The Unheard Outsider: Recent Episodes
spsccdeic
The Unheard Outsider is a space that invites uncomfortable conversations surrounding Higher Education & Social Justice.
On this episode we will be discussing the Policies and Politics with a focus on the Gaps in Higher education. The guests who will be joining us for this episode are:
Erin Jones
Erin Jones has been involved in and around schools for the past 26 years. She has taught in a variety of environments, from predominantly Black to predominantly White to some of the most diverse communities in the nation. Erin received an award as the Most Innovative Foreign Language Teacher in 2007, while working in Tacoma, and was the Washington State Milken Educator of the Year in 2008 while teaching in Spokane. She received recognition at the White House in March of 2013 as a "Champion of Change” and was Washington State PTA’s “Outstanding Educator” in 2015. After serving as a classroom teacher and instructional coach, Erin worked as an executive for two State Superintendents. Erin left the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2012 to work in college access at the school district level. She left her job to run as a candidate for State Superintendent and was the first Black woman to run for any state office in Washington state, a race she lost by a mere 1%. Erin has one college graduate, one who’s a senior at Harvey Mudd College, and one starting a welding program in the fall. Her husband of 25 years, James, is a teacher.
Rayne Pearson
Rayne Pearson (she/her) works as an administrative law judge and is passionate about advancing equity, diversity, access, inclusion, belonging, and justice in state employment. To that end, she centers on anti-racism education and practice in her personal life. Rayne has a BA from New York University, where she majored in Journalism and Women’s Studies and minored in Africana Studies. She also has a JD from Seattle University School of Law. She is the executive sponsor of the EDI committee for her organization and serves as a board member for Pizza Klatch.
Adam Tannembaum
After receiving his B.A. in English Literature from Northwestern University, and his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, Adam co-founded and served as President and General Counsel of a gourmet food enterprise. He later transitioned into public service working for various State agencies in Illinois. Adam has also served as Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, and Assistant Secretary for a global advisory and consulting firm, where he provided legal advice on complex matters in regard to both US and international law.
After his time in legal practice, Adam entered the world of academics as Director of Legal Professions Advising and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Business, Organizations & Society at Franklin & Marshall College where he advised students and alumni about the legal profession and taught courses at the intersect of law and business. Currently, Adam is a Professor and Program Lead of Paralegal Studies at South Puget Sound Community College.
The Unheard Outsider has two new co-hosts. Let us introduce you to Erin Rust & nicole gugliotti
Rayne Pearson (she/her) works as an administrative law judge and is passionate about advancing equity, diversity, access, inclusion, belonging, and justice in state employment. To that end, she centers antiracism education and practice in her personal life. Rayne has a BA from New York University, where she majored in Journalism and Women’s Studies and minored in Africana Studies. She also has a JD from Seattle University School of Law. She is the executive sponsor of the EDI committee for her organization, and serves as a board member for Pizza Klatch.
After receiving his B.A. in English Literature from Northwestern University, and his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, Adam co-founded and served as President and General Counsel of a gourmet food enterprise. He later transitioned into public service working for various State agencies in Illinois. Adam has also served as Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, and Assistant Secretary for a global advisory and consulting firm, where he provided legal advice on complex matters in regards to both US and international law.
After his time in legal practice, Adam entered the world of academics as Director of Legal Professions Advising and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Business, Organizations & Society at Franklin & Marshall College where he advised students and alumni about the legal profession and taught courses at the intersect of law and business. Currently, Adam is a Professor and Program Lead of Paralegal Studies at South Puget Sound Community College.
Sarah Lloyd
i LOVE a good framework.
two things. maslow & WE before me.
if WE want to make radical change, WE must first acknowledge the basic needs that WE have, and thus, MUST meet.
maslow's revised hierarchy of needs (1969) clarifies the motivation for our behavior. in everything. this is the most widely-accepted (and a pretty damn good bridge) between what white supremacy has left us to manage...and the Truths that Black, Brown, and Indigeous people have been saying all along; WE have a shared and innate responsibility to steward humanity well.
