Help Educators Build a Road to Success for the Young


Four Tacoma partners offer a free event for students and parents


TACOMA, Wash. – For the first time, parents and guardians are invited to the highly popular day of workshops, talks, and music organized by and for Tacoma youth—the 2012 Youth and Family Summit, on Saturday, April 28, 2012, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The summit features two workshop tracks—one for youth, another for parents and guardians. The last similar event, the 2010 All City Race & Pedagogy Youth Summit, attracted more than 700 students from middle and high schools to a day of workshops aimed at empowering young people to take charge of their own education and preparing them for leadership in a diverse world. This year organizers hope to build on that empowerment.

“Young people who find themselves on the wrong side of the “achievement gap” are often there because it takes a whole community to create the learning environment needed to achieve academic success,” said Noah Prince, co-chair of the summit. “We want parents and guardians to join us in sharing ideas on how to win this success for our youth.”

Prince, partnership administrator at Tacoma 360, is the summit co-chair, alongside Ayanna Drakos, coordinator for REACH (Resources for Education and Career Help). The summit is organized by Tacoma Public Schools, The REACH Center, Tacoma 360, and University of Puget Sound’s Race and Pedagogy Initiative.

2012 Youth and Family Summit
Saturday, April 28, 9 a.m.–4 p.m.
Lincoln High School, 701 S. 37th Street, Tacoma

Free Breakfast and Lunch

Entrance is free. Pre-registration by youth and adults is encouraged at:             www.facebook.com/2012YouthandFamilySummit or www.pugetsound.edu/raceandpedagogy. Registration forms also will be available at all Tacoma public schools.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS:
Michael Benitez Jr., social justice activist, educator, and scholar from Iowa State University, for the youth workshops track
Ed Taylor, vice provost and associate professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at University of Washington, for the parents and guardians workshops track

WORKSHOPS:
More than three dozen workshops will be offered. There will be a rally, music, and dance performance for both youth and families. Sample workshops:
For Students: Creative writing about race, violence toward the perceived “other,” engaging black males, civic engagement, literary diversity in the classroom, and more.
For Parents and Guardians: College preparation, bully prevention, parents as partners in education, parenting strategies, teaching black male learners, and more.

For more information: raceandpedagogy@pugetsound.edu or 253.879.2435

Youth keynote speaker Michael Benitez is a highly engaging presenter who integrates hip hop street-sense, academic inquiry, and personal experience into critiques that expose some of the hidden truths involving race, gender, and injustice.
Parents and guardians speaker Ed Taylor is a dedicated researcher and teacher focused on diversity and leadership in education, who has written on topics including the achievement gap and critical race theory.

Tacoma schools are being invited to bring busloads of students to the event. Organizers also have extensive outreach underway to parents and guardians in the region. The summit will be an event that inspires, informs, and seeks participants’ input on issues related to enhancing the learning environment and helping youth move on to college and successful careers.

“Our young people in Tacoma are their own best resource for ensuring they each achieve the education and the future they want,” said Dexter Gordon, director of the Race and Pedagogy Initiative at University of Puget Sound. “But we need their families too, if we are to shift this mountain that we call public education and make it equitable and highly effective for all. We know it can be shifted. Let’s get started.”

Dexter Gordon, professor of communication and African American studies at Puget Sound; and Pat Erwin, co-principal of Lincoln High School, are co-advisers for the summit; with additional leadership from Karyn Osborne, director of school, family, and community partnerships at Tacoma Public Schools; Brad Brown, principal at First Creek Middle School; Julia Garnett, director of Tacoma 360, and Alice Coil, program specialist with the Race and Pedagogy Initiative.  

Participants will engage with educators both to imagine and recognize possibilities for student success. Everyone will be invited to “look at things as if they could be otherwise” and to explore means for inventing the future. Students will be encouraged to form youth groups that will continue to pursue the education and social justice mission.

SPONSORS of the summit include: Molina Healthcare, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tacoma Public Library, Tacoma Public Schools, Tacoma 360, United Way of Pierce County, and Washington Alliance of Black School Educators.

PRESS CONTACTS:
Shirley Skeel, media relations, University of Puget Sound ph. 253.879.2611, sskeel@pugetsound.edu
Dan Voelpel, public information, Tacoma Public Schools Ph. 253-571-1015, dvoelpe@tacoma.k12.wa.us

Press photos of the 2010 All City Race & Pedagogy Youth Summit can be downloaded from: www.pugetsound.edu/pressphotos
For more information on participating contact the Office of Race and Pedagogy Initiative:  raceandpedagogy@pugetsound.edu or Tel. 253.879.2435.
The schedule of workshops and events will be accessible from these Web pages: www.facebook.com/2012YouthandFamilySummit  and www.pugetsound.edu/raceandpedagogy

The Race and Pedagogy Initiative Community Partners Forum isa partnership organized by the Race and Pedagogy Initiative at University of Puget Sound. It has conducted a series of community events focused on race and education since 2005. It builds alliances and collaborates with individuals and organizations to research, develop, promote, celebrate, and support programs aimed at reducing inequities in education.  To be added to the group’s email list, which includes notices of regional events and program initiatives contact: raceandpedagogy@pugetsound.edu.

Photos on page: Above left: Michael Benitez Jr.; Above right: Ed Taylor; Above left: Students at the 2010 All City Race and Pedagogy Youth Summit at Lincoln High School.

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