2017 Schedule
Event Title
Inclusion and Social justice in Integral Education
Location
Room 306 (3rd Floor)
Start Date
21-4-2017 2:00 PM
End Date
21-4-2017 3:30 PM
Description
The aim of this panel discussion is to relocate diversity and inclusion themes in higher education to a more central position informing curriculum choices, classroom dynamics and teaching methodologies. Using the integral model of education at CIIS as a lens, the discussion will explore how to honor and foster inclusion of students of minority background and embrace a social justice orientation in the classroom.
The panel will explore the experience of teachers and students who identify as people of color and illicit how their teaching and learning in a predominantly white higher education institution is permeated by their positionality in society.
At CIIS, where transformative education and social justice awareness are highly valued and part of an experiential curriculum that honors complexity and multidimensionality of the student’s experiences, we invite deeper reflection on the meaning of inclusion.
Event Type
Presentation
Inclusion and Social justice in Integral Education
Room 306 (3rd Floor)
The aim of this panel discussion is to relocate diversity and inclusion themes in higher education to a more central position informing curriculum choices, classroom dynamics and teaching methodologies. Using the integral model of education at CIIS as a lens, the discussion will explore how to honor and foster inclusion of students of minority background and embrace a social justice orientation in the classroom.
The panel will explore the experience of teachers and students who identify as people of color and illicit how their teaching and learning in a predominantly white higher education institution is permeated by their positionality in society.
At CIIS, where transformative education and social justice awareness are highly valued and part of an experiential curriculum that honors complexity and multidimensionality of the student’s experiences, we invite deeper reflection on the meaning of inclusion.
Comments
Gisele Fernandes is a licensed psychotherapist, clinical supervisor, organizational consultant and core faculty member in the Integral Counseling Psychology program at CIIS. She has extensive training and clinical experience in body-oriented approaches to psychotherapy, using an integrative approach that is rooted in Somatic, Humanistic-Existential and Transpersonal psychologies. Since 2001, she has been working in the Bay Area with diverse clients in community mental health and private practice settings, being particularly involved in serving the Latino population. Being an immigrant to the United States, a woman of color and in a bicultural marriage, Gisele has developed a profound interest in multicultural issues, which has become one of the main topics of her clinical, teaching and consulting work.
Taunya Black studied Urban Studies and Dance at Barnard College, and Humanities with a concentration in Creative Writing at SUNY Empire State College. She is currently a second-year graduate student in the Integral Counseling Psychology program at CIIS. Prior to entering CIIS, Taunya spent 15 years as a Program Director in educational settings, working with children and families from a variety of cultural and socio-economic backgrounds. Taunya integrated diversity, equity and inclusion into her curricular programming and staffing, and led successful initiatives as a member of the Administrative Team and Diversity Committee of Brooklyn Friends School. In addition to being a student, Taunya also serves as a teaching assistant with the ICP department and sits on the Diversity Task Force. A certified NAAM yoga instructor and Harmonyum therapist, Taunya is also a regular contributor to Rootlight, Inc. Dr. Joseph Michael Levry, writing on spirituality, health and wellness.
Kathy Littles, PhD is the Director of the Transformative Inquiry Department and Online Learning at CIIS. Since 2006 she has been an Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Undergraduate Studies. In 2006 she earned her doctorate in Cultural Studies with a designated emphasis in Feminist Theory and Research from the University of California, Davis. Her dissertation explored how African Americas negotiate their identity in the context of American Museums. She earned a BA in Anthropology and Art from St. Mary's College of California in 1994, and her MA in Anthropology from San Francisco State in 1998. Dr. Littles has taught courses at the College of Marin, Berkeley City College and UC Davis. Previous administrative positions include work with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the Cultural Arts and Marketing Division for the City of Oakland, the Cultural Council for Monterey County in Carmel, CA and University of California, Santa Barbara. Dr. Littles teaches all three of the core courses in the Bachelor of Arts Completion Program as well as electives. Her research interests include critical race theory, feminist theory, African Art, and the semiotics of museums and ethnic art.