RU Training @ Roosevelt University in Chicago

YWCA of Greater Portland presents: 

Monday, April 26 @ 3:30-5:30 pm (CST) via Zoom

Presenter: Ruby Joy White

 

Course Description:

An organization’s culture impacts everything from hiring practices, recruitment techniques, staff retention, staff morale, and employee safety and wellness. By definition, Organizational Culture refers to the unique beliefs, customs and assumptions that encompass all the values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social, psychological environment of an organization. Much of an organization’s innerworkings stem from White Supremacy Culture–operating within such frameworks as perfectionism, paternalism, and sense of urgency, to name a few. Dismantling old systems of harm within an organization cultivates spaces of growth and radical imagination, allowing for more fruitful, inclusive, and collective practices within an organization.

Learning Goals:

In this workshop, participants will be able to discuss systems of White Supremacy Culture that impact their organization/businesses’ culture and overall innerworkings. Participants will grasp an understanding of concepts, themes, and tools that will assist in assessing and rebuilding their organization’s culture to work toward creating a more intersectional and inclusive work culture that benefits and supports all employees.

• -Participants will gain a better understanding of concepts relating to White Supremacy Culture
• -Reflection and assessment of organization climate
• -Developed understanding of systems and structures of professionalism

Click here to register: https://www.ywcapdx.org/20210426-2/

YWCA of Greater Portland presents: 

Thursday, April 29 @ 3:00-5:00 pm (CST) via Zoom

Presenter: Gabriele Ross

 

Course Description:

Hate crimes based on a person’s identity have increased dramatically during the last decade and many of them occur in schools. This workshop will give you tools to recognize how organized hate groups recruit youth and adults and how to prevent the spread. We use toolkit “When White Nationalism Comes to Schools” developed by Western States Center and other material. We will explore ways to make schools and communities safe and welcoming for everyone and how to involve youth in leadership positions to achieve that goal. Participants will have opportunities to develop responses to real scenarios. As someone who grew up in a post-fascist society that struggles with a resurgence of that ideology, I use my personal history to help people recognize and disrupt the cycle.

Click here to register: https://www.ywcapdx.org/20210429/

 

“Women who fought and sacrificed so much for equality and liberty and justice for all, including the Black women who are often, too often, overlooked—but so often prove they are the backbone of our Democracy.”

– Madam Vice President Elect, Kamala D. Harris

Let us proudly celebrate as a social justice institution this country’s first female, Black and South Asian, Vice President Elect – Kamala D. Harris!  As social justice change agents, we will continue to do the life-giving work together to move toward racial equity and justice for all by dismantling systemic and institutionalized racism.

There is still much work to be done. We need to fervently hold ourselves and politicians accountable to bring credibility and legitimacy to this nation’s mission of Democracy. 

Representation matters in all spaces. Moving Forward. Never Moving Back.

We CAN and WILL Do It! 

Social justice is a foundational mission of Roosevelt University with deep ties to our historical roots. The fields of training and organization development offer many opportunities to engage in activities that involves civic and social responsibility, human rights, community partnerships, and public outreach, the essence of social justice. Here will chronicle the social justice initiatives of our current students, alumni, and faculty.

Chicago ROAR: Chicago Regional Organizing for Antiracism

Chicago Regional Organizing for Antiracism (Chicago ROAR) formed in 2009 as a Regional Organizing partner of Crossroads to assist organizations in the Metro Chicago Region to transform institutional cultures through organizing, building, and equipping, so the organizations may develop policies and practices promoting racial justice. Chicago ROAR envisions fully inclusive, equitable and life-giving institutions that partner in dismantling White supremacy, systemic racism and all forms of oppression in a movement that builds healthy, restorative, and sustainable communities in the Chicago Metropolitan area. Chicago ROAR emerged from over 20 years of partnership between Crossroads and Chicago-area institutions and organizations that sought to claim an antiracist identity.

Chicago ROAR offers a variety of ways to work to dismantle systemic racism, from hourly consulting services, to introductory and in-depth workshops, to strategic planning sessions.

Register here for ongoing, online workshops: https://crossroadsantiracism.org/register/

PBS Learning Series: Tools for Anti-Racist Teaching

Educators are acutely aware of the impact of systemic racism and the inequities that exist in the education system. Because of this, we are uniquely positioned to create immediate, positive change in the fight against anti-Black racism.

