July 27, 2023, will bring together a rock-star lineup of speakers at the 21CSLA and Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) Learn. Lead. Liberate. conference! Sessions will cover a wide variety of topics related to equity and educator well-being.
Keynote Speaker: Zaretta Hammond
Zaretta Hammond, M.A. is a national consultant and author of Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students (Corwin, 2015).
She is a former high school and community college expository writing instructor. For the past 20 years, she has supported schools and other institutions in deepening their understanding and application of culturally responsive practices. She currently runs the Culturally Responsive Education by Design Online PLC, a 6-month intensive, inquiry-based professional learning experience to build instructional capacity to use culturally responsive tools and practices effectively.
Ms. Hammond is a strong literacy advocate who sits on the Board of Trustees for the Center for the Collaborative Classroom. She is also a member of the advisory board for the Consortium for Reading Education (CORE).
Closing Speaker: Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D.
Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D., is a Professor of Latina/o Studies and Race and Resistance Studies at San Francisco State University. He was a founder of the Roses in Concrete Community School, a community responsive lab school in East Oakland (www.rosesinconcrete.org) and has been a classroom teacher and school leader in East Oakland (CA) for the past 29 years. Duncan-Andrade’s pedagogy has been widely studied and acclaimed for producing uncommon levels of social and academic success for students. He lectures around the world and has authored numerous journal articles and book chapters on effective practices in schools. He has written three books, his most recent just being released with Harvard Press in August 2022. In 2016, Duncan-Andrade was part of the great educators invited to the White House on National Teacher Appreciation Day by President Obama, and in 2019 he was chosen as the Laureate for the prestigious Brock International Prize in Education. In 2021, he was selected to join the Board of Prevent Child Abuse America. Duncan-Andrade has also been ranked as one of the nation’s most influential scholars by EdWeek’s Public Influence Rankings.
Duncan-Andrade’s transformational work on the elements of effective teaching in schools is recognized throughout the U.S. and as far abroad as New Zealand. His research interests and publications span the areas of youth wellness, culturally and community responsive pedagogy, trauma responsiveness, curriculum change, teacher development and retention, and cultural and Ethnic Studies. He works closely with teachers, school site leaders, union leaders and school district officials to help them develop community responsive classroom practices and school cultures that foster wellness, self-love, confidence, and academic success among all students. Duncan-Andrade holds a Ph.D. in Social and Cultural Studies in Education and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Literature, both from the University of California – Berkeley.
Michael Fullan: The Role of the Principal in Developing the Local System
Michael Fullan, Order of Canada, is the former Dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, and Professor Emeritus of the University of Toronto. He is co-leader of the New Pedagogies for Deep Learning global initiative (www.deep-learning.global). Fullan served as Premier Dalton McGuinty’s Special Policy Adviser in Ontario from 2003-2013. He received the Order of Canada (OC) in December 2012 and holds five honorary doctorates from universities around the world. His ‘interim autobiography’, Surreal Change, covers his pre-Covid-19 Pandemic period to 2018. Michael and his colleagues are now working diligently on field-based comprehensive system change in several countries. Under the umbrella of what they call the ‘humanity paradigm’ —equitable-equal deep change that integrates local (school and community), middle (district/regional), and centre (policy) entities. Michael Fullan’s latest books are: Spirit Work and the Science of Collaboration (with Mark Edwards, 2022), The Principal 2.0 (2023), and The Drivers (with Joanne Quinn, 2023).
Dr. Sharroky Hollie: Six Ways to Know If You Are Culturally and Linguistically Responsive
Dr. Sharroky Hollie is a national educator who provides professional development to thousands of educators in the area of cultural responsiveness. Since 2000, Dr. Hollie has trained over 150,000 educators and worked in nearly 2,000 classrooms. Going back 25 years, he has been a classroom teacher at the middle and high school levels, a central office professional development coordinator in Los Angeles Unified School District, a school founder and administrator, and university professor in teacher education at Cal State University. Sharroky has also been a visiting professor for Webster University in St. Louis and a guest lecturer at Stanford and UCLA.
