Let 2022 Be the Year We Go All In on Anti-Racist Education

As a new year begins, racism and hate are very much prevalent within our school communities and our society as a whole. Yet, we still…

When Charters Grow From Communities, They Can and Do Increase Equity

BES (Build, Excel, Sustain) started its Fellowship program 20 years ago to support school leaders with the preparation and professional development they needed to design,…

I’m Afraid of How Many Black Students Have Been Convinced They Are Stupid by Educators Who Lack Equity Training

On the last day of third grade, all my classmates and I huddled onto a carpet much too small for children of our size, waiting…

Q&A: New Orleans Is Taking a New Approach to Find Its Next Superintendent

Ethan Ashley is the president of the Orleans Parish School Board, which regained full control of New Orleans public schools on July 1, 2018. New…

These 5 Anti-Racist Books Will Help Level Up Your School’s Professional Development

Over the past year, I have been able to read a ton of great books focused on social justice, culturally relevant pedagogy, and disrupting white…

Like James Baldwin Said, ‘A Teacher Who Is Not Free to Teach Is Not a Teacher’

The great James Baldwin once stated, “A teacher who is not free to teach, is not a teacher.”  As many of you already know, there…

15 Questions That Predominantly White Schools Should Ask When Engaging in Non-Performative Anti-Racist Work

Last week, I had a consulting call with a potential client (a white teacher), who teaches in a predominantly white school/neighborhood and wants to engage…

You Don’t Have to Be a Critical Race Scholar to Apply a Critical Race Lens to Your Practice

In education, we have a tendency to overcomplicate things by getting caught up with sophisticated academic jargon for things that, I believe, are common sense. …

5 Books to Engage Young People on Race This Summer

With a national debate raging about how—or even if—teachers should discuss race in their classrooms, many educators may find themselves uncertain about how to navigate the subject…

We Owe It to Our Students to Do Some Racial Justice Homework This Summer

This has been the longest year of my teaching career. Not literally, of course. Like many of you, I’ve worked about 200 days since last…