In this four-part series, we will explore tools for anti-racist teaching and will consider the ways in which we can use media and media literacy to deepen our understanding of systemic racism. Wherever you are in your social justice journey, this series is designed to introduce you to curated anti-racism resources,  support your own learnings of anti-Black racism, help you discover innovative ways to integrate media into inclusive teaching practices, and show you how to amplify your Black students’ voices and experiences. By attending, you will reflect on your role in systemic oppression within education, and leave with new tools and ideas for creating lasting change in your classrooms.

We are part of a movement: a widespread promise to our families and our neighbors that we will be ongoing, engaged participants in civic actions designed to root out racism, end police brutality, amplify, honor, respect and remember Black Lives Matter.

Series Line-Up

• Deepening Your Understanding of Race and Racism
• Using Media to Know Better, Teach Better
• Amplify Student Voice
• Focusing on Young Learners

PBS Learning Series Link: https://www.pbs.org/education/blog/tools-for-anti-racist-teaching

In case you weren’t able to attend the Virtual American Dream Reconsidered Conference 2020, you can watch it here!

Panel Recordings

• 21st Century New Deal Leadership with Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba | Watch Recording
• Champions for Democracy: Black Women and the Right to Vote | Watch Recording
• 75 Years of Social Justice: The History of Roosevelt University | Watch Recording
• Mansfield Lecture: Luis Alberto Urrea, Author of Into the Beautiful North | Watch Recording
• The Struggle Continues: The Fight for LGBTQ+ Rights | Watch Recording
• Governing for the People: Leadership in an Age of Inequality with Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot | Watch Recording
• Speaking Truth to Power: Roosevelt University Students Fight For Racial Justice | Watch Recording

Join us in creating social change together!

Roosevelt University: The Virtual American Dream Reconsidered Conference 2020, September 14-17

What was the American dream for Eleanor Roosevelt? On the 75th anniversary of the founding of Roosevelt University—and the centennial of the 19th Amendment—this is an opportune moment for us to consider this question at the virtual 2020 American Dream Reconsidered Conference.

This year’s conference keynote will feature Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and a discussion on governing in an age of COVID-19, economic inequality and racial injustice. Other panels will explore progressive politics, black women and the right to vote, LBGTQ+ rights and more.

The conference is free and open to the public. See you there!

Click here for conference registration and schedule: http://americandreamconference.com/

Professor Vince Cyboran Hosts Thanksgiving Dinner for International Student

Professor Cyboran (far left, with his dog, Norton) and his partner, Bob Kassnel (far right), open their home to international graduate student, Fatemeh Forouzan, and her fiancé, Amir Soleymanian.   Fatemeh and Amir are from Iran.

Rayford Barner (MATD 2006) National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice

Dr. Rayford Barner (2006 MATD) applied the skills he learned in courses like instructional design, instructional methods, and evaluation research to directly impact areas of racial reconciliation, bias, and procedural justice in law enforcement. As a member of the Procedural Justice Training Team, he has a critical role in the implementation of the The National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice, a United States Department of Justice pilot program aimed at reducing racial bias and improving the relationship and building trust between law enforcement from six U.S cities.  The three-year initiative is a partnership between a consortium of law enforcement experts led by John Jay College of Criminal Justice, in concert with Yale Law School, and the Center for Police Equity at UCLA and the Urban Institute.

After completing his B.A in Organizational Leadership and his M.A. in Training and Development at Roosevelt University, Rayford went on to complete his doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction at Loyola University of Chicago (LUC).

Dr. Barner’s work with The National Initiative began with “An analysis of their learning needs, as well as curriculum development and the evaluation of instructor capabilities to address their training deficits to suggest sustainable practices to ensure training efficacy. The courses delivered for the initiative are Procedural Justice I, II and III (Implicit Bias).” He then went on to facilitate, train, and coach instructors from rom Fort Worth, Texas; Gary, Indiana; Stockton, California; Birmingham, Alabama; Minneapolis; and Pittsburgh to teach the curriculum for the initiative.

You can learn more about the initiative by visiting the links below:

• United States Department of Justice: http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-national-effort-build-trust-between-law-enforcement-and
• National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice: http://trustandjustice.org/pilot-sites/
• Pittsburgh Gazette: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2015/09/16/Pittsburgh-police-to-visit-Chicago-as-part-of-trust-building-effort/stories/201509160095

