Note to Educators: Hope Required When Growing Roses in Concrete

What are the material conditions that affect urban youth before they even step foot in our schools? What does it mean to develop educational environments that are relevant and responsive to these conditions? How should these educational spaces define success for students and educators?

This talk focuses on developing educators that are better equipped to create educational environments that understand and respond to the social toxins that emerge from inequality. The talk closely examines the types of social toxins that young people face in the broader society and discusses the impact of these conditions on student identities. Inside of this framing, Duncan-Andrade draws from his 18 years as an urban educator to explore the concept of hope, as essential for nurturing urban youth. He identifies three forms of “false hope”—hokey hope, mythical hope, and hope deferred—pervasive in and peddled by many urban schools. These false hopes give way to Duncan-Andrade’s conception of “critical hope,” explained through the description of three necessary elements of educational practice that produce and sustain hope and transformation.

Through the voices of young people and their teachers, and the invocation of powerful metaphor and imagery, Duncan-Andrade proclaims critical hope’s significance for an education that relieves undeserved suffering in communities.

Biography of Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D.

Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Raza Studies and Education at San Francisco State University and Director of the Educational Equity Initiative at the Institute for Sustainable Economic, Educational, and Environmental Design (ISEEED). In addition to these duties, he continues as a high school teacher in East Oakland where for the past 20 years he has practiced and studied the use of critical pedagogy in urban schools.  Duncan-Andrade has lectured around the world about the elements of effective teaching in schools serving poor and working class children. He has authored two books and numerous journal articles and book chapters on the conditions of urban education, urban teacher support and development, and effective pedagogy in urban settings.

NECC Student Speakers:

Robert Flete, Criminal Justice Jarvis Castro, Business Emmanuel Hernandez, Liberal Arts: Psychology option Lizmary Mota, Business Administration: Healthcare option

The Circle Game:

Performed by Lawrence High School Theater Department Students This production is a story of misunderstanding and the recognition that outsiders may judge someone based on where they live and how they look and that judgment may keep that person from achieving their potential. The play explores some simple realities of urban living. It follows several teenagers whose lives are shaped by the situations around them; the harsh realities of urban living and the struggles within our society to survive, overcome, and move up in the world. The piece ends with a short monologue from the main character (Victor) who tells the audience, “Next time you read a magazine, open a newspaper, watch the news, or drive through a new city, think to yourself… Are your judgments keeping us in our circle?” The Lawrence High School Theater Department has an exciting opportunity in August of 2013. We have been invited to participate at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, the largest theater festival in the world.

Registration Information:

• Full-Time Faculty Do NOT need to register

Program