This blog post was originally written for The Center for Education for Racial Equality in Scotland’s (CERES) series on antiracism in education. For the past few months I have felt like I am in one elongated Zoom training, attempting to disentangle white feelings and embedded racist ideologies – including my own. As an equity trainer … Continue reading The Active Pursuit of Antiracist Allyship
The following is an excerpt from my Fulbright inquiry project. I am currently working on a way to best share the handbook in it’s entirety. Hopefully this anecdote from the handbook gives a sense of the work I am eager to continue. “School is generally understood to deliver instructional content to children, arming them … Continue reading When a School Community Listens, Reflects and Responds Restoratively…
During all of my school visits in the United Kingdom, I have taken some time to acknowledge that when I am visiting a school, I am also visiting the surrounding community. I believe schools should live and operate as part of the overall community, not as isolated gatekeepers. I appreciate how open the communities of … Continue reading Schools in their Communities – Photos
Seeing Whiteness in “Colorblind” Scotland Every time my partner and I move to a new city we take the time to search the racial demographics of where we are headed. For Lauren, as a black woman, the diversity of a city often reflects the probability of finding safe space along with other everyday complications like … Continue reading Seeing Whiteness in “Colorblind” Scotland
I first learned about Hull, England about 4 years ago. I was scrambling at work, trying to build my knowledge of restorative practices (RP) as I attempted to shift the culture at my elementary school in East Harlem. I had been engulfed in 11-hour work days, navigating emotional and physical outbursts from students, families and … Continue reading My Restorative Journey to Hull, England
I vaguely remember an afternoon, whole-school meeting during my first week of teaching 12 years ago. I remember sitting on a creaky wooden chair in a cavernous auditorium in Brooklyn, trying to listen to a NYC Department of Education employee as he droned on about licensure requirements and the general standards and values for teachers. … Continue reading Focusing on Shared Values rather than Guns
When We Were Young: Photographs of Childhood from the National Galleries of Scotland I took some time to see some visual art today. I often forget that visual work never fails to feed me, particularly when writing can often feel like a daunting task. The free admission, Scottish National Portrait Gallery has several inspiring exhibits, … Continue reading A Visit to the Scottish National Portrait Gallery
Reminder: This is a personal blog. All views and information presented herein are my own and do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State. “Hi Reed. I apologise for the very short notice but we were advised late last night that due to the federal budget impasse … Continue reading What I didn’t get to say to Betsy DeVos
*This is a quick post with pictures updating folks on the past week since we arrived. An education content-heavy post is in the works and coming soon. Our first week in the United Kingdom We arrived in the United Kingdom last Friday evening, traveling straight to Birmingham, England for the U.K. Fulbright Forum – a … Continue reading Arrival
It’s happening!!! A year ago I applied for the Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching. It felt like a long shot. Out loud, I talked about the application process as a practice in writing down my often random, but impassioned thoughts on paper. In my head, I immediately began daydreaming about living abroad, nerding out with … Continue reading On Receiving a Fulbright
School. Culture. Community Engagement. 