Addressing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Issues in Schools

Addressing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Issues in Schools

Date/Time
Date(s) - November 17, 2021
8:00 am - 9:00 am

Registration for this event is now closed! If registered, you should have received your unique log-in link from the FOCUS Virtual Campus (noreply@notify.focus-leaders.org). Be sure to check your junk/spam/promotions folder! If you do not see it, please contact Kayla Dix at kaylad@focus-stl.org or (314) 657-4020.

In our region, a disproportionate number of black and youth of color face barriers to receiving a quality education. In addition to disparities in access, resources, and education outcomes, public discourse about the role of diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) curricula in schools has become increasingly polarized.

• How is this affecting all of our students, and how are educators navigating the current environment?
• What lessons can educators share about teaching all students about race and history?
• What kinds of initiatives and programs are being explored or implemented to address DEI learning?
• What is the community’s role, and how can we create more productive dialogue around this issue?

These are some of the core questions we will be asking a panel of education professionals active in this field.

Panel

• Moderator: Dr. Karen Hall (LSL 2013/DLF 2015), Regional Supervisor, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership at Saint Louis University
• Dr. Shonda Ambers-Phillips (LSL 2022), Executive Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Kirkwood School District
• Dr. Sharonica Hardin-Bartley (LSL 2022), Superintendent, University City School District
• Brittany Hogan, former Director of Educational Equity & Diversity, Rockwood School District
• Dr. Jaime Welborn, President, Midwest Collaborative for Cultural Proficiency in Schools, and Assistant Professor, Saint Louis University School of Education

Cost

This event is free and open to all.

Accessing the Event

This event will be hosted on the FOCUS Virtual Campus. Your unique log-in details will be sent a few days prior from noreply@notify.focus-leaders.org – be sure to check your junk/spam/promotions folder if you don’t see it.

If you have any questions regarding your registration, please contact Kayla Dix at kaylad@focus-stl.org or (314) 657-4020.

Presented with support from

 

About Our Speakers

Dr. Karen I. Hall is an accomplished Educational Consultant, University Professor, and a Department of Education Regional Supervisor with extensive experience educating, advocating, and guiding action-focused conversations centered around the theory, practice, and business of equity-focused leadership. She started her career as a distinguished educator and academic program administrator evaluating curriculum, maximizing learning opportunities, and employing innovative methods in education throughout several school districts. She has been instrumental in assessment forecasting, analysis, and strategic planning for academic initiatives while mentoring, coaching, and supporting educators to ensure professional development and equity-focused student progress.

Dr. Hall’s passion for educational equity and excellence is displayed throughout her academic and professional accomplishments. She has received numerous awards, including the Outstanding Administrator Award from the Missouri State Thespians Association in 2013 and the Inspiring St. Louisan Award from the St. Louis County NAACP in 2014. She received recognition from The National Conference for Community & Justice, Metropolitan St. Louis, with the Brotherhood Sisterhood Award in 2019 and the 2020 Salute to Excellence in Education from the St. Louis American Foundation.

As an educational consultant, her mission to “Stand Up for Justice” provides her with an extended platform for delivering equity-focused leadership through numerous public presentations, community-based consultations, and the acquisition and development of superintendents throughout the country. She continually advocates for diversity and inclusion at the forefront of every educational endeavor by forging innovative community awareness initiatives, cultivating trusted relationships, and directing organizations to adopt inclusive methodologies with an in-depth understanding that education for all students is the fundamental stone in our society’s foundation.

Dr. Shonda Ambers-Phillips serves as the Executive Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Kirkwood School District. She has served as an educator and adjunct professor for over 20 years as a high school social studies teacher, counselor, coach and administrator. Shonda earned a bachelor’s in psychology and criminal justice from Alabama A&M University, teaching certification from University of Missouri-St. Louis, master’s in school and professional counseling and educational administration and her doctorate in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Shonda has served as an integral part of implementing district-wide frameworks to interrupt biases, address institutional racism, amplify student voices, apply restorative practices with student discipline, integrate trauma-informed care and view all decisions through the lens of equity. She facilitates the Educational Equity Task Force Committee convened to study and eliminate the achievement gap among white and black students in the Kirkwood School District and focus on equitable practices and experiences for all students and staff. Additionally, she co-moderates the Kirkwood Educational Equity Speaker Series and offers support to the Kirkwood Teachers of Color, parent equity groups and student affinity groups. Shonda is a certified facilitrainer with NCCJ St. Louis and an alumni of Educational Equity Consultants Leadership and Racism Institute and FOCUS Women in Leadership. Shonda is an active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. St. Louis Alumnae Chapter and a lifetime member of the NAACP.

Dr. Sharonica Hardin-Bartley is the School District of University City superintendent. Sharonica serves 2,600 students and more than 400 teachers and staff. She brings a hands-on approach to the superintendent role and is committed to enabling teachers and students to embrace and truly live their passions for education and learning. In addition, she believes that relationships are a vital component of a child’s educational progression. Sharonica has spent the past 25 years relentlessly championing educational excellence and racial equity for all children. She is active in the St. Louis community serving the boards of Big Brothers Big Sisters, University City Children’s Center, United Way St. Louis, American Heart Association, and The Magic House. She is part of the 2021-22 cohort of Leadership St. Louis.

Brittany Hogan is a native of Chicago and holds a Bachelor of Art in Psychology from Hampton University and a Master of Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis. Brittany is the former Director of Educational Equity & Diversity for the Rockwood School District. In this role, she directed the Voluntary Interdistrict Choice Corporation Program and managed the district social workers and social-emotional behavioral specialists. Brittany developed and supported the district and school-based initiatives for both staff and students around educational equity, inclusion, and social justice. Presently, Brittany serves as the Manager for the Center of Human Service Leadership at the Delmar Divine. In this role, she helps to create a vibrant, innovative, collaborative community that enhances the value of co-location to tenants and the larger community at the Delmar Divine.

Jaime E. Welborn, Ph.D. currently serves as an Assistant Professor in Education Leadership at Saint Louis University in Missouri. She completed her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Saint Louis University and has presented her research that investigated the degree to which principals use and value culturally proficient educational practices at Harvard and California State University. Jaime’s upcoming book, Leading Change through the Lens of Cultural Proficiency: An Equitable Approach to Race and Social Class in Our Schools, will be published by Corwin in January, and includes her research that investigated a school district’s two-year experiences of embedding the work of Cultural Proficiency in all aspects of the district.   

Jaime previously served as an elementary school assistant principal in the Rockwood School District and as a middle school mathematics and language arts teacher and elementary school teacher in rural and metropolitan public schools in Illinois. In 2018, Jaime started a consulting business, JWE Education Consulting, LLC – DBA Midwest Collaborative for Cultural Proficiency in Schools.  As a Senior Associate and Certified Trainer for the Center for Culturally Proficient Educational Practice, she works with school organizations, helping educators examine their individual values and behaviors, as well as their organization’s practices and policies, to implement and sustain the work of Cultural Proficiency through transformative action plans.