Conference Schedule 2011, Social Justice Leadership Conference, SALD

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Social Justice Leadership Conference 2011 Schedule
Friday, January 21, 2011
4:00PM	Education Reform and Youth Empowerment presented by Geoffrey Canada in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day sponsored by the WSA, SALD, Residential Life, Academic Affairs, Diversity & Strategic Partnerships, and the Usdan University Center	Memorial Chapel
5:30PM	Reception in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day	Zelnick Pavilion

Saturday, January 22, 2011
9:30AM	Registration & Breakfast	Usdan 300 (Daniel Family Commons)
Session Block One: 10:00AM
10:00AM	Radical Accessibility presented by Naakai Addy '12, Lucas San Juan '13, and Ariel Schwartz '12 from Wesleyan Students for Disability Rights	Fayerweather 106 (Theater Rehearsal)
10:00AM	Building a Green and Equitable Economy presented by Joe Chrastil P'13 from IAF Northwest/Sound Alliance	Usdan 110 (Andersen Meeting Room)
10:00AM	Local Social Justice: Elementary School Education in the Middletown Microcosm presented by Jon Romeo, Izzi Greenberg '05, Melanie Carfora, and Sarah-Jane Ripa '02	Usdan 108 (Taylor Meeting Room)
10:00AM	Diving Into Diversity: Exploring "Diversity University" as Wesleyan's Title... presented by Nick Petrie '12, Lisa Sy '13, Cristine Khan '13, Hannah Bailenson '13, and Ague Ortega '13	South College B2/B3
10:00AM	The Liberal Arts in Prison: Wesleyan's Center for Prison Education presented by Alexis Sturdy '10	Usdan 300 (Daniel Family Commons)
10:00AM	Rethinking the Global World from a Domestic Perspective presented by Teju Adisa-Farrar '13 and Cheryl Walker '12	Usdan B25 (MPR)
Session Block Two: 11:25AM
11:25AM	Immigrants and National Values presented by Billie Greenwood from Project Puente	Usdan 110(Andersen Meeting Room)
11:25AM	Food Security and Food Justice--Is there a Right to Healthy Food for Everyone? presented by Martha Page from the Hartford Food System	Fayerweather 106 (Theater Rehearsal)
11:25AM	Davis 100 Projects for Peace presented by Cathy Crimmins Lechowicz, Kennedy Odede '11, and Allana Kembabazzi '11	Usdan 108 (Taylor Meeting Room)
11:25AM	When and How Faith Does Justice: What the Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammed Can Teach Us presented by Fr. Halbert Weidner, Rabbi David Leipziger Teva, Bill Johnston, Marwa Aly	B2/B3 South College
11:25AM	The Truth About Public Education Reform presented by Sally Lee '96	Usdan 300 (Daniel Family Commons)
Lunch: 12:25PM
12:25PM	Lunch and Networking featuring Wesleyan student groups and community organizations involved in social justice	Fayerweather Beckham Hall
Session Block Three: 1:55PM
1:55PM	How to Win: Building Power for Effective Social Change presented by Joe Chrastil P'13 from IAF Northwest/Sound Alliance	Usdan 110 (Andersen Meeting Room)
1:55PM	Pell Grant Ineligibility and Incarcerated Students: Good Politics, Bad Policy? presented by Glenn Martin, Vivian Nixon, and Dallas Pell from the Education from the Inside Out Coalition	Usdan 108 (Taylor Meeting Room)
1:55PM	Educators for Education Reform: The Reform we Have, the Reform we Need presented by Wesley C. Strong	Usdan 110 (Andersen Meeting Room)
1:55PM	Affirmative Reaction: Mapping Affirmative Action's Legacy and Current Position in Higher Education presented by Professor J. Kehaulani Kauanui, Professor Claire B. Potter, Dr. Sonia Manjon, Professor Alex Dupuy, and Theodore Shaw. Moderated by Kara Ingraham '11	Fayerweather 106 (Theater Rehearsal)
1:55PM	The Art of Making Things Easier: Facilitation in Social Justice Work presented by Maggie Cohen '12, Meggie McGuire '12, Cory Meara-Bainbridge '13, and Ayana Mortley '12	Usdan B25 (MPR)
1:55PM	The Causes of the Racial/Ethnic and the Class Achievement Gaps and Potential Solutions presented by Professor Daniel Long	Usdan 300 (Daniel Family Commons)
Session Block Four: 3:20PM
3:20PM	Leading the Food Fight: Local Agriculture and Food Politics at Long Lane Farm presented by Alex Ketchum '12 from the Long Lane Organic Farm	Usdan 110 (Andersen Meeting Room)
3:20PM	Equity and Access in Education: Is the deck stacked? presented by Santos Cayetano and Jennifer Buckley	Fayerweather 106 (Theater Rehearsal)
3:20PM	Big Picture Learning: Educating One Student at a Time presented by Arthur Baraf '99, two teachers, and two students	Usdan 108 (Taylor Meeting Room)
3:20PM	The Intersection of Interfaith and Social Justice presented by Rhee-Soo Lee '11, Margot Boyer-Dry '11, Nga Man Carmen Yip '12	Usdan B25 (MPR)
3:20PM	Closing America's Education Achievement Gap: If Not Now, Then When? presented by Shawn Dove '84, Manager of the Open Society Foundations Campaign for Black Male Achievement	Usdan 300 (DFC)