WE before me means that i prioritize the greater good over my own fears, insecurities, limitations (perceived or actual), and discomfort. ESPECIALLY discomfort.
if you are doing this work comfortably, i have some bad news...you are NOT actually doing this work.
like. at all.
radical change requires us to disrupt current norms (that protect the status quo...), and all of the harmful ways they manifest systemically: hindering leadership capacity, stifling growth opportunities, and diminishing the inherent value of our most talented leaders.
not historically marginalized.
it's happening right now.
Luis Ortega is a TEDx Speaker, multidisciplinary storyteller, artist, empathy educator, social impact consultant, and the director and founder of Storytellers for Change.
Over the last fourteen years, Luis has traveled across the nation to share his personal narrative and message about the power of storytelling and story-listening to inspire action and build empathetic, inclusive, and equitable communities.
Trustee Navas served as Board Chair from 2018-2019, and as Board Vice Chair 2017-2018. She is the co-founder and current Executive Director of the Equity in Education Coalition. She was a Commissioner for the Washington State Commission on Hispanic Affairs from 2010 - 2012. Her former work experience consists of being a community organizer with Stand for Children, Executive Director of Para Los Ninos, Assistant Director of Development for NARAL Pro-Choice America, Deputy Executive Director for Ayuda, Inc., and Development Coordinator for the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.
Currently, she is on the steering committee of the Southeast Seattle Education Coalition and the board of Reading Partners Seattle. Ms. Navas sits on the Every Student Succeeds Act Accountability Workgroup as well as several workgroups for the Professional Educators Standards Board. Ms. Navas was a volunteer for the South King Council on Human Services and was a Board member of the League for Education Voters. She was an advisory member for the Thrive by Five Advancing Racial Equity Theory of Change in Early Learning as well as a committee member of the WA State Education Opportunity Gap Oversight and Accountability Committee. Sharonne holds a BA in Psychology and Sociology from St. John's University.
Social justice worker and mental health therapist serving the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area. Sade Adeeyo is a licensed mental health clinician dedicated to the well-being, care coordination, and recovery of vulnerable communities. Formerly a researcher of the social determinants of health, housing and youth development at the Urban Institute, she focused on building multi-generational, place-based interventions in public housing communities. Before joining the Urban Institute, she worked at the Black Women’s Health Imperative and has consistently held positions that advocate for equitable public health and underhoused families.
She holds a BA in comparative women’s studies with a minor in public health from her beloved alma mater Spelman College. She also holds an MA in public policy with a concentration in women’s studies as well as a second master’s degree in mental health counseling. In all, Sade is working towards a vision of more equitable, inclusive cities (particularly in DC) where decision making and solution building center those most impacted and at the margins.
Erin Jones has been involved in and around schools for the past 26 years. She has taught in a variety of environments, from predominantly Black to predominantly White to some of the most diverse communities in the nation. Erin received an award as the Most Innovative Foreign Language Teacher in 2007, while working in Tacoma, and was the Washington State Milken Educator of the Year in 2008 while teaching in Spokane. She received recognition at the White House in March of 2013 as a "Champion of Change” and was Washington State PTA’s “Outstanding Educator” in 2015. After serving as a classroom teacher and instructional coach, Erin worked as an executive for two State Superintendents. Erin left the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2012 to work in college access at the school district level. She left her job to run as a candidate for State Superintendent and was the first Black woman to run for any state office in Washington state, a race she lost by a mere 1%. Erin has one college graduate, one who’s a senior at Harvey Mudd College, and one starting a welding program in the fall. Her husband of 25 years, James, is a teacher.
This week's conversation aims to unpack transphobia and understand the trans experience through trans voices.
Guests for the Week:
Jay Banks
New to the Olympia area from DC, Jay Banks is an AfroLatinx Nonbinary Queer Educator. They started TQMason a trans support and education group during their time at George Mason University and was influential in the University adopting their gender-neutral housing policy. They also have their Masters in Early Childhood Education and worked to implement a Black Lives Matter curriculum in their classroom while focusing on being trans and queer affirming. After teaching in Elementary schools in Southeast DC Jay decided to use their life experiences and formal education to help support LGBTQ+ Youth with Pizza Klatch. Jay is passionate about intersectionality and being a source of positive representation for queer youth of color. They also love traveling to new places, binge-watching reality tv shows, and spending time with their french lop rabbit Bun.
