Statement of Educational Philosophy
“Education is the civil rights issue of our time.”
~44th U.S. President Barack Obama
For President Barack Obama, education is an urgent matter and teaching is a deliberate act that links the political, economic, and cultural tensions of society. Obama acknowledges that educators are either positioned as agents of repression or advocates of equity, justice, and change.
I begin with Obama’s sentiments because I share his concerns regarding the social role of education. He says that “Education is the civil rights issue of our time,” a statement which sparks an immense amount of conviction and purpose in the work that I do on a daily basis. Obama’s statement highlights the brutal reality that not all children are allowed to receive a high quality education due to their race, zip code, and/or socioeconomic status. Many Black and brown children, specifically in underserved communities, are not afforded educational equity like their white and affluent peers. The school buildings are not kept up to par. There are not enough school nurses, counselors, or social workers. There are not enough technological resources provided to students. The books and curriculum are outdated, low rigor, or nonexistent. Schools that primarily serve Black and brown students rarely attract and retain invested and quality teachers.
If one were to juxtapose this with the notion that a quality education provides access to opportunity, success, and a higher quality of life, one would also understand the gravity and accuracy of Obama’s statement. If particular disenfranchised and marginalized groups of children do not have access to a quality education, what outcomes would one anticipate for those children?
The answer to that question is one that I would prefer not to state, but instead use as a source of motivation and conviction to do the work that I do as an educator and advocate. In my teaching and leadership I attempt to advocate and model a commitment to civil justice and equity in order to bridge the gap between the status quo and justice. I empower my students and colleagues to increase their awareness, lift their voice, foster a strong sense of self, and stand firm in what is fair and just. I reinforce the importance of empowering students, dismantling power dynamics in the classroom, maintaining high expectations, and fostering a safe and warm school environment.
As a leader, I remain committed to hiring and cultivating excellent educators and providing quality education to students within disenfranchised communities and schools. I attempt to assess and draw upon the knowledge bases of my students and colleagues and compel them to employ a critical lens of social phenomena, ideologies, and their own beliefs and practices. We work at developing an expansive worldview and applying our knowledge to thinking creatively, purposively, and passionately about the civil rights issues of poor Black and brown communities and the schools that serve them. In facing this malaise I compel my students and colleagues to see themselves as change agents and civil rights advocates, to see their future students as potential change agents and civil rights advocates, and to see education as a transformative vehicle via which society can be refashioned and justice can be served. Everyday, I am charged to be that kind of educator and leader and I charge others to do the same.