In My Skin

Part 2 of the Freedom School - In My Skin Podcast.  We have as our guest a beloved local hero here in Pittsburgh, Miss Tamanika Howze. On this episode, we explore the fundamental question of what it takes to reach, engage, affirm and teach black children primarily through the lens of Freedom Schools. The Children's Defense Fund Freedom Schools Program originates from the Mississippi Freedom Summer Project of 1964, first developed by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, otherwise known as SNCC. It brought college students from around the country to Mississippi to secure justice and voting rights for black citizens. These early Freedom schools aimed to keep black children and youth safe and give them rich educational experiences not offered in Mississippi's public schools. In a variety of makeshift settings, college student volunteers provided instruction in reading, writing, humanities, mathematics and science, along with subjects not taught in Mississippi public schools such as black history and constitutional rights.

Today on the In My Skin Podcast, we have as our guest a beloved local hero here in Pittsburgh, Miss Tamanika Howze. On this episode, we explore the fundamental question of what it takes to reach, engage, affirm and teach black children primarily through the lens of Freedom Schools. The Children's Defense Fund Freedom Schools Program originates in the Mississippi Freedom Summer Project of 1964, first developed by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, otherwise known as SNCC. It brought college students from around the country to Mississippi to secure justice and voting rights for black citizens. These early Freedom schools aimed to keep black children and youth safe and give them rich educational experiences not offered in Mississippi's public schools. In a variety of makeshift settings, college student volunteers provided instruction in reading, writing, humanities, mathematics and science, along with subjects not taught in Mississippi public schools such as black history and constitutional rights.

In part 2 of their conversation, new host Medina Jackson continues her conversation with two champions for Black children's education, identity and justice,  Dr. Aisha White, Director of The PRIDE Program, and her daughter, Jamilla Rice, a voracious reader, writer, social justice focused educator and recipient of the 2009 Milken Family Foundation Teacher of the Year Award for the state of Pennsylvania. 

This season, we will be highlighting scholars and practitioners who are in active practice of implementing P.R.I.D.E. strategies because we want you to hear directly from those who are doing solution-oriented work and doing it well.In part 1 of 2, new host Medina Jackson speaks with two champions for Black children's education, identity and justice,  Dr. Aisha White, Director of The PRIDE Program, and her daughter, Jamilla Rice, a voracious reader, writer, social justice focused educator and recipient of the 2009 Milken Family Foundation Teacher of the Year Award for the state of Pennsylvania. 

Part one of our four-part series on implicit bias starts by asking: what is implicit bias? Listen along as colleagues take the Harvard Implicit Association Test and we begin to learn how bias affects children.

How does implicit bias affect punishment of children in school? Listen to part 2 of our 4-part series on implicit bias, featuring Yale scholar Dr. Walter Gilliam.

How do we choose what languages we value in school? In part 3 of our series on implicit bias, we look at language -- specifically, AAVE -- and the bias against home language.

Solving the problem of implicit bias is a monumental task. We examine one solution in the final episode of our 4-part series on bias.

Why is culture such a critical component of nurturing Black Children? Parent, author, and founder of BrownMamas.com Muffy Mendoza explains at the 2019 P.R.I.D.E. Speaker Series event on May 2, 2019.

This bonus podcast features Dr. Valerie Kinloch, dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Education, addressing how to build and sustain racially responsive communities. This was the keynote speech in the Spring 2018 P.R.I.D.E. Speaker Series.

For years, the prevailing notion was that children do not see color. But as Dr. Erin Winkler explains, it is clear that children are not colorblind. Listen to Dr. Winkler's speech from the Fall 2018 P.R.I.D.E. Speaker Series.

The Africa that Elizabeth Zunon saw as a child was often different than the one she saw depicted in books. So now, she creates art that shows the beauty and power of countries throughout Africa. Says Zunon, "I want to represent different cultures of the world in a positive light."

How do you guard against defensiveness when having conversations about race? For early education scholar Petrea Hicks, it starts with focusing the conversation on children.

As a child, Iheoma Iruka bounced between the United States and Nigeria, struggling to find a place to belong. Today, she is a one of the foremost scholars on race and young children, in particular young Black boys. But she is also a mother to young children. In this episode of In My Skin, we talked about how her childhood informed her view of race and how she balances her role as a parent with that of being an expert on race and young children.

Floyd Cooper is one of the most prolific artists and illustrators working today, having illustrated more than 100 books, many of which feature Black children. That's not by accident either. Cooper's work is rooted in race.

Growing up in a loving Trinidadian household helped fuel Dr. Kerry Ann Escayg's passion for bringing an antiracism lens to early childhood learning. As she puts it, "The ideologies of race serve as a legitimating glue to condone and to perpetuate many forms of racial injustices." Dr. Escayg is an Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

Illustrator and artist Frank Morrison almost had his gift for art stymied as a young child. But with a little inspiration – and some break dancing – he persevered, creating imagery that depicts young Black children with a blend of musicality, rhythm, and love.

Before Mamie Clark and her husband Kenneth became known for their groundbreaking study on race and childhood, she was Mamie Phipps, a child in a small Arkansas town acutely aware of her own race. The first full episode of In My Skin debuts on Thursday, February 28.