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All participants will receive certificates for 6 hours of professional learning

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Join the conversation as we partner with communities to design and implement culturally responsive school change.

In This Week’s Issue

• Join Us Next Week for the ASU Prep Digital Summer Boot Camp Series
• Reflections from Sophia Academy’s Women of Wisdom Celebration
• Know a HS or College Student? The Student Voice Team is Hiring 

Join Us Next Week for the ASU Prep Digital Summer Boot Camp Series

The school year may be ending soon, but educators and leaders can take full advantage of the Arizona Virtual Teacher Institute Summer Boot Camp. This training is provided at no cost to K-12 educators through the generous investment of the Arizona Department of Education, the Governor’s Office, Helios Education Foundation and Arizona State University.

This year’s Summer Boot Camp series offers 18 unique training sessions to choose from. Participants will be immersed in collaborative discussions and engaging tech tools during these live, guided workshops. Sessions began on June 7. Highlander Institute coaches are excited to lead our 3-day interactive event, Success Stories of Culturally Responsive School Change on June 14-16.

Attendees will earn professional development credit while gaining and strengthening the skills they need to succeed next year.

Register for Free

Reflections from Sophia Academy’s Women of Wisdom Celebration

By Christina Corser, Instructional Equity Partner at Highlander Institute

On May 26 I had the pleasure of joining the students and leaders of Sophia Academy for their 2022 Women of Wisdom Celebration. I’ve had the privilege of working with this team as their Instructional Equity Partner for the 2021-2022 school year, focusing on key insights from their Student Experience Survey and focus group responses.

As a last minute addition, I thought I was joining as an enthusiastic observer. I was surprised and delighted when I was offered a chair as a panelist — one of three participants in a student-facilitated protocol. Fifth graders led small groups of other students, faculty, and visitors through a list of questions crafted to get at the heart of empowering and inspiring personal journeys:

• Was your career a lifelong goal, or did you discover it along the way?
• Are there things about your background, your race, or your gender that cause people to assume things about you? How do you deal with people who look at you and jump to conclusions about what you’re capable of?
• Through your hardships, what keeps you going as a leader?
• What advice did your mentors give you to become who you are today?

After small group discussions, we joined as a whole group to share themes and ideas. This was a day with many moving parts that the Sophia Academy team pulled off in such a seamless and meaningful way. Thank you for including my voice and stories and for inviting me to learn and listen with your community leaders.

From Other Organizations

Join the Student Voice Team

Student Voice, a student-led nonprofit organization working to advance educational equity, is hiring high school and college students for part-time positions on their team. Open roles are available for young people with a variety of different interests, including organizing, storytelling and communications. They are also searching for a graphic designer and website administrator, open to both students and adult allies. All positions pay $15/hour at approximately 10 hrs/week depending on personal capacity, with additional opportunities for compensation at a higher rate available. All interested young people are encouraged to apply, regardless of previous professional experience.

Learn More