(Also offered February 23, 12:00 pm - 3:00 pm) 

Children/people of color (and special needs) are disproportionately treated inequitably in American society, and what we may see in our society begins in our schools.  In schools, students of color are disciplined, suspended and expelled at far greater rates than their Caucasian peers.  In community settings and in judicial/correctional proceedings, this is also the case. In this session, educators, among others will be introduced to key aspects that are required to become culturally competent adults/educators who embrace and practice equity. This highly interactive workshop includes the exploration of the hierarchy of “Caste” in America, how and why racism and discrimination are so difficult to eliminate (“White Fragility”), the difference between Equity and Equality, the various notions of School Climate, School Culture and the wider Community Culture. In order to map the territory to reach a destination of far more equitable treatment for all, different ideologies of Cultural Diversity will be shared,  as will the relationship between Racism and Discrimination, anti-racist perspectives, the differences between Explicit and Implicit Bias and ultimately, how we can impact our classrooms, schools, workplaces  and all community settings to become truly equitable places to work, learn and socialize led by culturally competent , anti-racist and non-discriminatory individuals who function in institutions free from racism and discrimination.

Also offered Febraury 23, 2021, 8:30 am - 11:30 am)

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are the largest public health crisis to be identified in the past thirty years. Traumatic childhood experiences (toxic stress/trauma) impact a child’s daily life in the home, in school and the community as they grow. These adversities (injuries) in childhood also impact adult health and wellbeing, often identified as PTSD. Even when children are too young to remember the events (neglect, physical/emotional/sexual abuse, abandonment, violence, etc.), the body never “forgets.” Childhood adversity affects a child’s ability to learn and behave in productive ways by changing brain chemistry and architecture thus impacting their ability to learn and behave “normally” in schools and other settings. And, if not appropriately treated, these injuries impact life and health outcomes into adulthood. All too often, children who are experiencing trauma, neglect and abuse in their homes and communities are identified in schools as having “special needs,” such as ADHD, ODD or EDD when in fact what they are experiencing is actually trauma/toxic stress. These life circumstances cause diminished executive functioning abilities, learning difficulties, and/or misbehavior. Educators, as well as all other adults, need to be keenly aware of this body of research and practical school- home- and community-based remedies in order to mitigate the impact of toxic stress (ACEs) on successful child cognitive and emotional development, including impulsivity, learning difficulties and misbehavior, not to mention diminished physical health outcomes in adulthood. In this workshop, the critically important information about this life- and practice-changing body of research, including ACEs and the ACEs Scale, will be introduced and the clear and present pathways to healing will be presented.