Jaedyn Young
My name is Jaedyn or Jae (for short), and my pronouns are he/him. I grew up in North Minneapolis, and will always fight for justice and accountability no matter the situation. I graduated from Minnesota State University, Mankato with a bachelors in Mass Media, and I’m now finishing up school at PCI Academy to become a licensed Esthetician. With that license, I really want to make sure I create a safe place for those in the LGBT+ & Black community, and to give them the space to truly feel relaxed and not judged.
E.J. Frazier
E.J. is currently a student at South Puget Sound Community college working on his associates degree in automotive technology. He is currently working in The A. Barbra Clarkson Diversity Equity & Inclusion Center at SPSCC with Que.
This week we discuss ally-ship vs. accomplice and where the line is between the two, and when do either of these become part of the white savior complex.
Our guest this week is Dr. Higgins
Dr. Higgins is a speaker, writer, and social justice educator who focuses on issues related to gender, race, and media. Named Business Equality Magazine’s “Top 40 LGBTQ
Under 40” for 2020, they have written for numerous media outlets including Complex Magazine, Out Magazine, Them, Essence, The Root, Blavity, MTV News and more. They have also been featured on sites like NBC News, Buzzfeed, Vox
This week's conversation goes into the pedagogue of higher Ed, and what needs to happen to decolonize the current curriculum.
Our Guests this week are Dr. Rachel Hastings & Dr. Kamara Taylor.
Dr. Rachel N. Hastings (Doc) is the founder of DocED, a critical, creative communication company that provides consulting on digital courses, curriculums and campaigns. Her DiGiT marketing team has worked on promotional outreach campaigns for Forte Labs and their app against domestic violence, Hoops To End Abuse; MiraCosta College’s First In the Fam,’ But Not Alone career readiness conference for first-generation students; the San Diego Chapter of the American Association of Women in Community College (SDC-AAWCC) and their Let’s Be Notorious Campaign; and the North County Higher Education Alliance (NCHEA)’s Careers During COVID: The Digital Turn conference. Over the past eight years, Dr. Hastings has produced a number of digital literacy projects with incarcerated individuals at Folsom State Prison, as well produced innovative virtual conferences centered in anti-blackness, white allyship and racial equity in higher education. Her work is published in the ASCCC Rostrum, Departures in Critical Qualitative Research, Liminalities, Women & Language, Radical Philosophy Review and the Nigerian Guardian. Dr. Hastings’ also serves as a full-time Professor of Communication at MiraCosta College who centers her expertise on the use of digital communication in Public Speaking, Mass Communication, Interpersonal Relationships and Narrative Performance for personal growth, social advocacy, and communal change.
Dr. Kamara Taylor
A Chicago Illinois Native is a Neuropsychologist with a Ph.D. in cognitive and instructional Psychology , Master’s degree in Political Science and Clinical Psychology, and Currently is working on her EDD in educational leadership. Dr. Taylor Continues to Empower, Encourage, and motivate scholars in the classroom. With civic engagements, workshops, symposiums as well as books. As well as through her non for profit SHE-IS.
This week we discuss the lack of support within the black and brown community for each other and what kind of effect this has on People of Color in Higher Ed.
This week's Guests
Anthony is originally from Iowa and is now working on his Ph.D. in Communications at the University of New Mexico. His research focuses on mixed-race studies, race in the media, and race and sports. He is currently finishing his third year of Ph.D. schooling and plans on graduating in the Spring of 2022.
Charles is a student of life, a grassroots intellectual, an advocate, and a human. He is also a father, a friend, a spouse, a brother, and a son. These are some of his favorite identities. He is also the Director of Student Development in the East Region at Valencia College in Orlando, FL.
He is a Ph.D. candidate studying the Industrial-Organizational Psychology at Walden University; He is the former Director of Diversity at SPSCC. He is a ten-year Army Vet/ Former combat medic. He serves on multiple Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committees both on campus and in his community. He has a passion for people, a desire to do, and an interest in understanding the "Why." He is a Black Mixed-Race Man attempting to navigate the paradoxical relationship between people's perception/assumption of his racial identity and his actual racial identity.
