Sources-CREATE CRP Conference

8:00a: Registration (main floor lobby) and Hot Buffet Breakfast (Downstairs- Room 0002ABC)

9:00a-9:15a: Opening Remarks (Room 0002ABC) 

Lawanda Cummings, Alonzo A. Crim Center for Urban Educational Excellence

Dana E. Salter, CREATE Project

9:15a-10:15a// Keynote (Room: 0002ABC)

Dr. Daniel Black, Clark Atlanta University

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10:25a-11:25a// Block A Concurrent Sessions  

*If you are not in a workshop, please attend the 11:30a session titled “Your turn: working together on your work, pt. 1″ when your session ends.

PANEL: Teaching for Transformation:  Theories and Practices to Guide Justice-Centered Teaching & Teacher Education

In this session, practicing teachers and teacher educators, who are also all researchers, will share justice-centered theories and practices that can guide curriculum, pedagogy, and policy in teaching and teacher education. In particular, panelists will emphasize theories of humanizing pedagogy, African American pedagogical excellence, and queer pedagogy, along with practical tools of critical reflection grounded in embracing different ways of knowing and being and developing oppositional consciousness; ways to broaden curricula to be more interdisciplinary and draw on Black Studies, ethnic studies, women’s studies, and African American history;  strategies for embracing discomfort in teaching; and policy advocacy strategies and opportunities that position teachers and teacher educators as active policymakers and policy shapers. 

Nadia Behizadeh, Jennifer Broman-Fulks, Leonard Dega, Aliyah Gilenson, Kristy Jones, Romonda Middlebrooks-Jefferson, Peter Nguyen, Elyse Johnson, Caroline B. Rabalais, April Remy, Katherine Samford, Brittany White, Georgia State University

Room 242 

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WORKSHOP (PLEASE NOTE THE TIME: 10:25a-12:00p): “Unpacking Our Stories: “Leveraging SEL to Heal and Empower Black Educators”

This workshop delves into an often overlooked aspect of trauma-informed teaching: the influence of educators’ own K-12 educational experiences on their current practices. While traditional training focuses on strategies to support students with trauma, this session offers a reflective space for educators—particularly Black and Brown educators—to unpack their own educational traumas and examine how these shape their teaching and perceptions of students. Many educators, especially from marginalized communities, have faced harm within the K-12 system, and this workshop acknowledges that reality by fostering a safe environment for personal exploration. Through the use of liberatory practices, the session encourages healing and self-awareness. Participants will engage in creative reflection and introspection to rediscover their own stories and address the biases that may stem from past experiences. By examining these personal experiences, educators can reconnect with their stories, uncover potential biases, and renew their commitment to creating more empathetic and inclusive learning environments for their students. This reflection ultimately strengthens their capacity to engage and support all learners.

Kofi Kinney, Georgia State University 

Room 245

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PANEL: Building on Our Ancestral Legacy: Cultivating Humanities-Based Scholar-Activists through Cultural Preservation, Solutions-Oriented Research, and Visionary Leadership

In January 2024, the Mellon Foundation announced that Claflin University was awarded $1,489,000 to establish a Humanities Hub focusing on place-based collaborations, embedding social justice content in the general education curriculum, and community-participatory research. The first cohort of ten (10) Claflin Humanities Hub Scholars was selected in April. The Hub Scholars promote race/gender equity, environmental justice, and community well-being. The Hub approach centers on recruiting and nurturing students in the humanities as scholar-activists committed to cultural preservation, solutions-oriented research, and visionary leadership.  The proposed panel wants to share the experiences of the Freeland Scholars and the program that integrates humanities-based approaches to train students as scholar-activists, equipping them with the skills and knowledge to become effective social justice advocates and change agents. The panelists will present reflections, experiences, and research that combine academic study with activism, emphasizing the role of humanities in understanding and addressing social issues.

Alison Gise Johnson, Catherine L. Adams, Genesis Miller, Melody Woodruff, Bethany Scriven, Alexis Singleton, Kyra Smith, Isabella Dixon, Claflin University

Room 246

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WORKSHOP (PLEASE NOTE THE TIME: 10:25a-12:00p): Coping with Secondary Traumatic Stress in Education: Practices for Healing and Building Resilience

This workshop will assist educators in navigating the challenges of secondary traumatic stress (STS).  Participants will explore how their emotional and mental well-being can be affected by the trauma faced by their students, especially those from marginalized communities. Participants will gain insight into the signs and symptoms of STS  and also explore practical strategies for self-care and resilience-building. Strategies learned in the workshop can be used to develop a personalized STS management plan. Developing this plan will empower educators to better support themselves while they continue to provide crucial support to their students.

