February 22, 2017
#SRIWM17 Fierce Commitment Postcards are on their way!
During the closing of Winter Meeting in Denver, we asked participants to use a postcard and write a fierce commitment to equity and excellence that they were making as a result of their learning at Winter Meeting. Each postcard included a picture that was created during the opening image making protocol. At the end of Winter Meeting, we collected these self-addressed postcards so that we could send them to participants six weeks after Winter Meeting to help them remember what they had committed to, as well as remember the experience they had at Winter Meeting. Those postcards are being mailed this week!
As you receive them, we would love for you to share with the SRI community either through Facebook or Twitter. Please use the #SRIWM17 tag so these continue to show up in our Denver Winter Meeting artifacts and you can inspire colleagues to make their own fierce commitments.
If you were not at Winter Meeting, we invite you to make a fierce commitment to equity and excellence and share with the SRI community using the #SRIWM17 tag as well!
Resources to continue your learning about Race and Equity
In Denver, we hosted a screening of the film “I am not Racist…am I?”, produced by Pointmade Productions. One of the producers and two students joined us for a conversation after the film. We’ve had lots of requests for access to the film, or others that may be similar that can be used in classes or for continued professional learning.
Catherine Wigginton Greene, the director of ‘I am not Racist..am I?” shared some suggested resources (in addition to her film!). Take a look at the list below for a few options to continue your own learning journey.
- Pointmade Films eLearning program for their film ‘I am not Racist…am I?’ will be launched in the spring, but you can sign up now for more information and to be one of the first people notified when the platform is released. Go to notracistmovie.com/elearning to learn more. This will be an on-demand service that allows educators the opportunity to use the film as a teaching piece, broken up into different smaller units.
- 13th an Oscar-nominated documentary film directed by Ava DuVernay looks at systemic racism in America, focusing specifically on the criminalization of African Americans and the U.S. prison boom. It is on Netflix, and has been granted public screening access which means you can share it for educational purposes and in public screenings. You will still need a Netflix account to watch the film.
- Race: The Power of An Illusion A production of California Newsreel is available on Vimeo for a small fee, as well as available to schools/institutions for an institutional price. This three-part series looks at the historical concept of race. If you only have time for one episode, focus on Episode 3 – The House we Live in – that looks at how race resides in politics, economics and cultures and how race was used to disproportionately channel resources, power, status and wealth to white people.
- If These Halls Could Talk. This is a film directed by Lee Mun Wah and it follows a conversation with eleven college students, who were brought together to discuss what it is like on campuses across the country. The film comes with two discs, one that is purposefully for education use and has vignettes that can be used in classes/PD sessions. There is also a director’s guide that accompanies the film. This one is a little more expensive, so probably better as a district/university purchase that can be used in multiple classrooms.
We know there are many other resources that are not included here. If you have resources that have been helpful to you, please share them by visiting the SRI Facebook group.
Annual Facilitator Retreat – Registration Now Open
We are excited to offer our third annual retreat for SRI facilitators who work to build internal capacity for change in schools and districts, across and among cities, states and regions, and on the international scene.
This year’s event will be held May 19th & 20th, 2017 at Champlain College in Burlington, VT. Click here to learn more and register to attend. Registration is limited to 40 participants, so register ASAP!
Do you have news to share? Interesting things happening in your area? Please let us know so we can share with our community! Email Chris Jones, chris@schoolreforminitiative.org.
Thank you,
Kari Thierer, Heidi Vosekas, Chris Jones, and Beth I Graham
On behalf of School Reform Initiative
