Indianapolis
Getting Pepper-Sprayed by School Police Shouldn’t Be a Part of My Job
I have only felt the terrible sting and discomfort of pepper spray one time, and that was when I was teaching and coaching teachers in…
It Will Take More Than a Name Change to Rid Your School of White Supremacy
There is a myriad of disparities and gaps that exist in our society, placing people of color at a disadvantage. We are seeing this play…
Here’s How You Can Prepare Your Children for Remote Instruction
This week, some Indianapolis students will begin the 2020-21 school year. This includes my twin sons. Their district, Washington Township, has decided to reopen remotely.…
I Was the Only Black Teacher, And I Quit My First Job After Six Months
Why would a teacher submit her resignation for her first teaching job out of college in February of that school year? The answer is racism, mistreatment, and…
This Juneteenth I’m Challenging Educators to Emancipate Themselves From a Colonized Curriculum
When Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, this marked the end of slavery in the United States … that is what a lot of people…
Educators, Don’t Be Loud in the Streets, But Silent in the Schools
Amid the horror and sadness of the murder of unarmed Black people at the hands of police officers, we are seeing the coming together of…
Here Are 8 Things That Make a Good School
Educators have difficulty agreeing upon what makes a “good school.” My thoughts about this topic have continued to change as I progressed through K-12, earned…
The Discomfort of White Adults Should Never Take Priority Over the Success of Our Black and Brown Students
“I didn’t come here to teach those kinds of kids.” It’s alarming to think that adults charged with helping students of color succeed in school…
How Lewis Ferebee Is Shifting the Conversation Back to Students in Indianapolis
This is the fourth and final in a series stemming from a Chiefs for Change panel discussion at the National Charter Schools Conference hosted by…
Got Questions About Education Reform? I’ve Heard Them All.
As I travel around the country on a 24-city book tour, giving talks and meeting with education reform leaders and activists, I get a lot…