Darrell Green, Professional Excellence Program Child Welfare Training Collaborative, School of Social Work, Georgia State University

Room 345 

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11:30a-12:00p: Your turn: working together on your work, pt. 1

Often during conferences we hear great ideas, have many questions and have amazing conversations with fellow attendees. But when it’s time to go back to our lives-work-communities, we may forget or lose the energy around what we learned and experienced during the conference. Specifically, wouldn’t it be great to be able to work in your curriculum or idea during this conference? During this time, you’ll have opportunities to collaborate and work on your work so that when the conference finishes tomorrow, you’ll have had some time to work on your ideas.

Dana E. Salter, Georgia State University

Room 041

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12:00p-1:15p//Lunch and Learn with Dr. Daniel Black hosted Dr. Catherine Adams and Dr. Lawanda Cummings

Conversation between Dr. Black and Dr. Catherine Adams/ Dr. Lawanda Cummings w/ audience questions.

Room 0002ABC

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1:25p-2:25p// Block B Concurrent Sessions

CWC: Every Thought is a Dream: Breathing Life and Hope into Language Arts Through Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and the Speculative Fiction

Visionary author Octavia Butler has been hailed for exploring the past and present while also writing Black people and women into science fiction and the future. Shifting narratives and challenging stereotypes across gender and race, Butler expressed that she wrote speculative stories so that she could see herself in them. Relatedly, educational scholars of color have argued that dreaming ourselves into futures that were liberatory, innovative, and filled with joy is what continues to spur activism and trailblazing today (Love, 2019; Toliver, 2021)! And from Woodson’ The Year We Learned to Fly which draws on Hamilton’s speculative fiction that Black people could fly to Mercardo’s Sci Fu where a teen and his friends master the intergalactic musical martial art to save Earth, there is not shortage of fantastic stories with dark folx at the center to inspire our youth in vivid ways. I argue that in today’s world plagued by necessary concerns for racial, climate, technological, and economic justice, educators must explore what it means to help our children craft innovative hope filled futures. Such that connecting dreams and futures remains integral to dark folx survival (Love, 2019), I invite the audience to join me in exploring ways to incorporate speculative fiction—including science fiction, fantasy, and other subgenres— across modalities into curriculum in order to propel youth of color into fantastic possibilities. I invite the audience to join me in exploring ways to incorporate speculative fiction into curriculum for propelling youth of color into fantastic futures. Participants will leave the session with literacy block resources and inspiration for breathing new life and hope into endarkedend futures through the use of speculative, fantastic, and afrofuturistic texts across modalities.

Renata Love Jones, Georgia State University

Room 245 

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FOCUS 15 (all presentations in room 342):

Diversifying the Teacher and Leader Workforce through the PROPEL Project 

The PROPEL Project (Partnership for Residency Opportunities for Paraprofessionals, Educators, and Leaders) is a Teacher Quality Partnership Grant funded by the USDOE. The purpose of the PROPEL Project is to increase the number of highly qualified teachers in high need content areas; contribute teachers and leaders who are committed to rural and urban schools; prepare teachers who are equipped with knowledge of diversity, equity, and inclusion; and support long-term retention in the educational field for their entire career. PROPEL will engage urban/suburban partners including: Clayton County Public Schools and Gwinnett County Public Schools and rural partners: Fort Valley State University and several related school districts. PROPEL will impact the education workforce by exposing 300 secondary students and pre-education majors to the field of education, recruiting 100 paraprofessionals towards an MAT in special education and 144 science/math candidates in the MAT in middle or secondary education, and supporting 50 teachers in the Tier 1 and Tier 2 leadership certification and/or degree programs.

DaShaunda Patterson,  Georgia State University

 

Early Childhood Reading with JumpSTART

Jumpstart is working toward the day every child in America enters kindergarten prepared to succeed. College students serve as Corps Members in local Atlanta preschools to provide language, literacy, and social-emotional programming for preschool children from under-resourced communities.

Results from a recent comparison study found that Jumpstart children make 1.5x greater gains in important literacy skills, as compared to those who don’t receive the Jumpstart program. Program features and efforts with the Crim Center will be discussed in new synergistic efforts in the Critical Conversation Series to help early readers see themselves in stories of freedom and joy in alignment with CRP theory.