Jennifer Abrams: Becoming an Educational Leader Who Is a Warrior for the Human Spirit
Jennifer Abrams is an international educational and communications consultant for public and independent schools, universities and non-profits. Jennifer trains and coaches teachers, administrators and others on new teacher/employee support, having hard conversations, collaboration skills and being your best adult self at work. In her over two decades at Palo Alto Unified School District (Palo Alto, CA, USA), Jennifer was a high school English teacher, new teacher coach, and professional development facilitator. She left PAUSD in 2012 to start her full time communications consultancy in which she works with schools and organizations around the globe. Jennifer presents at annual North American-based conferences such as Learning Forward, ASCD, NASSP, NAESP, AMLE, ISACS and the New Teacher Center Annual Symposium among others. Internationally, she facilitated with the Teachers’ and Principals’ Centers for International School Leadership (TTC and PTC) and presents with EARCOS, NESA, ECIS, AISA, AMISA, CEESA and Tri-Association, and consults with schools across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, South America and Canada. Jennifer’s publications include Having Hard Conversations, The Multigenerational Workplace: Communicating, Collaborating & Creating Community and Hard Conversations Unpacked – the Whos, the Whens and the What Ifs, Swimming in the Deep End: Four Foundational Skills for Leading Successful School Initiatives, and her newest book, Stretching Your Learning Edges: Growing (Up) at Work. Jennifer has been recognized as one of “21 Women All K-12 Educators Need to Know” by Education Week’s ‘Finding Common Ground’ blog. She considers herself a “voice coach,” helping others learn how to best use their voices – be it collaborating on a team, presenting in front of a group, coaching a colleague, supervising an employee.
Dr. Jaron Fried: The Role of the Principal in Developing the Local System
Dr. Jaron Fried currently serves as the Assistant Superintendent, Educational Services for the Anaheim Union High School District. Dr. Fried oversees the implementation of the district’s framework to ensure all students in AUHSD are provided with quality instruction grounded in 21st century skills and receive the support needed to ensure college, career and life success. Whether through civic engagement trainings, teacher reflective learning walks or professional learning community (PLC) structures, Dr. Fried has made the focus of all professional learning clear and intentional, resulting in a positive shift with the instructional pedagogy more aligned to the world of work. Previously, Dr. Fried served as the Assistant Superintendent, Human Resources and as a senior high and junior high principal.
ataaxum Pomkwaan, Inc.: Choo’onum Noneshkinum: All My Relations
With 25 years’ experience teaching, mentoring, and facilitating in education and community spaces, ‘ataaxum Pomkwaan’s work honors their ancestors who survived government sanctioned genocides so they may thrive today. Their obligation is to serve the grandchildren and great grandchildren of their ancestors in the most intentional and meaningful ways. ‘ataaxum Pomkwaan provides their communities with resources centered around healing and improved mental health for the continued survival of California’s Native and Indigenous peoples; their languages, customs, and histories. Honored guests, United ‘ataaxum, a group of exceptional young people from Southern California reservations, will share the good work they are doing and their vision for our collective futures. They are grateful to have you join in this journey with them.
Jordan Harrison: Developing Liberating Spaces with Students
Jordan Harrison is a professional speaker, DEI consultant, and international youth development specialist born in Chicago, IL. He earned his BS from San Diego State and his Master in Education from Harvard University. Most importantly, he is a disruptor to make a difference. He lives a mission-driven life focused on eradicating inequality with the constant reminder of our collective shared humanity. His work has allowed him to speak to over 250,000 people in boardrooms, classrooms, prisons, and conferences on anti-racism, equity, inclusion, and how to build people and institutions to thrive across differences. He is the former Vice President of Community Impact and Partnerships at Reality Changers where he has worked with over 5,000 8th-12th grade first-generation, low-income college-bound students in San Diego who attend universities around the world. In addition to his work with students and families, he works with Fortune 500 companies, educational institutions and nonprofits to solve their most pressing equity challenges seeking to solve how we can create environments where every person can succeed, no matter where they come from. Currently, he is the global strategy leader of Inclusion at Vertex, where he designs environments and opportunities where everyone can thrive and oversees the STEM outreach program in partnership with Title 1 Schools. In addition, he is a Ph.D. student in education at UC San Diego. Harrison is committed to the challenging work of transforming hearts, minds, and systems to change our conditions and rewrite our conclusions. Harrison continues his work in transforming lives, communities, and the world with the message to encourage others to live out the conviction that our conditions are not our conclusions.
