TACOMA, Wash. – Giving youth the tools and inspiration to direct their own education—that is the aim of the 2010 All-City Race and Pedagogy Youth Summit, an event that will attract hundreds of students to Lincoln High School in Tacoma on Saturday, Oct. 23. The full day of workshops, music, food, and “real talk” will run 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m. It is open to all young people interested in learning about and talking about the critical issues of race, education, and acting to eliminate racism.

The Youth Summit will bring together high school and middle school students, along with college students, educators, and community leaders to engage in workshops and discussions stemming from the theme of the Race and Pedagogy National Conference to be held at University of Puget Sound, Oct. 28–30: “Teaching and Learning for Justice: Danger and Opportunity in Our Critical Moment.”

Workshops will cover issues such as educational access and experiences, student identity, the role of culture and history, civic engagement, and building healthy communities. The many workshops include:

  • “The More Things Change, The More They Stay the Same: The ‘Dolls Study’ 50 Years After Brown v. Board of Education”
  •  “WORD UP: Writing What You Don’t Know”
  •  “Live Your Life, Don’t Be a Statistic: The School to Prison Pipeline”
  •  “Killer at large: Health and Nutrition”
  • “Afro-Latin Connections in Contemporary Music”
  • “Be a Part of the Movement!”

The day will begin with breakfast, music by Puget Sound’s Voci d’Amici choral group, and a rally, with youth advocate and educational access consultant Linda Bautista as the kick-off speaker. Multiple workshops and a lunchtime resource fair to provide students with university and community contacts will follow.

The day’s presenters will include students, artists, teachers, writers, professors, and community mentors. The closing rally, energized with hip-hop music and dance, will be led by Anthony Kelley, former Rose Bowl Husky player and director of diversity outreach at University of Washington, Bothell. The evening will end at The Grand Cinema for a free screening of the controversial Waiting for Superman, plus a discussion about the film.

The All-City Race and Pedagogy Youth Summit is sponsored by University of Puget Sound Race and Pedagogy Initiative and the initiative’s Community Partners Forum, Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, Washington State Commission on African American Affairs, and the College Success Foundation.

For more information and to register for the Oct. 23 All-City Race and Pedagogy Youth Summit, please send an e-mail message to RPyouth.summit@gmail.com or telephone 253.879.3506.

For details on the Web visit:  www.pugetsound.edu/raceandpedagogy

Lincoln High School is located at 701 S.37th Street, Tacoma, Wash.

Photo top right: Antonio Davidson-Gómez, percussionist and Youth Summit workshop presenter

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