3:20PM	Comprehensive Sexuality Education as a Social Justice Issue presented by Lena Solow '12, Emily Byrne '11, and Ali Patrick '13	South College B2/B3
Evening: 7:00PM
7:00PM	Salsa Social at Green Street Arts Center lesson by Jason Pepin from the Green Street Arts Center	Green Street Arts Center
	Education Reform and Youth Empowerment Keynote address by Geoffrey Canada from the Harlem Children's Zone sponsored by the WSA, SALD, Residential Life, Academic Affairs, Diversity & Strategic Partnerships, and the Usdan University Center in Celebration of the Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ____________________ Due to limited seating, this event will be free but ticketed. Information about ticketing will be available soon. Geoffrey Canada has a radical new idea: if you really want to change the lives of inner city kids, change everything all at once - their schools, families, and neighborhoods. As President and CEO of the revolutionary Harlem Children's Zone in New York City, he has dedicated the past 20 years of his life to helping the most impoverished, at-risk youth beat the odds. Radically ambitious and startlingly simple, Canada's programs are on the cutting edge of preventing youth violence and fostering community development. Canada's groundbreaking work for a 24-block neighborhood in Harlem has been replicated in communities across the country. Through programs such as the Beacon School, Community Pride Initiative, Harlem Gems, Harlem Peacemakers, and the Promise Academy, a new generation of charter school, he has developed a network of services that reach most of the 6,500 children and their families living in the Harlem Children's Zone. The acclaimed author of Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence in America and Reaching Up for Manhood, a moving vision of hope for young boys, Canada is also East Coast Coordinator for the Black Community Crusade for Children. Most recently, he can be seen in the groundbreaking documentary Waiting for "Superman" directed by Dennis Guggenheim, which challenges the current American education system. Canada knows inner-city life firsthand. Having grown up in the South Bronx, he went on to earn a Master's Degree in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Recently, Canada was honored with the prestigious McGraw Prize for education. In his vibrant, hands-on presentation, he teaches communities about improving the lives of today's youth, one child at a time. Canada's ideas and life work are chronicled in New York Times reporter Paul Tough's new book, Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America.
	Reception in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day sponsored by the WSA, SALD, Residential Life, Academic Affairs, Diversity & Strategic Partnerships, and the Usdan University Center ____________________ Please join us in the Zelnick Pavilion following the talk by Geoffrey Canada. An exhibit honoring Dr. King will be on display. Food and beverages will be provided by Bon Appetit.
	Registration and Breakfast ____________________ Check-in begins at 9:30AM in the Usdan Ring Family Lobby for pre-registered attendees. Walk in registrants are also welcome. The registration table will remain open for the duration of the conference. Coffee and a light breakfast will be available. The Ring Family Lobby is located on the first floor of the Usdan University Center at 45 Wyllys Ave in Middletown, CT.
	Radical Accessibility presented by Wesleyan Students for Disability Rights: Naakai Addy '12, Lucas San Juan '13, and Ariel Schwartz '12 ____________________ Come learn about ableism and the different models of disability followed by a conversation about disability on campus. We will then move towards a discussion about implicit prejudices and ablest assumptions embedded in college culture, and end with strategies for self advocacy and empowerment.
	Building a Green and Equitable Economy presented by Joe Chrastil P'13 from IAF Northwest/Sound Alliance ____________________ Another inconvenient truth--environmentalists alone do not have the political muscle to win major climate change legislation. Powerful opponents stopped efforts to cap carbon emissions by exploiting fears about negative impacts on the economy. This session will show how that national tide can be reversed through local efforts that have already united diverse constituencies behind successful campaigns that are grounding the transformation to a low carbon economy in the values of equity, opportunity, sustainability and democratic capacity--resulting in real improvements in the lives of everyday people.
