The IRT Furthering Connections and Conversation

In partnership with educational thought leaders across the country, the IRT engages in conversations on the current landscape, implementing change, and sharing knowledge.

October 2023

In October Catherine Wong, IRT Associate Director and Manager of Programs, co-presented with Gerry Ebalaroza-Tunnell, PhD at the 13th International Conference on Education and Justice led by Kevin Kumashiro, PhD, currently the Interim Dean of the School of Education at Hofstra University, and hosted by the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, College of Education, University Laboratory School (HI) and Hawai‘i Scholars for Education and Social Justice (HSESJ). The theme of the conference was “Collective Scholarship for Public Pedagogy and Against Empire,” and the title of their workshop was “Whose Talk Story? Our Talk Story; Battling the Empire Through Pōkā Laenui’s Process of Decolonization.” 

(L-R) Kevin Kumashiro & Catherine Wong
(L-R) Jennifer Dazo Bishop, Ke Kula Kaiapuni ‘O Pū‘ōhala, Gerry Ebalaroza-Tunnell, Co3 Consulting, Jose Paolo Magcalas, California State University at Los Angeles 

The 2023 UNCF/Mellon Programs Conference

IRT Education Programs Specialist Leislie Godo-Solo, IRT ’91 collaborated with colleagues and presented in this one-day workshop. This year’s annual conference, which was held in Atlanta, focused on the imperative to transform the academy.

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“We are the leaders we’ve been waiting for!” Grace Lee Boggs 

Hello esteemed IRT alums! Now that I have your attention! Are you looking for part-time Summer employment that aligns with your commitment to teach and lead for justice? Are you in search of a community that values a sense of belonging and is eager for you to share your wisdom while at the same time giving you opportunities to grow and innovate your teaching skills. Well you have come to the right place! 

We are currently seeking IRT Summer Workshop faculty to teach in our IRT 2023 Workshop. This year’s workshop will be facilitated virtually so that all scholars, no matter where they live in the United States, can participate and engage with the curriculum materials as well as meet with IRT alums and Consortium partners. Our workshop sessions will be highly interactive and engaging as we seek to support and prepare the next generation of diverse educators to teach and lead in PK-12 through higher education. 

Please consider submitting an application or pass this onto a fellow IRT alum. Many thanks! Applications are due March 17, 2023.

IRT Summer Workshop Faculty App Link 

Phillips Academy Now Hiring for Summer Session

Looking for a great way to spend your summer? Phillips Academy, Andover is hiring for a number of temporary faculty roles in its various 2023 summer programs. IRT students and alums can make a real difference for students from all over the world through a summer spent teaching, coaching, or leading a residential community. Both on-campus and virtual opportunities are available, with compensation ranging from $2,000-$14,000 depending on role(s).

Details and the application link can be found via the button below.

Legacies of Brown, Part 1

IRT Advisory Board Member Jasmine Ma, PA, ’23

Although Brown v. Board of Education is known as a landmark ruling that outlawed segregation in schools, it also caused a sharp decline in the number of Black educators and altered the cultural perceptions of the teaching profession. This series, Legacies of Brown, seeks to examine the consequences of Brown’s aftermath and provide a historical context for the founding and mission of the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers.

*In this article, “minority” refers to Black, Hispanic, Asian, Pacific Islander, American Indian, Alaska Native, and people of two or more races.

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IRT Welcomes Catherine Wong as Associate Director and Manager of Programs

Catherine Wong (she/her/hers) has been appointed Associate Director and Manager of Programs (ADMP) Institute for the Recruitment of Teachers,  an outreach program housed at Phillips Andover Academy, focused on diversifying graduate education and K-12 through higher education professions to include teachers, professors and academic leaders.

Ms. Wong is a lifelong educator focusing on teacher training, educational leadership and youth outreach while centering diversity, equity and inclusion. She is unwavering and uncompromising in her support of educators of color and first generation to college. She has long believed that it should be the norm, not the exception, that our students have well trained teachers, specialists, and school leaders, who are reflections of their lived experiences and communities. For Ms. Wong teaching and learning is not a top-down hierarchical process, but one of co-construction and connectedness. Her accomplishments were honored this past year as the City of Boston’s 2021 EXTRAordinary Woman .

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