Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag is Rob's first nonfiction picture book. Rob lives in Florida where
Two Events. One Goal.
EQUITYIN EDUCATION Austin Convention Center | Ballroom B
#ILAequity | #ILA18
PROGRAM
T
he Equity in Education Program at the International Literacy Association (ILA) 2018 Conference is an expansion of the social justice panel that took place at ILA 2017 in Orlando, FL. That discussion, led by MacArthur Fellow Nikole Hannah-Jones of The New York Times Magazine, centered on race and cultural intolerance—and the role literacy plays in creating more positive social outcomes.
conversation to have due to misunderstanding, misinformation, and deeply rooted bias.
This year, the focus shifts to meeting the needs of our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) students. In some ways, this is a more difficult
Literacy is the pathway to equity. To deliver on that promise, we must work to ensure an equitable literacy education for all. Our students deserve nothing less.
But it is our stance at ILA that, regardless of personal belief systems, all educators have an ethical obligation to deliver high-quality, inclusive instruction to any and every student entrusted into their care. Failure to do so is not only unacceptable, it’s unconscionable.
SATURDAY, JULY 21 11:00 AM–1:00 PM
Literacy and Our LGBTQ Students: Starting and Sustaining Schoolwide Transformation To provide an equitable education for our LGBTQ students, educators must consider ways they can be more inclusive with their curriculum, their practice, and their shared spaces. Eliza Byard, executive director of GLSEN, will lead a frank discussion with a cross-sector of educators and activists about literacy’s role in long-term, systemic transformation. Learn how you can identify the unconscious biases and microaggressions that create unsafe and unsupportive environments and how to engage in conversations about these issues within our schools, districts, and communities.
Opening Remarks Courtney Farrell, The Journey Project
Keynote and Panel Moderator Eliza Byard, GLSEN
Panelists Kris De Pedro, Chapman University Amy Fabrikant, LGBTQ Safe Schools Consultant Jessica Lifshitz, Northbrook School District 28 Kate Roberts, Heinemann Dana Stachowiak, University of North Carolina Wilmington Tim’m West, Teach for America
We’ve partnered with our friends at Heinemann to stream this session live on Facebook. The video will be archived on ILA’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. ILA thanks Heinemann for their continued support of our equity work. Visit Heinemann at Booth 328 in the Exhibit Hall to learn more about the important work they’re doing in this area.
PROGRAM SUNDAY, JULY 22 11:00 AM–1:00 PM
Beyond the Bookshelf: The Transformative Power of LGBTQ Children’s Literature We know that providing access to inclusive literary materials that serve as mirrors, windows, and doors—particularly to minoritized populations, such as our LGBTQ students—can save lives. But what effect can these titles have on school culture in general? Join ninth-grade English language arts instructor Henry “Cody” Miller for a provocative conversation with some of today’s hottest authors on how thoughtful, intentional integration of LGBTQ texts can help create transformative spaces for all.
Keynote and Panel Moderator Henry “Cody” Miller, University of Florida, P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School
Authors Brandy Colbert, Little, Brown Ashley Herring Blake, Little, Brown Lesléa Newman, Lee & Low Jen Petro-Roy, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group Rob Sanders, Random House Children’s Books
MEET THE AUTHOR PANELISTS In the Exhibit Hall
At Children’s Literature Day
Lesléa Newman
Ashley Herring Blake
Candlewick Press Booth 717 Sunday, July 22, 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM
Little, Brown Monday, July 23, 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Jen Petro-Roy
Little, Brown Monday, July 23, 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group Booth 723 Sunday, July 22, 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Rob Sanders Random House Children’s Books Booth 818 Sunday, July 22, 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Brandy Colbert
Lesléa Newman Lee & Low Monday, July 23, 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM; 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Rob Sanders Random House Children’s Books Monday, July 23, 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
*Please note: Children’s Literature Day at ILA 2018 is a sold-out event that was available for an additional registration fee. Only those who currently have badges to attend will have access to the Monday author signings in Ballroom EFG.