	Local Social Justice: Elementary School Education in the Middletown Microcosm presented by Jon Romeo (Principal, Macdonough School), Izzi Greenberg '05 (Executive Director, North End Action Team), Melanie Carfora (Director of School Age Programs, YMCA), and Sarah-Jane Ripa '02 (Artistic and Education Coordinator, Green Street Arts Center) ____________________ Redistricting in 2010 moved over 400 Middletown elementary students to new schools in order to fall into compliance with the State of Connecticut's "racial balance" stipulation. "Racial balance" in schools as a concept for providing equity was the result of the 1989 CT Supreme Court decision of the Sheff v. O'Neill case. We examine whether or not this action is affirmative; whether there are other ways in which communities and schools can provide equality in education and whether extracurricular opportunities also ensure equal access. This panel will provide an explanation of what is meant by "racial balance," present the Middletown case and its solution, and engage in a discussion of the state of affairs of elementary school education in Middletown.
	Diving Into Diversity: Exploring "Diversity University" as Wesleyan's Title through its Manifestations in the Student Body and Implications for Wesleyan-Middletown Relations presented by Nick Petrie '12, Lisa Sy '13, Cristine Khan '13, Hannah Bailenson '13, and Ague Ortega '13 ____________________ The moniker "Diversity University" has often been used to describe the student body of Wesleyan University. But what does this term mean, exactly? Is it an accurate description of Wesleyan? Is there social division on campus? How do our identities affect our experiences at Wesleyan and in Middletown? The Wesleyan Diversity Education Facilitators facilitate an activity and discussion to dissect the term "Diversity University" and the various manifestations of "diversity" at Wesleyan as well as its role in influencing relations between Wesleyan and the larger Middletown community.
	The Liberal Arts in Prison: Wesleyan's Center for Prison Education presented by Alexis Sturdy '10 ____________________ The Center for Prison Education's mission is to advance Wesleyan's commitment to civic engagement by offering college courses to incarcerated individuals, in order both to enrich the lives of those who are systematically denied access to educational opportunities and to enhance Wesleyan's academic community. Learn about the program and join in a discussion of the Center for Prison Education’s first two years. CPE's Fellow will relate the program’s history and progress thus far. The event will showcase our students’ remarkable work, and will provide an opportunity for members of the Wesleyan and Middletown community to ask questions and engage in open dialogue about this groundbreaking initiative.
	Rethinking the Global World from a Domestic Perspective presented by Teju Adisa-Farrar '13 and Cheryl Walker '12 ____________________ This forum will allow us to critically think about ourselves as students in higher education, our places at universities like Wesleyan, which are globally focused, yet may disregard or overlook domestic issues and how they connect to the global world.
	Immigrants and National Values presented by Billie Greenwood from Project Puente ____________________ This session will explore issues surrounding the U.S. immigration debate. Immigration goes to the heart of our national identity. Our stance toward immigration not only affects the immigrant but also determines the kind of nation we are choosing to be. This session will focus on contemporary unauthorized immigration, placing that phenomenon in a historical context. It will suggest that comprehensive reform of the U.S. immigration system is vital so that we as a nation remain consonant with the values expressed in our founding documents.
	Food Security and Food Justic--Is there a Right to Healthy Food for Everyone? presented by Martha Page from the Hartford Food System ____________________ Martha Page, Executive Director of Hartford Food System, a nonprofit organization in Hartford devoted to issues of food security, will discuss ways food inequality issues are being addressed in Hartford and in other communities.
	Davis 100 Projects for Peace presented by Cathy Crimmins Lechowicz, Kennedy Odede '11, and Allana Kembabazzi '11 ____________________ In this session, the past two recipients of the 100 Projects for Peace grant will discuss their projects and how the grant helped further the work. Kennedy Odede '11 (along with Jessica Posner) received the grant in 2009 to found the Kibera School for Girls. Allana Kembabazzi '11 received the grant in 2010 to work with BITONE, an orphanage in Uganda that uses music to promote healing of children who lost their parents to AIDS or violence. Cathy Lechowicz, Director of the Wesleyan Office of Community Service and Volunteerism, will then share information on the current grant cycle and how Wesleyan students can apply.
	When and How Faith Does Justice: What the Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammed Can Teach Us presented by Fr. Halbert Weidner, Office of Religious & Spiritual Life Rabbi David Leipziger Teva, Office of Religious & Spiritual Life Bill Johnston, Professor of History & East Asian Studies Marwa Aly, Office of Religious & Spiritual Life ____________________ Religion has contributed significantly to injustice. But it can and does subvert its darkest side within itself. Rabbi David, Fr. Hal, Marwa Aly, and Professor Bill Johnston will lead a panel with Q & A on the religious resources that have empowered great religious figures in their human struggle to bring justice and peace into the world.