Clarissa Cole, Georgia State University

 

Georgia State University College of Education and Human Development/ Project Vista

The outreach program will work with local street outreach organizations to build out their outreach teams, connect LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness with community services and provide resource kits. They developed an LGBTQ+ sensitivity and trauma-informed care program to train staff in community organizations, school systems, religious organizations and other groups working with this population, and offer internships for LGBTQ+ homeless youth to gain valuable work experience. This work is critical, given that homeless and runaway LGBTQ+ youth make up 30-40 percent of the youth homelessness population in the U.S., and they are at much greater risk for suicide, sexual assault and human trafficking compared to their heterosexual peers.

Kris Vargas, Georgia State University

Room 342 

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CWC: Atlanta Streets Alive EPIC Course in partnership with CREATE Project

This presentation highlights the experiences of teachers in a community-based educational course. Atlanta Streets Come A-Live is a community-based educational course that explores and celebrates Atlanta’s African American educational history and culture. Through historical site visits, oral histories and primary sources, and neighborhood walks, participants experience in-depth study of Atlanta.

Chantee Earl, Georgia State University

Room 345 

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2:35p-3:35p// Block C Concurrent Sessions

 CWC: “The Lies Get Me Vexed-er”: Examining the Liberatory Possibilities of Hip Hop Pedagogy

Since Cindy and Clive Campbell’s (DJ Kool Herc) Back to School Jam in August 1973, at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, New York, Hip Hop has arguably grown to become one of the most widespread artistic and cultural movements across the globe. In this session, we’ll critically reflect upon the widespread growth of Hip Hop education in the past two decades. We’ll work from a pedagogical piece that has been argued to be one of the greatest Hip Hop productions of all time, released during what “heads” have referred to as the “golden age.” We’ll take time and space to listen, learn, think, and commune with each other, critically appreciating Hip Hop pedagogy from the perspective of what Cedric Robinson (1983) and scholars have referred to as the “Black Radical Tradition(s),” through the lens of the artist and “the people” themselves.

Casey Wong, Georgia State University

 Room 242 

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FOCUS 45: Culturally Relevant Science: Making K-12 Science Curriculum Accessible and Relatable for Underrepresented Students, Teachers, and Schools

Culturally Relevant Science is a nonprofit dedicated to making K-12 STEM education accessible and engaging for underrepresented students, particularly Black and Brown youth. This presentation emphasizes the importance of incorporating diverse representations in science instruction to foster a strong science identity among these students. Participants will learn about the detrimental impact of the traditional, white, male-dominated narrative in science on student engagement and achievement and discover how Culturally Relevant Science is actively addressing these issues. Tailored for pre-service and in-service teachers, doctoral students, professors, and community members in STEM education, the session offers practical strategies and resources to create culturally relevant science experiences. Attendees will gain immediate access to a free YouTube channel and a learning hub with inclusive, innovative teaching materials. They will leave inspired and equipped with actionable strategies and a comprehensive toolbox of resources to ensure all students feel represented and valued in their science education.

Meagan Naraine and Natalie S. King, Georgia State University

Room 246 

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FOCUS 45: Above S.E.A. Level: Conquering the Deficit Perspective

This session emphasizes how educators view students’ ability to improve their own Skills, Efficacy, and Achievement in engaging with STEAM education and accessing STEAM-related opportunities. In creating an environment where scholars are challenged and supported through STEAM education, educators cancel the notions that “students can’t” and “students won’t,” which often goes beyond what educators can “SEA.” This session will uncover the impacts that conquering the deficit perspective has on making learning accessible for all students, setting high expectations for students, and student achievement outcomes in accessing STEAM.

Nicholas W. Collins and Natalie S. King, Georgia State University

Room 345

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 3:50p-4:45p// Your turn: working together on your work, pt. 2

Often during conferences we hear great ideas, have many questions and have amazing conversations with fellow attendees. But when it’s time to go back to our lives-work-communities, we may forget or lose the energy around what we learned and experienced during the conference. Specifically, wouldn’t it be great to be able to work on your curriculum or idea during this conference? During this time, you’ll have opportunities to collaborate and work on your work so that when the conference finishes tomorrow, you’ll have had some time to work on your ideas.

Dana E. Salter, Georgia State University

Room 0002ABC

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CWC: CREATE YEAR 1 RESiDENTS AND THEIR COOPERATING TEACHERS ONLY

Julia Grimes, Kimberly Hobley, Abigail Hortenstine, Kristy Jones, Saniha Kabani, Romonda Middlebrooks-Jefferson, Ashley Vierra, Georgia State University

Room: 242

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4:45p-5:00p// Closing and Preparation for November 9

Dana E. Salter, CREATE Project

Lawanda Cummings, Alonzo A. Crim Center for Urban Educational Excellence

Room  0002ABC