Panel Presentation Considers Urban Education

10/02/2013 

The next discussion in SUNY Cortland’s Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee (CICC) series, a talk focused on urban education, will take its lead from a group who can speak to it best: high school students.

“Perspectives on Urban Education: For Teachers, By Students” takes place at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 8, in Corey Union Exhibition Lounge. Students from the Teaching and Learning Institute at East High School in Rochester, N.Y., will offer the panel presentation, which is free and open to the public.

It follows the year’s CICC book read theme of “Inter/Action,” which suggests all Americans aren’t always given an equal opportunity to tell their story.

The College’s 2013-14 programming is built around the books Our America: Life and Death on the South Side of Chicago, by LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman, and Blasphemy, by Sherman Alexie. In their book, Jones and Newman offer firsthand accounts of life in a Chicago housing project. Alexie’s work includes a collection of short stories that considers America through the eyes of a Native American.

“We thought this presentation would fit perfectly with this year’s theme of ‘Inter/Action,’” said Brian Barrett, an associate professor of foundations and social advocacy and current co-chair for CICC. “As many on this campus are aware, students’ school-based interactions play a critical role in shaping their future opportunities – for better or worse.”

The Teaching and Learning Institute was founded in 1995 to help the Rochester City School District “grow its own” future teachers. Since its inception, the institute has trained more than 200 students with 13 graduates now working in the Rochester City School District. Many others are teaching in various areas of the United States.

High school seniors on the panel will speak firsthand about their experiences in an urban classroom.

They are expected to describe inequities as they relate to access to resources, effective teaching and quality curriculum. They also will discuss their own efforts as actively engaged students and prospective teachers to counter those challenges.

Cortland’s Urban Recruitment of Educators (C.U.R.E.) program provided additional support for the presentation.

The fall semester’s remaining CICC events include:

• Thursday, Oct. 17: Readings from Blasphemy at 7 p.m. in Old Main Colloquium.

• Monday, Oct. 21: Readings from Blasphemy at 4:30 p.m. in Brockway Hall Jacobus Lounge.

• Monday, Nov. 18: A reading by Joe Bruchac, the popular Native American storyteller and writer, at 4:30 p.m. in Brockway Hall Jacobus Lounge.

• Tuesday, Nov. 19: A screening of Beasts of the Southern Wild, a 2012 fantasy drama film nominated for four Academy Awards, at 7 p.m. in Sperry Center, Room 105.

For more information, contact Barrett at 607-753-2330 or CICC co-chair Howard Lindh, scenic designer for performing arts, at 607-753-4101.