	The Truth About Public Education Reform presented by Sally Lee '96 ____________________ If we accept the mainstream story about public education and current reforms, we accept the following: 1) The problem with urban schools are bad teachers and the unions that protect their rights as workers (not racism, segregation, or an economic system built on inequity). 2) Business people are heroes who can save low-income communities. 3) We can accurately measure school success and failure through a series of standardized tests developed by private companies. 4) Systemic educational transformation will happen if recent college graduates from the most elite schools in the country move to cities they're not from originally and commit a couple years of their lives (no less than 60 hours per week) as classroom teachers. Sound fishy to you? Come through for a lively discussion and decide which stories about public education and its reform you want to believe.
	Luncheon and Networking Acro Yoga ASHA (Aids and Sexual Health Awareness) Democracy Matters Interfaith Justice League Islamic Relief Wesleyan University Let’s Get Ready NEAT Mentoring Roosevelt Institute Shofco Students for Consent and Communication Traverse Square Tutoring WesFRESH Wesleyan Democrats Wesleyan Students for Disability Rights WILD Wes ____________________ Student groups and community organizations involved in social justice will be available to talk to you about the interesting work they do, future volunteer opportunities, and other ways to get involved. Food will be available for purchase from local restaurants.
	How to Win: Building Power for Effective Social Change presented by Joe Chrastil P'13 from IAF Northwest/Sound Alliance ____________________ Great ideas and compelling arguments are not enough. Winning significant social change requires an understanding of how to build and leverage power to change the policies and practices of major public and private sector institutions. This session will explore how to overcome apathy and build "power with" by uniting around mutual interests, how to conduct a power analysis, and how to strategically exercise your power to win for the common good.
	Pell Grant Ineligibility and Incarcerated Students: Good Politics, Bad Policy? presented by Glenn Martin, Vivian Nixon, and Dallas Pell from the Inside Out Coalition. ____________________ Higher education programs for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people contribute to safer, more manageable prisons, significantly reduced recidivism rates and increased public safety. Such programs help individuals make a smooth, crime-free re-entry to their communities. However, despite the success of prison-based college and post-incarceration programs, public funding for these programs remains largely unavailable. This plenary panel is an opportunity to learn more from leading criminal justice and education advocates about the benefits of higher education for criminal justice-involved populations and the state of the current political landscape for changes in higher education policy.
	Educators for Education Reform: The Reform we Have, the Reform we Need presented by Wesley C. Strong ____________________ We all agree that public education needs reform. But what does that mean? Does shaking things up just for the sake of it equate to reform? Education is critical to communities throughout the country, but it is also part of a larger puzzle. In this session, public school teachers from Connecticut will discuss the current model of education reform and its discontents. We will discuss what we have seen as a part of the movement to reform public education, some of the effects it has had, and discuss what that means for the future. Educators will discuss how these reforms have affected their students, workplaces, and the communities they teach in. From this insight, we will explore reforms that are needed in public education and have a group discussion on how we can organize to gain them.
	Affirmative Reaction: Mapping Affirmative Action's Legacy and Current Position in Higher Education presented by Professor J. Kehaulani Kauanui, Professor Claire B. Potter, Dr. Sonia Manjon, Professor Alex Dupuy, and Mr. Theodore Shaw. Moderated by Kara Ingraham '11 ____________________ This panel and discussion seeks to explore the ways in which Affirmative Action is institutionalized, practiced and re-framed in the context of higher education. Specifically, we will focus on the ways in which Affirmative Action is employed at Wesleyan University and the effects of such employment on the community created. In light of recent demonstrations, this topic is pertinent to current campus climate and deserves further exploration and clarification.
	The Art of Making Things Easier: Facilitation in Social Justice Work presented by Maggie Cohen '12, Meggie McGuire '12, Cory Meara-Bainbridge '13, and Ayana Mortley '12 ____________________ Using dynamic activities, this workshop will focus on facilitation-- the art of inciting and guiding conversation-- as a skill that can be used both in daily organizing and in social justice dialogues. Through discussion and practice, we will define the qualities of a good facilitator so we can apply them in any setting!
