Designed for Educators to Engage in Equity and Social Justice

Skyline College announced today it will host its 2nd Equity Summit on November 2, 2018 at Skyline College from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The free, bi-annual event offers an opportunity for educators from throughout the region to engage in a teaching and learning experience centered on educational equity. Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D., founding director of the Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University in Washington, D.C. and award-winning author of Stamped from the Beginning, will deliver the keynote address.

The purpose of the summit is to immerse the educational community into the conversation about equity, race and student success through the scholarship of experts and practitioners. “It is absolutely essential that we, as educators take time to intentionally engage in conversations around equality and social justice and deepen our own understanding of the reality many of today’s students live in. It is only through this understanding that we will be break down barriers so that students can succeed,” explained Skyline College president, Regina Stanback Stroud, Ed.D.

Thirteen presenters representing diverse perspectives and approaches regarding equity in education will deliver seven “Equity Talks” along with 2 plenary sessions throughout the day. Full biographies for all speakers can be found on the Equity Summit webpage. Topics covered in the equity talks and plenary sessions in the program include the following.

Equity Talks #1:
• Culturally Relevant Pedagogy – Dorinda Carter-Andrews
• Educating Men of Color – Cesar Cruz
• Whiteness and Education – Ali Michael

Plenary Session #1:
• Applying Equity Theories – Laurie Scolari, Erica Viray-Santos and Matthew Whitaker

Equity Talks #2:
• Transformative School Leadership – Darrick Smith
• Equity in STEM Education – Roni Ellington
• Subtractive Schooling – Angela Valenzuela
• Shaping Institutional Equity – Michael Benitez

Equity Plenary #2:
• Art, Community Activism and Education – A.D. Carson, Terisa Siagatonu and Aisha Fukushima\

Keynote presentation by Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D.

Registration is free and is now open! Those interested in attending can get more information and register at the Equity Summit webpage. The event will also be live streamed on Friday, November 2, 2018 skylinecollege.edu. Media interested in covering the event are welcome to attend; please rsvp to Cherie Colin at colinc@smccd.edu or (650) 738-4346.

Biography of Keynote Speaker, Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D.

Ibram X. Kendi, an award-winning historian and New York Times best-selling author, is a Professor of History and International Relations and the Founding Director of the Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University in Washington D.C. Kendi earned his Doctoral degree in African American Studies from Temple University and his undergraduate degree in Journalism and African American Studies from Florida A&M University. His second book, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, was published by Nation Books and won the 2016 National Book Award for Nonfiction. At 34 years old, Kendi was the youngest ever winner of the NBA for Nonfiction.
Kendi has been a visiting Professor at Brown University, a 2013 National Academy of Education/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow, and Postdoctoral Fellow at the Rutgers Center for Historical Analysis. He has also resided at The John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress as the American Historical Association’s 2010-2011 J. Franklin Jameson Fellow in American History. Kendi is an Ideas Columnist at the Atlantic and has published fourteen essays in books and academic journals, including The Journal of African American History, Journal of Social History, Journal of Black Studies, Journal of African American Studies, and The Sixties: A Journal of History, Politics and Culture. A frequent speaker and contributor of op-eds, Kendi has written for several periodicals including Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, The Root, Salon, The New York Times, New York Daily News, Time, Signature, The Huffington Post, The Washington Post, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. He is currently working on his next book, How to be an Antiracist, which will be published in 2019.

Article by Katrina Pantig | Image by MCPR

 

The Accreditation Open Forums are open to the entire campus community including all students, faculty and staff. The next forum of the series is next Wednesday, October 31, 2018.

Take the opportunity to get involved by learning about how colleges are evaluated, how you can give feedback on the self-study that is underway, how Skyline College is making improvements as a result of the self-study, the big project that Skyline College is committing to so as to strengthen student learning and achievement, and the timeline leading up to the site visit next fall! The Forum topics will include: updates on where we are in the accreditation process; discussion of the website, accreditation timeline, and themes; and information about subsequent forums.

Mark your calendar to attend and let us know you’re coming!

Article by Connor Fitzpatrick | Photo by Zaw Min Khant

Please welcome Ben’Zara Minkin as the district’s new Emergency Preparedness Manager. Ben was an instructor and co-director of the College of San Mateo Fire Academy for the last 12 years. He was also a firefighter/paramedic with the San Bruno Fire Department, and most recently worked in emergency preparedness at Genentech.  Ben studied Fire Technology at College of San Mateo and obtained a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at UC Santa Barbara. He holds fire inspector, fire prevention, HAZMAT, safety officer and ICS certifications. He lives with his wife and three small children in Pacifica.  Ben’Zara will be stationed at the District Public Safety Office at CSM, but will be available on all campuses for meetings, training and consultations once his training and orientation period is complete.

Article by William Woods | Photo by Mia Coo