This episode discusses the experiences of black women in politics and the lived experiences of the black woman. We have two of my high school friends in the room time today discussing their journey. We have Jessica L. Thomas who became the first African American county auditor, and youngest woman elected to a county-wide seat in Peoria County’s 193-year history. We also have community organizer and local activist, Chama St. Louis who is one of the black women running for mayor in Peoria, IL
During this episode, we have three amazing people of color in the room sharing their thoughts and experiences when it comes to emotional labor in higher education.
Joe Aguilar
Hometown: Wenatchee, WA
Undergraduate Degree & Institution: Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Communication at Washington State University
Graduate Degree & Institution: Masters of Public & Non-profit Administration at The Evergreen State College (in progress)
Joe joined the Advising Center at SPSCC in 2018. After serving as an Academic Advisor at Highline College for 5 years, he moved to the state capital for a new chapter and has found a home as a Clipper. In high school, Joe was always viewed by his peers as someone they could go to for guidance and support. Then during his time at WSU (Go COUGS!) his passion for helping others achieve their personal, academic, and career goals became his career aspiration. As a first generation college graduate, person of color, student-parent graduate, and a success story from the welfare system, he believes that no matter a person’s background everyone has the right to an education and the ability to be successful attaining it. His advising practice is student-centered, meeting students where they are at; will teach, demonstrate, and coach as a way of empowering students to take their education into their own hands and having a smooth transition to their next journey.
Outside the office Joe enjoys time with his 8 year old son, indoor/outdoor sports, yoga, meditation, hiking, camping, weightlifting, and being intentional about mind, body, and spirit holistic wellness.
Favorite Quote: “It is not how hard you hit, it is how you get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That is how winning is done!” - Rocky Balboa
This week Que will unpack the purpose of the Black Lives Matter Movement while sharing his perspective and lived experience.
ALLBLACKLIVESMATTER
This week's topic is unpacking the behaviors of an academic Karen. We have three amazing women that will be discussing their personal experiences. Our three guests are Tarah Baker a former SPSCC student & President of BSU, Cristy Dougherty a current PhD. student at the University of Denver, and Briana Quintanilla is the Program Manager for Faculty Advising at Highline College.
Cristy Dougherty
Dr. Cristy Dougherty is an assistant professor in the department of communication studies and director of forensics at Bethel College. She obtained her PhD at University of Denver in the department of communication studies and her MA at Minnesota State University, Mankato in the department of communication studies with a certificate in gender and women's studies. Her research centralizes women of color feminisms, Black feminism, Indigenous feminism, critical sexuality studies, gender violence, and performance studies. Her dissertation is entitled: Rape: A Settler Colonial and Anti-Black Project. For her performance-based research, she was the recipient of the Andreas Graduate Assistantship Award at Minnesota State University, Mankato in 2016. For her social justice related research and community-based work, she received the Inclusive Excellence Fellowship at the University of Denver in 2017. Recently, she co-published the essay Before and Beyond #MeToo and #TimesUp: Rape as a Colonial and Racist Project, which appeared in the 2019 edition of Women and Language.
This week we are unpacking the historical context of voter suppression with educator Dr. Derrick Williams.
This conversation will discuss and unpack what a executive diversity officer is and does? I will be interviewing Parfait Bassalé the new EDO at South Puget Sound Community College.
Parfait Bassalé
A true catalyst for change, Parfait Bassalé is the Executive Diversity Officer at South Puget Sound Community College where he is leading the College’s efforts to create more equitable educational outcomes for all students.
Mr. Bassalé holds a Masters in Conflict Resolution from Portland State University and often emphasizes how “we must intentionally design for belonging; otherwise the systems and processes we build birth outsiders.” He has supported numerous state agencies, non-profit and private sector organizations with their diversity and equity initiatives. His lived experience as an immigrant, and his passion for human flourishing drive his commitment to Diversity and Equity work.
Parfait is also a family man, a husband, father of three, an acclaimed musician and a ping-pong enthusiast.