	The Causes of the Racial/Ethnic and the Class Achievement Gaps and Potential Solutions presented by Professor Daniel Long ____________________
	Leading the Food Fight: Local Agriculture and Food Politics at Long Lane Farm presented by Alex Ketchum '12 from the Long Lane Organic Farm ____________________ This session will discuss the work that Long Lane Farm does in the Middletown Community. We will talk about food insecurity in Middletown and what Long Lane has done in the past and what the group will be doing in the future to address that issue. We will also talk about Farm Education and the importance of experiential learning in our education system. Long Lane has participated in various educational programs in Middletown surrounding local and organic food production. We will then open the floor to discussion about Wesleyan's relationship with Middletown and what can be done about creating a more positive community between the two parties. We will use the Long Lane Farm student group as one example of interaction between the University and the City. After describing all of the programs Long Lane Farm does with Middletown, it will provide the group an opportunity to discuss the appropriateness of this relationship and an opening to bring in new ideas to this very pressing issue in the Middletown community.
	Equity and Access in Education: Is the deck stacked? presented by Santos Cayetano from the Wesleyan McNair Program and Jennifer Buckley from the Wesleyan Upward Bound Program ____________________ Education has long long been considered the great equalizer. This workshop will explore the consequences of structural inequity on academic success and opportunities for social and economic mobility.
	Big Picture Learning: Educating One Student at a Time presented by Arthur Baraf '99 from Big Picture Learning, two teachers, and two students ____________________ Big Picture Learning is one of the most personalized and innovative education reform movements in the United States. With over 75 public schools (both charter and district) across the US and abroad, BPL is offering truly individualized learning through real world learning, internship-based-projects, and powerful student-adult relationships. This session will be lead by Arthur Baraf ('99), principal of one of the flagship Big Picture Learning schools - The Met High School in Providence, RI. Principal Baraf, staff and students will share with the attendees how Big Picture schools are leading vital change in education, lowering the drop out rate in our nations highest poverty cities, and personalizing education in an era where standardization and standardized tests take center stage. Our educational design is about social justice and social change. Please join us.
	The Intersection of Interfaith and Social Justice presented by the Interfaith Justice League Rhee-Soo Lee '11, Margot Boyer-Dry '11, Nga Man Carmen Yip '12 ____________________ What IF we replaced religious intolerance with cooperation? What IF we used our differences to work together in achieving a common goal? This discussion-based workshop will engage participants in conversation about the meaning of interfaith and social justice, how these concepts intersect, and what we can do to promote interfaith dialogue on our campus.
	Closing America's Education Achievement Gap: If Not Now, Then When? presented by Shawn Dove '84, Manager of the Open Society Foundations Campaign for Black Male Achievement ____________________ Shawn Dove '84, Manager of the Open Society Foundations Campaign for Black Male Achievement, will facilitate an interactive session that explores the key policies and practices needed to close America's achievement gap between black males and their peers. The recent Schott Foundation for Public Education report revealed that only 47% of black males graduate from high school in America and other research indicates that a third of those boys that don't graduate from high school eventually come in come contact with the criminal justice system. Using the short documentary film "Beyond the Bricks" (www.beyondthebricksproject.com) which chronicles the challenges of two African American male students in the Newark, NJ public school system, Dove will inform and inspire participants about effective strategies to respond to this growing educational crisis in America.
	Comprehensive Sexuality Education as a Social Justice Issue presented by Lena Solow '12, Emily Byrne '11, and Ali Patrick '13 from AIDS and Sexual Health Awareness ____________________ Comprehensive Sexuality Education as a Social Justice Issue will give participants tools and knowledge necessary to make good decisions about their sexual health. The first part of our workshop will be based off of our ASHA for College lesson plan. The lesson will give a quick overview of sexual health issues but will focus mainly on personal boundary setting and healthy communication. We will address sexual assault both directly (by creating definitions of consent and discussing scenarios where sexual assault might occur) and indirectly (by creating a space where sexuality can be talked about and where people are encouraged to think about and articulate both their own and their partner's boundaries). Finally we will discuss resources available on campus and ways to start these discussions in participant's communities. Participants will have the opportunity to schedule more ASHA workshops for their communities.
	Salsa Social at Green Street Arts Center lesson by Jason Pepin at 7:00pm Special $5 admission for SJLC Conference Attendees ____________________ Green Street's resident salsero Jason Pepin presents an evening of hot music, open floor, and the best dance crowd in Connecticut. Refreshments and beginner lesson from 7-8 pm are included in admission. Green Street Arts Center of Wesleyan University is located at 51 Green Street in Middletown. More information at www.wesleyan.edu/greenstreet or (860) 685-7871.

Social Justice Leadership Conference 2011 Schedule