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES
SATURDAY, JULY 21
Eliza Byard is an accomplished, mission-driven leader for social justice and systemic change. Eliza has designed and executed strategic initiatives that have transformed K–12 education in the United States to better respond to the unique challenges and needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. Eliza currently serves as the executive director of GLSEN, an organization recognized worldwide as an innovative leader in the fight for equity for LGBTQ students and respect for all in K–12 education. She joined GLSEN as deputy executive director in 2001 and has led the growth of GLSEN’s public education and advocacy efforts, youth leadership development programs, professional development training for educators, research and program evaluation capacity, and in-school programming. Her advocacy and legislative strategies have won bipartisan support and widespread acceptance of the urgency and importance of LGBTQ issues in education. Under Eliza’s leadership, GLSEN was honored by President Barack Obama as a “Champion of Change.” Pronouns: she, her, hers. @EByard Kris De Pedro is an assistant professor at the College of Educational Studies at Chapman University. His research focuses on urban educational policy, school reform, and the development of supportive and inclusive school and campus environments. His most recent work is on LGBTQ youth and the children of military service members. Previously, Kris spent several years as a special education teacher and leader in urban schools. Pronouns: he, him, his. @i_am_kdp
Amy Fabrikant is a writer, educator, and national speaker for diversity, access, and equity in education. She works as a staff developer with Morningside Center for Teaching for Social Responsibility, where she facilitates restorative justice circles. She also serves as a national speaker in the United States and consultant on how we can build connection and respect for all in our school communities. In addition, Amy is the author of the award-winning children’s book, When Kayla Was Kyle. Her latest book, Paloma’s Secret, was published earlier this year. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @AmyFabrikant
Courtney Farrell is the founding director of and a literacy consultant with The Journey Project, an inclusion- and educational justice–focused organization supporting gender-expansive and transgender children, families, and educators. After working as a classroom teacher in Title I public elementary schools for 12 years, she began partnering with California educators on efforts toward schoolwide literacy transformation. Inspired by her own transgender child’s transition in 2016, she has been researching anti-oppressive critical literacy pathways that enable elementary and middle schools across the United States to transform into more inclusive spaces for all students. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @EduCourts
Jessica Lifshitz teaches fifth-grade literacy at Meadowbrook Elementary School in Northbrook, IL. A classroom teacher for 15 years, she works with her students to help them see reading and writing as tools to work toward equity in the
world beyond the classroom. She writes regularly about her work and her students on her blog, Crawling Out of the Classroom. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @Jess5th
Kate Roberts is a national literacy consultant, top-selling author, and popular keynote speaker. She taught reading and writing in Brooklyn, NY, and worked as a literacy coach before joining the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project in 2005, where she worked as a lead staff developer for 11 years. Kate is the coauthor (with Christopher Lehman) of Falling in Love With Close Reading and of DIY Literacy (with Maggie Beattie Roberts). Her work with students across the United States has led to her belief that all kids can be insightful, academic thinkers when the work is demystified, broken down, and made engaging. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @teachkate
Dana Stachowiak is an assistant professor of curriculum and instruction in the Watson College of Education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where she coordinates the Curriculum Studies for Equity in Education master’s program. Dana is also a literacy consultant with The Educator Collaborative and worked as a curriculum specialist and teacher for a decade in North Carolina. Dana’s primary areas of specialization and research include social justice education, equity literacy, literacy curriculum development, cultural foundations of education, qualitative research methods, and gender studies. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @DrStachowiak
Tim’m T. West is an educator, poet, youth advocate, and hip-hop artist who has, for decades, traveled the United States speaking about issues at the intersection of race, gender, sexuality, and social justice. Tim’m served as inaugural faculty at Oakland School for the Arts, impacted educational outcomes as an English teacher and basketball coach at Cesar Chavez Public Charter High School for Public Policy and, more recently, worked as director of youth services at Center on Halsted. Tim’m currently leads Teach for America’s national LGBTQ Community Initiative, advancing safer and braver classrooms for pre-K–12 LGBTQ students and their educators. Pronouns: he, him, his. @BraveEducator
SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES
SUNDAY, JULY 22
Henry “Cody” Miller is the ninth-grade English language arts (ELA) teacher at P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School, the K–12 laboratory school affiliated with the University of Florida’s College of Education. His teaching and research focus on the various ways students construct their identities in ELA classrooms, with a specific emphasis on how young adult literature influences students’ worldviews and meaning-making capacities. Cody has led professional development sessions focusing on writing instruction and developing inclusive spaces for LGBTQ students. He was awarded the Teaching Tolerance Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2016. Pronouns: he, him, his. @CodyMillerELA Ashley Herring Blake lives in Nashville, TN, with her husband and two sons. She is the author of the young adult novels Suffer Love and Girl Made of Stars. Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World is her debut middle grade novel. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @ashleyhblake
Brandy Colbert was born and raised in Springfield, MO. Her debut novel, Pointe, was named a best book of 2014 by Publishers Weekly, BuzzFeed, Book Riot, and more. Little & Lion won the 2018 Stonewall Book Award and was a Junior Library Guild and a Book of the Month Club selection. Brandy lives and works in Los Angeles, CA. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @brandycolbert
Jen Petro-Roy is a former teen librarian, an obsessive reader, and a trivia fanatic. She lives with her husband and two young daughters in Massachusetts. P.S. I Miss You is her debut novel. Pronouns: she, her, hers. @jpetroroy
Lesléa Newman is the author of over 70 award-winning books for readers of all ages, including the groundbreaking picture book Heather Has Two Mommies and Sparkle Boy. She has received numerous awards for her work, including two Stonewall Book Award Honors, the Massachusetts Book Award, and a creative writing fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. She lives in Holyoke, MA, with her spouse, Mary Grace Vazquez. In her writing, she explores what life would be like if “we lived in a world where any gender expression was accepted, respected, and celebrated.” Pronouns: she, her, hers. @lesleanewman
Rob Sanders is a writer who teaches, and a teacher who writes. He is the author of Cowboy Christmas, Crystal Kite-winner Outer Space Bedtime Race, Ruby Rose: Off to School She Goes, Ruby Rose: Big Bravos, and Rodzilla. Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag is Rob’s first nonfiction picture book. Rob lives in Florida where he teaches elementary school. Pronouns: he, him, his. @RobSandersWrite
ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL LITERACY ASSOCIATION The International Literacy Association (ILA) is a global advocacy and membership organization dedicated to advancing literacy for all through its network of more than 300,000 literacy educators, researchers, and experts across 146 countries. With over 60 years of experience, ILA has set the standard for how literacy is defined, taught, and evaluated. ILA’s Standards for the Preparation of Literacy Professionals 2017 provides an evidence-based benchmark for the development and evaluation of literacy professional preparation programs. ILA collaborates with partners across the world to develop, gather, and disseminate high-quality resources, best practices, and cutting-edge research to empower educators, inspire students, and inform policymakers. ILA publishes The Reading Teacher, Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, and Reading Research Quarterly, which are peer reviewed and edited by leaders in the field. For more information, visit literacyworldwide.org. For all media inquiries, including interview requests, please contact
[email protected].
@ILAToday
/ILAToday
/InternationalLiteracyAssociation
literacyworldwide.org
