Supporting Teachers of Color Through Affinity Groups

There has been a recent push to hire more Teachers of Color (TOC). Yet, these efforts need to be accompanied by support for TOC. Affinity groups can support and retain TOC. This session will explore the importance of affinity groups and how to facilitate affinity groups in school districts.

Presenter:  Emily Dech, Hamline University

Emily Dech is a second grade teacher in St. Paul, a Teacher of Color, and a graduate student at Hamline University. I am half-Chinese and never saw myself in my education growing up. I did not have any Teachers of Color and was not represented in my school’s curriculum. I don’t want any of my students to experience that. Instead of mulling over how I didn’t fit into my education, I wondered how to create a space for fellow Teachers of Color and me. This project on affinity groups is the result of this curiosity.

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How to Racially and Ethnically Diversify the Educator Workforce: Local Guidance for Minnesota Schools

This session will provide educators with an understanding of why the educator workforce needs to be racially and ethnically diversified, a theory of action for how to diversify the educator workforce, and practical insights on how to implement various diversification strategies based on interviews with fellow Minnesota educators.

Presenters:  Coy Carter, University of Minnesota and Alyssa Parr, University of Minnesota

Coy Carter, Jr. is a doctoral candidate in Education Policy and Leadership at the University of Minnesota advised by Dr. Muhammad Khalifa. His primary research examines school choice policies, race, and space. He also works with Dr. Katie Pekel and the Wisconsin Minnesota Comprehensive Center providing technical assistance to the Minnesota Department of Education on racially and ethnically diversifying the educator workforce.

Alyssa Parr is a research associate at the Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement (CAREI) at the University of Minnesota. She leads CAREI’s research and outreach with the Minnesota Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System (SLEDS) and works on various evaluation and technical assistance projects focused on racial and ethnic diversification of the educator workforce and supporting postsecondary students with a demonstrated financial need.

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Calling on the Collective “We” to Create Something Better than the MTLE

What can we do about the MTLEs? To answer this question, come learn about the recommendations of the PELSB Assessment and Accountability workgroup and learn ways to support policy change in an effort to increase the percentage of TOCAIT on Tier 3/4 licenses in Minnesota schools!

Presenters:  Regina Seabrook, TOCAIT, PELSB Assessment and Accountability Workgroup and Jamie Utt-Schumacher, University of Minnesota, PELSB Assessment and Accountability Workgroup

Regina Seabrook, a member of the Coalition to Increase Teachers of Color and American Indian Teachers Core Steering Committee and a 2010 Finalist for Minnesota Teacher of the Year, recently piloted a professional development series for HR professionals focused on the retention of Teachers of Color and American Indian Teachers. She earned degrees in sociology from Hamline University and social studies education from the University of Minnesota, a Master’s Degree in Education from Hamline University and her principal and superintendent credentials from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota. She is currently working on a doctorate at the University of Minnesota. Jamie Utt-Schumacher is a PhD candidate in Teaching, Learning, and Sociocultural Studies at the University of Arizona where he studies the impact of police presence on the learning and discipline outcomes for Students of Color. He is also the Accountability Analyst for the Office of Teacher Education at the University of Minnesota. He has been an activist for equity and justice in K-12 schooling for nearly two decades, and he has published widely on the subject with a particular emphasis on the role White educators can play in realizing more just and equitable schools.

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Re-Imagining Education: An Interactive Workshop

We will focus on building community and engaging in solution-brainstorming to transform the current system of education. We’ll share our personal experiences, both within and outside of education systems, and discuss ways to re-imagine education. We will engage in conversation about action and implementation steps to realize our collective dreams.

Presenter:  Mariana Morgan-Sawyer

Mariana is a Saint Paul-based artist and educator. She works with a local non-profit organization called Irreducible Grace Foundation, which focuses on creating safe and healing spaces with young people of color by sharing mind-body medicine tools and information to regulate our nervous systems and heal from trauma. Mariana is a full-time employee for Roseville Area Schools Out of School Time and works in an elementary school. Her background is in Black Box Theater, organizing, music, and youth work. She is on the fast-track to parenthood, expecting her first child this summer, and is passionate about education and equity.

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Continuing the Conversation on the Coalition's Legislation Work for the 2023 Legislative Session

Come take a look at the 2021/22 Increase Teachers of Color Act, and provide feedback about what the Coalition should advocate for in the 2023 legislative session depending or not depending on results of the November elections.

Presenter:  Paul Spies, Coalition Legislative Action Team Lead

Paul Spies has led the Coalition's legislative advocacy each year since 2016 legislative session, after joining with other educators, teacher educators and community leaders to found the Coalition. He is Dean of the School of Urban Education at Metro State University where he served as one of the original faculty members of the Urban Teacher Program from 2001-2021.