When the Walls are Caving in, Can We Turn Backward to Move Forward? Movement Building in Community-Based Teacher Preparation

Jacob Hackett: Jacob Hackett is a clinical associate professor and coordinator of GSU’s Bachelor of Science in the Middle Level Education teacher preparation program. Dr. Hackett proudly taught for the Atlanta Public Schools district form 2006 – ’11, before earning his doctorate from the University of Washington, Seattle. A cornerstone to his teacher preparation philosophy is integrating strong, active, and progressive community partnerships. He has received several grants from both community foundations and the US Department of Education as a teacher and as a researcher to design and research authentic teaching experiences with his students and practicing teachers. Previous honors Hackett has earned include, include the Atlanta Public Schools Families Award for Excellence in Education; the prestigious University of Washington’s Huckabay Doctoral Fellowship; and Georgia State University College of Education and Human Development’s Distinguished Partner award, earned alongside Atlanta Public School’s Dr. MLK Jr. Middle School. Dr. Hackett supports teachers to explore historical discrimination to understand how these oppressive histories affect current institutional forms of inequity. Examples of this include school funding disparities, racial segregation (historic and current), and disproportional rates of representation and discipline based on race, gender, gifted and talented status or perceived disability status. This historical awareness is then used to generate teacher dispositions and teaching practices to mitigate those historical inequities and deepen critical student inquiry. His current research centers on the design and impact of a community and place-based teacher preparation program and practicing educator workshops focused on equity and critical consciousness.

Ayinde Summers: Ayinde brings a wide range of experience and passion to the roles he has played at Project South over the last 15 years. Ayinde is an accomplished outdoor leadership trainer, popular educator, historian and literacy specialist with experience working with children, youth and adults in nonprofit, education and business sectors.

Ayinde is a well known community leader in Atlanta and throughout Georgia with a commitment to linking his African traditions and practices to his community growth and development from the Gullah Geechee coast to neighborhoods of Atlanta.

Teaching to the Margins

Presenter Bio: Cyntoria Johnson, J.D. is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology. Her legal practice areas include criminal law, family law and estate planning. She currently teaches in the Legal Track concentration, providing advanced skills-based instruction to students in preparation for careers in the law. In the last decade at GSU, she has developed and led study abroad programs to Brazil, Dominican Republic, Trinidad & Tobago, and South Africa. Her passions are to remedy injustices in the criminal justice system and to prepare the next generation of legal practitioners – one case and one student at a time. The Atlanta-native is a GSU Panther who bleeds blue, earning both her M.S. and B.S. from Georgia State University.

Congratulations to Dr. Amani Marshall, recipient of CETLOE’s Teaching for Social Justice and Democracy Award.

Dr. Marshall, lecturer in Georgia State’s history department was recognized for his work redesigning his U.S. History survey course.

Dr. Marshall earned his bachelors degree from Florida A&M University and completed his doctorate at Indiana University. Prior to joining the faculty at Georgia State, he taught at a wide range of institutions, including Indiana University, University of Delaware, Mount Holyoke College, Agnes Scott College, and the Cambridge School of Weston, a progressive, independent high school in Massachusetts.

 A dedicated educator, Dr. Marshall is committed to using historical studies to empower future leaders. He is particularly adept at tackling difficult topics in U.S. history and teaches a course on the subject for history education majors at Georgia State. He has presented faculty workshops on teaching Black Lives Matter and has been quoted on the topic in The Chronicle of Higher Education

Watch the video of his talk below.