Tawny Laskar: Envisioning Equitable TK Classrooms
Working in public and charter schools for over 20 years, Tawny has remained committed to championing for equity in communities that continue to experience marginalization. She has worked as a classroom teacher, curriculum developer and coach, and consultant for national education reform. Most recently, she co-founded and served as principal of a groundbreaking charter school in South Los Angeles, just miles from her childhood neighborhood. Tawny received her Master’s in Education through UCLA’s Principal Leadership Institute and her Master’s in Early Childhood Education, grades TK-5, from Georgia State University.
Carrie Usui Johnson: Envisioning Equitable TK Classrooms
Carrie Usui Johnson is the Director of Coaching Partnerships at UCLA Center X with over 20 years of experience as a teacher, district curriculum specialist, coach, national professional development presenter, and university administrator. Through her work at Center X, Carrie has supported the development of a highly regarded coaching community and partners with urban schools and districts across Los Angeles County to support coaching, leadership development, and whole school transformation efforts focused on equity. Carrie is also a Training Associate for Thinking Collaborative in the work of Adaptive Schools© and an Agency Trainer for Cognitive CoachingSM.
Krystal Wu: A Deeper Dive into Collective Care and Healing
A Program Associate with the Resilient and Healthy Schools and Communities team, Krystal Wu (she/her) delivers technical assistance, designs professional learning, and develops evidence-based resources to cultivate safe and supportive learning environments. With expertise in culturally responsive and sustaining education, co-design, and school climate, Wu centers the voices and experiences of community members in all of her work, especially those who have been kept furthest from opportunity.Wu’s recent work at WestEd has focused on the design and facilitation of humanizing learning experiences. She currently leads the Safe and Supportive Learning Environments Deep Dive professional learning courses focused on racial equity and belonging through the Center to Improve Social and Emotional Learning and School Safety and the California Center for School Climate. Prior to joining WestEd, Wu worked as an equity coach and an instructional coach and has over 10 years of experience as an award-winning secondary English Language Arts teacher. She collaborated with key community members to develop a multi-year vision for PK-12 antiracist curriculum and instruction and designed and led an equity-focused professional learning series for faculty and staff members.Krystal received her BA in English and Women’s and Gender Studies from Santa Clara University and her MA in Education from UC Berkeley.
Arrowyn Ambrose, Lumos Transforms: A Deeper Dive into Collective Care and Healing
Arrowyn Ambrose is an Advanced Certified Facilitator and one of the Certification Trainers of The Resilience Toolkit. She is also certified as a Teaching Artist, Race Equity and Healing Justice Facilitator, and Storytelling Circle Facilitator. With a background in creative non-fiction and performing arts, Arrowyn believes in the healing power of story and is passionate about ethical storytelling along with trauma-informed and resilience-oriented recovery from substance misuse and behavior compulsion. Based on her experience of over two decades in recovery, she teaches The Resilience Toolkit for Recovery at Lumos and speaks quite often about the importance of a trauma-informed approach in all recovery programs and healing modalities. Arrowyn began her career as the Program Director of The Young Storytellers in 2008, a theatrical writing and production program for elementary-aged children. In 2013 she created Story Circles, a responsive and powerful social-emotional program that used improvisational games, poetry, personal narrative, and storytelling circle processes to create “pockets of compassion” where high school students, youth impacted by oppressive systems, teachers, and administration could practice compassion, connection, and courage. Other work took her into maximum security prisons, probation camps, and social justice organizations to work with marginalized and often forgotten stories. She is currently on staff at Lumos Transforms as the Community Programs Coordinator and Certification Trainer while also in partnership development, clinical services, and communications. She works with individuals to aid them in long-term recovery as well as organizations to effect lasting transformational change. She has a degree in liberal studies from Antioch University with an emphasis on creative non-fiction, addiction studies, and urban justice. She is also completing certification in Hakomi.
