conference as a launchpad for action that contributes to disrupting and dismantling racism in the US education system and to being part of the way forward.

3:45 – 4:00 pm. Rising to the Challenges of Eliminating Racism in Education

Conference is free, donations are encouraged. To donate click here: https://www.centerhealingracism.org/donate/