Blog Puerto Rico — International Conference on Urban Education 2016
In November 2016, five GYO candidates attended the International Conference on Urban Education to share their personal testimonials that they created during the course of the GYO Testimony Project. The Project was a year-long endeavor to help GYO candidates and teachers begin to recognize and identify the unique gifts and cultural capital they bring to the classroom as educators and future educators of color. The Project’s work was captured on a standalone website: teachertestimonyproject.com.
Quote from Omar Johnson:
“I walked away from this conference empowered, confident as well as encouraged about the future of urban education. I remain committed to earning my Teachers Degree and working to change the landscape in Urban Education, one child, at this time.”
From Fawn Pochel:
“I’m continually grateful for the opportunities provided to me through Grow Your Own (GYO). Aside from helping me navigate my way into college after an 8-year hiatus from school; GYO continues to expand my networks, professionalism, and lived experiences. GYO paved the way for me and other Candidates to start working with Conra Gist (Ph.D. University of Arkansas) on the Teacher Testimony Project (TTP). As an Indigenous person in Chicago, I know how hard it is to be visible not only on a professional level but in everyday life. The experience of writing my personal testimony was difficult and cathartic from finding a flow to the idea of opening myself up to people, I may never meet. However, with the support of GYO and the TTP, I was able to stay focused on the importance of sharing my own story and representing my family and community. Since I’ve currently taken on a leadership role facilitating the current round of testimony writing sessions and helping to write a book proposal for the project. The TTP has since launched a website and presented at the International Conference on Urban Education (ICUE).”
Due to the overwhelming encouragement from GYO 6 of the 8 candidates who completed the first rounds of testimonies were able to present in Puerto Rico at ICUE in a room full of academics leading the way in creating innovative pedagogies and methodologies for the betterment of Urban Education. The TTP is a tool to help Teachers and Teacher Candidates of Color elevate our voices through writing and sharing stories that feature the strength, values, and capital of our communities. I believe that representation matters in order to push back on the stereotypes and oppression of colonial constructs within public education. GYO and the TTP provide platforms for us to share our stories and continue to work as change agents in and for our communities.
Presenting and attending ICUE help me to realize the gravity of our work and worth outside of Chicago. We were given an overwhelming amount of support from people who were able to attend our breakout session. A repeated theme of the conference was in order for Urban Education to move forward we must focus on community building. Each and every community, school, and classroom are unique and as educators, we must take on the responsibility of incorporating restorative narratives in our work. We must learn to be confident in our networks and build support around our youth. We must extend ourselves outside of our comfort zones in order to create a safe learning environment for our students. Most importantly I’ve come to realize that we must step back and allow our students to teach us if we ever want to bridge the gap between home and school life. Being in a space knowing that each and every attendee is dedicated to our urban youth reaching their full potential has been one of the most astounding experiences of my life, being in Puerto Rico added to the beauty of the experience.