Dr. Jaime Romo: Exploring Roles in Liberatory Leadership
Jaime Romo is a Minister for Healing and Healthy Environments at Pilgrim United Church of Christ in Carlsbad, CA, and a hospice chaplain at Kaiser Permanente in San Diego. Dr. Romo integrates a background in teacher education and Trauma Informed Care with group relations work. Most recently he has been a leader in training Trauma Incident Reduction Facilitators. He is the lead author of Toward Cultural Democracy: The Journey from Knowledge to Action in Diverse Classrooms and Reclaiming Democracy: Multicultural Educators’ Journeys Toward Transformative Teaching, as well as various articles on educational equity and inclusion. Since 2008, Dr. Romo has been a certified consultant and director for group relations conferences, most recently at California State University, Dominguez Hills, Activism as a Spiritual Practice. He was a member of the team that was awarded the 2023 Helen Dunbar Award, for group relations professional development with the College of Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy.
Cheryl Getz, EdD: Exploring Roles in Liberatory Leadership
Cheryl Getz is an Associate Professor in the Department of Leadership Studies at the University of San Diego (USD). She previously held a variety of administrative positions at USD including Director of Graduate Programs, Associate Dean and Department Chair. She is a certified ICF (International Coach Federation) coach working with a range of clients, and she has coordinated, designed, and facilitated a variety of leadership and diversity programming for graduate and undergraduate students, athletic teams, and other mid to senior level leaders. She has been involved in equity work for over twenty years and has been instrumental in recruiting, hiring, promoting and retaining students and employees from underrepresented groups. Over the years, she has remained committed to addressing systemic racism and oppressive practices in education. Dr. Getz has been working with the collective unconscious in her work for over fifteen years, and this informs her teaching, coaching and group facilitation. In her work she integrates a systems approach as well as a variety of reflexive strategies with clients to encourage examining their various identities and to understand the impact of power and privilege individually and collectively. She designs, facilitates and teaches leadership courses, workshops and programs that include mindfulness, somatic exercises, guided imagery, and team building. Her life experiences have led her to believe in the power of intuition and inner knowing, which continues to inform and enhance her work with students and clients. With her unique approach to learning, her students engage with research topics using action inquiry as a way of integrating awareness and introspection becoming reflective practitioners and leadership scholars. Her clients benefit from deepening their capacity for making meaning of various life challenges.
JEDI Parent Panel: Parenting to Transgress: Employing JEDI Practices to Center Minoritized Needs While Combating Resistance
As school districts are increasingly under attack from fringe groups wanting to ban CRT, censor books in school libraries, engage in anti-Blackness and erasure, limit visibility of LGBTQ+ and maintain the status quo, the Palomar Council PTA JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) Committee is working to keep pushing for progress and the centering of marginalized groups in their fight for justice and equity in our schools. Dhalia Balmir, Casey Doan, Dr. Cindy Barreda Shurr Maria Figueroa, and Marina Fleming are participating in the panel.
Michael C. Kimball: Leading from the Front: A Team Approach to School Safety
Michael C. Kimball has over 30 years of experience as a sworn law enforcement officer in the State of California. Michael helped to co-develop the Monterey Peninsula Regional S.W.A.T. team and was both a Tactical Commander and later the Logistics Commander for the Team. Michael Co-Authored one of the State of California’s First Active Shooter Protocols back in the early 1990s and again post-Columbine. Michael has served on nationally recognized Safety and Survival programs as an instructor and as a consultant for In the Line of Duty and Caliber Press Street Survival. Michael Teaches Officer safety and Survival, Situational Awareness, and Ambush Mitigation along with other related topics for California POST, California STC, DOJ, the Military, and a number of School Districts. Michael taught a leadership course through Cal State Long Beach in which supervisory level law enforcement obtain units towards their bachelor’s degree or their master’s degree. In 1989 Michael Founded his company and in 2000 his company formally became M.C. Kimball and Associates, LLC. Michael is a Nationally Certified Instructor in Option Based Training to Mitigate Active Killers and has traveled around the nation with Homeland Security since 2010 conducting train-the-trainer for School Districts, Hospitals, Businesses, Churches, and the Hospitality Industry both in English and Spanish. In 2021 Michael and his executive team of experts developed the We’ve Got Your Back ™ Program (A Team Approach to School Safety) which is a trauma-informed practice, inclusive, safety training program for students.
