Creating an Equity Toolkit: Strategies for Individualizing Paths to College and Career Success

Format

Individual Presentation

Presenters

Marina V. Gillmore, Full Circle Press and Educational Outreach CenterFollow

First Presenter's Institution

Full Circle Press and Educational Outreach Center & The University of Redlands

Second Presenter's Institution

N/A

Third Presenter's Institution

N/A

Fourth Presenter's Institution

N/A

Fifth Presenter's Institution

N/A

Location

Harborside East & West

Strand #1

Academic Achievement & School Leadership

Strand #2

Social & Emotional Skills

Relevance

By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
(1) Clearly identify how equity relates to their work in guiding
students to make choices regarding success outcomes and
post-secondary opportunities (Strand I);
(2) Effectively develop a personal framework for Ubuntu education
that connects theoretical principles of community and reciprocity
to practical strategies for meeting the needs of all students
within the current structures of school and community-based
organizations (Strand II);
(3) Create their own equity toolkits to take back to their
workplaces, which will include efficient and effective strategies
for individualizing paths to college and career success for all
students, including those least served by our current systems (Strand I).

Brief Program Description

This interactive workshop will look at how we avoid tracking students and help them identify and pursue postsecondary paths that reflect their unique aspirations, strengths, and needs. Participants will learn strategies for individualizing paths to college and career success and will leave this session with practical, research-based strategies for creating equity toolkits rooted in strength-based and equitable practices.

Summary

According to the National Center of Educational Statistics (2015), by the year 2020, 65 percent of all jobs will require some form of postsecondary education or training. Research also supports the need for more comprehensive, holistic, and long-range programs to ensure that students’ post-secondary paths are aligned with individual student interests, strengths, and goals. This interactive workshop will take a critically reflective look at a fundamental question of our work – how do we avoid tracking students and instead help them identify and pursue postsecondary paths that reflect their unique aspirations, strengths, and needs? Participants will have the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the intersection between who we are, what we believe, and what we do and to look at the impact that our own beliefs and experiences have on our professional practices related to creating postsecondary opportunities for all students. Using foundational principles from the fields of social
justice, equity pedagogy, and Ubuntu education, this session will delve into the current challenges facing our ability to effectively create pathways to college and career success for all youth and will provide practical and research-based strategies for creating equity toolkits as a means of ensuring that the decisions we make regarding students’ postsecondary opportunities are rooted in strength-based and equitable
practices.

Evidence

This workshop will particularly focus on strategies to meet the needs of our most disenfranchised, underserved, and at-risk youth. Participants will engage in a case study simulation and roundtable and jigsaw discussions, among other hands-on activities, to help them create strategies that will work within the frameworks of their existing programs. The session will provide tools that programs can share with families to expand upon program work. Using recent national data, participants will leave with recommendations for best practices to enhance the future postsecondary opportunities of the youth they serve, and will be equipped with strategies and resources they can use immediately with their youth and families. This workshop aligns with best practices in school and community programs that include: (1) a strength-based approach to programming that fosters the relationships and opportunities for all youth to thrive; (2) opportunities for youth to improve their responsibility, autonomy, and leadership; (3) programming that is culturally appropriate and linguistically sensitive; (4) a focus on opportunities for college, career readiness, vocational preparation, and workforce development.

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Marina Gillmore is an educator, author, and social justice thought leader who has built her career around working with youth and teaching, training, researching and writing about equity, social justice, belief and value exploration, and self-efficacy. She holds a doctorate in Leadership for Educational Justice and has conducted award-winning research on the underserved youth in urban environments. Her work as a scholar-practitioner in the field of social justice comes from her passion for deconstructing the complexities of injustices in our society and using the power of the personal story to incite deep conversations and transformations centered around how our perceptions and belief systems impact everything we do. A teacher at heart, Dr. Gillmore has taught extensively in traditional and non-traditional settings at the K-12 and university levels.

Keyword Descriptors

Equity, College and career readiness, Strength-based programming, Counseling, Secondary education, Leadership

Presentation Year

2017

Start Date

3-7-2017 4:00 PM

End Date

3-7-2017 5:30 PM

Recommended Citation

Gillmore, Marina V., "Creating an Equity Toolkit: Strategies for Individualizing Paths to College and Career Success" (2017). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 107.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2017/2017/107