Rooted in Wisdom: Harnessing Black Parent Power for Culture Affirmation and Justice

Format

Individual Presentation

Format

Individual Presentation

Presenters

Jasmine Murphy, Village of WisdomFollow
Carlton Johnson, Village of WisdomFollow

First Presenter's Institution

Village of Wisdom

First Presenter’s Email Address

jmurphy@villageofwisdom.org

First Presenter's Brief Biography

Jas is a dedicated program manager and school liaison with a background in education. As a former educator, Jas brings a wealth of experience and passion to her current role, advocating for the needs of schools and her community. A proud dog mom, Jas is committed to social justice and firmly supports pro-choice values. She is a strong advocate for equality, tirelessly working to ensure that Black educators, families, and children receive the recognition and opportunities they deserve.

Second Presenter's Institution

Village of Wisdom

Second Presenter’s Email Address

cjohnson@villageofwisdom.org

Second Presenter's Brief Biography

Carlton Johnson is a passionate social worker based in Durham, NC, where he is deeply committed to nurturing and strengthening the fabric of Black families. With a heart dedicated to healing, his work is not just his profession; it’s a calling to inspire collective empowerment and individual wellness through community-driven initiatives that echo the voices and experiences of those he serves. Outside of his work, Carlton is an avid podcast listener and finds solace and rejuvenation in nature, engaging in outdoor activities. You can also find him sharing cherished moments alongside his spouse and their beloved dog.

Submitter

I am submitting this proposal as one of the presenter(s)

Location

Vernon

Strand #1

Head: Academic Achievement & Leadership

Strand #2

Heart: Social & Emotional Skills

Relevance

1. Head/Hands: In order to close the opportunity gap of black students and improve academic outcomes, VOW has created Instructional Liberation, which is one of VOW’s 4 strategic approaches to combat systemic racism within education. By creating a classroom environment that affirms the cultural identity of Black students, we then improve student-teacher relationships, student motivation, learner confidence and more.These factors then improve academic and socio-emotional outcomes. Instructional Liberation allows for trained Black parents to evaluate curricula, observe and evaluate instructional practices, and inform educational decisions to validate the necessary components needed to affirm a Black child. Post evaluation, parents have the skills and knowledge to create suggestions on how the curriculum can be modified to better suit the identities of Black learners. If adapted, we believe that there will be a long term effect on Black student confidence, leadership and academic outcomes.

2. Heart/Health:As parents perform the liberatory work of VOW, we identified that the environment must be one that is conducive to their own growth and peace. How can Black parents work to fight against oppression while operating in a world molded by the White Supremacy Complex (WSC)? Our RITES framework is essentially the antithesis of WSC, and outlines the necessary environment to feed the Black Body and Black Soul.An environment that prioritizes Rest, Interrogation, Transformation Expression and Support is one that can create corrective emotional experiences for Black parents after years of race related stress and trauma, give them the freedom to create new patterns for future generations and give them the power to free themselves from the shackles of the WSC.

Brief Program Description

This presentation introduces Village of Wisdom’s strategies and goal, focusing on instructional liberation and RITES (Rest Interrogation Transformation Expression Support). It highlights the importance of creating classroom environments that affirm Black students’ cultural identities and emphasizes the crucial role of parental involvement in fostering meaningful change.

Summary

This presentation will introduce the Village of Wisdom (VOW) framework for creating culturally affirming learning environments that support the identity, well-being, and academic success of Black youth. Grounded in a commitment to instructional liberation, the vow framework provides educators and advocates with practical models and strategies to recognize and nurture the cultural strengths of Black students, thus fostering an environment where they feel valued, seen, and empowered.

Participants will explore the core components of our framework, including culturally responsive pedagogy, inclusive curriculum design, and community engagement practices that center on the voices and experiences of Black students and their families. We will highlight specific programs and methods, such as RITES (Rites Interrogation Transformation Expression Support) practices, which are designed to build trust and solidarity among students, parents, and educators, and reinforce positive identity development.

By attending this session, participants will gain actionable strategies to implement in their own classrooms and organizations. These “take home” opportunities include practical tools for assessing the cultural inclusivity of learning environments, methods for co-creating culturally relevant learning experiences with students, and techniques to engage families as partners in the educational journey.

This presentation aims to equip educators, school leaders, and advocates with the knowledge and confidence to challenge inequities in their own contexts, creating spaces where Black students can thrive academically and socially, while embracing their full cultural selves.

Evidence

Education is arguably one of the most influential factors to determine a child’s outcome and trajectory (Yoshikawa et al., 2013). It is well documented that education has a positive association with improved health outcomes later in life. (FeinsteinL.,2006;LynchSM.;2003; Cutler&Llera-Muney.;2006) Also, wellbeing and mental health can both be linked to positive, supportive classrooms (Kohoulat N et al., 2015; Thapa A.;2013.) With an environment being so vital to the outcome and future of a child, it is important then, as parents, practitioners, academics, and a community, that each child is given an equal chance within the classroom.

Mainstream practices and methods of education have been shown to produce racial inequality (Gillborn 2006; Bryan 2012) and promote color-blind- racism (Bonilla-Silva 2002;Bryan 2012.) This racial bias is not only rooted in teachers and classroom curriculum, but also more broadly in our school policies.

A 2007 study found that increased messages about racial pride and preparation for bias moderated the relationship between discrimination and self-esteem (Harris-Britt et al 2007.) Racial identity has been shown to be a protective factor against racism-related stress (Neblett et al., 2012; Willis 2021) as well as reduce behavior issues(Bennet 2007) and improve academic adjustment (Anglin & Wade, 2007; White-Johnson 2011.)

Learning Objective 1

Participants will gain insight into Village of Wisdom’s history, research, frameworks, community driven methodology and mission.

Learning Objective 2

Participants will learn how Instructional Liberation methodologies have helped VOW create Culturally Affirming Learning Environments (CALES.)

Learning Objective 3

Participants will interrogate the frameworks of their own organization, identifying where a RITES framework may be helpful in creating a more liberatory environment.

Keyword Descriptors

Culturally Affirming, Black youth, Identity development, Culturally responsive pedagogy, Inclusive Curriculum, Community Engagement, Equity in Education, Family Partnership, Social-Emotional Learning

Presentation Year

2025

Start Date

3-4-2025 2:45 PM

Recommended Citation

Murphy, Jasmine and Johnson, Carlton, "Rooted in Wisdom: Harnessing Black Parent Power for Culture Affirmation and Justice" (2025). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 59.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2025/2025/59