Dr. Summer Prather-Smith: Leading from the Front: A Team Approach to School Safety
Dr. Prather-Smith has over two decades of work in public education. Her path into education started with her desire to work with, and learn from, historically underserved communities. Through this work, Dr. Prather-Smith has had the opportunity to work closely with diverse families, schools, and communities to create school and community engagement opportunities that have changed the way schools define engagement, and that build meaningful two-way connection between families and schools. Dr. Prather-Smith has spent the past 27 years working within California public education in the fields of social work, primary and secondary education, special education, administration, and campus safety/culture. Her experience at all levels within education has provided her with the knowledge and skills to not only engage families, but also to support school staff, general education teachers, and school/district administrators in meeting the diverse educational and social/emotional needs of students, families, and community partners.
Eve Sanchez: Leading in Allyship for the LGBTQIA+ Community
Eve (eh-v-eh) Sanchez’s pronouns are they/them/theirs. They are a first generation American and a first-generation university graduate. I was born and raised in East LA occupying Tongva and Chumash land. As a Community School Coordinator with Los Angeles Education Partnership, They are able to exercise beliefs of love, liberation, and self-determination. They use the whole student approach in creating student-centered, school wide initiatives, and programming that are informed by needs assessments and community voice to increase student engagement, leadership, development, social emotional wellness, academic gains, and a sense of belonging.
Liliana Bataz: Leading in Allyship for the LGBTQIA+ Community
Liliana Bataz’s pronouns are she/her. She grew up in East Los Angeles and currently lives there. She is a Community School Coordinator at LAEP for Ford Blvd Elementary. She is dedicated to supporting the students and parents in my community of East Los Angeles. She believes in creating inclusive learning environments where every child can thrive and feel safe. She also believes in collaboration between community members and local partnerships, to create a positive impact on the lives of the students and families to ensure they have the tools and support they need to succeed and promote equity.
Abdul Issa: 21CSLA SoCal Collective: An Ecosystem of Learning for Leaders
Abdul-Rehman Mohammed Issa is the LAEP CORE Project Manager and a PhD student in the Department of Education Studies at the University of California, San Diego. He came to both this role and his studies after a career as an educator in the Los Angeles area. He taught English in a Mild/Moderate Special Education setting before transitioning out of the classroom and into administrative roles as a Dean of Students, Assistant Principal and then Co-Principal. He holds a Master’s in School Leadership from California State University, Dominguez Hills. His research interests lie in equitable and socially just trauma-informed interventions for youth, the burgeoning role of teachers as first responders to secondary trauma, and in transformative leadership that centers equity and liberation.
Jenny Vu: Reframing Innovative Youth- Centered, Youth-Empowered Programming & Initiatives in a Community School
As a former refugee and first-generation college graduate, Jenny is passionate about utilizing holistic and strength-based approaches in creating equitable opportunities for underserved communities. With nearly 20 years of program management and leadership experience in LA’s nonprofit sector, she has shaped and led the design and implementation of a breadth of dynamic student-centered programs that advance educational equity, and increase higher education, social-emotional learning, youth development, and quality of life outcomes. As the Community Schools Director at LAEP, Jenny is committed to catalyzing effective and thoughtful systems, programs, and partnerships that honor intersectionality and drive sustainable impact. She holds a B.A. in psychology and social behavior and a minor in education from UC Irvine, and a Master of Social Work from USC.
Thank you to the 21st Century California School Leadership Academy (21CSLA) for their support of this conference. 21CSLA is a statewide network of collaboration and shared resilience-building, providing high-quality, equity-centered professional learning for educational leaders at no cost to them.
LAEP is the 21CSLA Regional Academy provider for Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial, Orange, and San Diego Counties. LAEP’s CORE (Cultivating Organizational Resilience & Empowerment) program is the base for 21CSLA professional learning, communities of practice, and one-to-one coaching in the region. LAEP’s CORE programming is designed to jumpstart and support a sustainable culture of staff well-being, which is critical to a healthy and equitable school climate. We focus on dismantling inequitable systems so true well-being can exist for educators and students, both individually and as a collective.