Princess Zindaba Nyirenda (MATD 2010): Corporate Trainer and Global Leader

Zindaba (Zindie) Nyirenda (2010 MATD), a Zambian princess of sixth generation Shaka Zulu ancestry, is not only applying the skills she learned in the Graduate Program in Training & Development to her career in corporate America, but also using her expertise to become a global leader in social responsibility. Having lived a life with the most deprived and the most privileged in both first and third world countries was an eye-opening experience that drove Zindie to seek ways to bridge the vast gap between poverty and privilege. Although Zindie has climbed the corporate ladder to the position of Senior Instructional Designer in the Global Quality Compliance Training Department at Pfizer, she has not lost sight of her personal mission to improve the lives of the chronically underserved and under-privileged communities in her native Africa. In 2007, she was keynote speaker for the World Aids Day Conference in Illinois. Just before finishing her degree, Zindie published her first book, Ta-Lakata – The Tears of Africa, where she chronicles the terrible transformation of Zambia from a country of beauty and potential to a nation devastated by AIDS and poverty. Zindie is also the founder of The Light on the Hill for Africa, a non-profit organization that equips and empowers local leaders in remote areas and neglected villages in Africa.

Zindie completed her Master’s Degree in Training with an emphasis in e-learning design. In particular, her courses in instructional design, organization development and change, e learning, and project management helped her develop the skills needed to design and deliver educational experiences around the world. She uses an array of technological tools including Adobe Captivate, Lectora, Camtasia, and Photoshop to design training for employees in Australia, Croatia, Europe and India. Zindie draws on her expertise in critical thinking and analysis to solve complex global problems. According to Zindie, “Graduating from Roosevelt University with a degree in training and development gave me the platform to step up. To see the world we live in and always be mindful of what’s missing, the presence of which would make a difference…not what’s wrong, but what could I, as an graduate of this awesome practical program, an individual, do to make a difference.”

Zindie feels strongly that we have the “technology to end extreme poverty through simple solutions.” She experienced first hand the potential for e-learning to revolutionize the way we deliver education across boundaries of time, location, and even culture as she completed her M.A. in Training and Development from a remote village in Africa. Sitting on a Mphasa (reed bamboo mat) in Lundazi, Zambia, under the shade of a grass thatched hut at her grandparents’ home, she interacted with classmates in Chicago via the internet as she wrapped up her final semester of study without a glitch.

When asked what advice she has for new or potential students of her discipline, Zindie’s approach to career planning is as much about her head as her heart. “First of all, be clear about who you are as an individual–what it is that drives your soul, your inner being. Who are you? What are you looking for? What do you believe you were born to do? What speaks to your heart?” Once you have answers to these deep and personal questions, you are ready to align it with curriculum. “The knowledge acquired in this program is tremendously practical; the theories, methodologies and models work, but most importantly, the program makes you think critically and shifts your perspective to see possibilities rather than limitations, to expand on your own past or life experiences, bring it all in and apply that to your own inquiry whatever that may be.” According to Zindie, “Every great and epic transformational occurrence begins with a single conversation.” Don’t be afraid to have that conversation; the results can be life changing, for you and for our global citizens.

You can learn more about Zindie’s work at:

• Light on the Hill for Africa: http://www.strategicbookgroup.com/AuthorWebsite/Zindie/contact.html
• Ta-Lakata: The Tears of Africa http://www.strategicbookgroup.com/AuthorWebsite/Zindie/author-book.html

Erwin Acox: Putting People on the Path to Lifelong Careers

Erwin Acox, MATD 1998, Chief of Diversity Recruitment and Outreach at Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT).
Acox helps put people on the path to lifelong careers by engaging students from middle school through college.  He manages civil engineering recruitment, student engagement and outreach.  During his tenure as Chief, he has increased minority inclusion in the IDOT civil engineering workforce.
Acox also manages the TCART program sponsored by IDOT.  This program, launched in 2013, provides pre-apprenticeship training to underserved populations. “TCART is a collaborative effort among IDOT, the Illinois Tollway, and Chicago Urban League in partnership with local community-based organizations and construction trades unions.  This program uses a community-based approach to increase access to highway construction jobs, teaching people life skills and technical training at union training facilities” he said. “In addition, contractors and employers can tap into the pool of highly trained highway construction workers and receive a $15-per-hour incentive for hiring TCART graduates.”
The knowledge Acox gained in the MATD program has served him well throughout his entire career. It was in the MATD program where Erwin learned to assess organizational needs and implement solutions. Moving on from his educational roots, he has helped develop curriculum, delivered training, and manages programs that train hundreds of people each year. Acox has also continued to champion social justice in his work.
Not only is he helping train the current workforce but he is also preparing the workforce of the future through IDOT Engineering Academies. The Academies program is designed to give middle and high school students a realistic application of math and science through instruction and hands-on projects that encourage teamwork and problem solving. Students also benefit from having professional engineers volunteering as instructors and academy mentors during the sessions.