My goal is to help participants improve their learning environments and teaching practices by acknowledging and supporting the cultural knowledge students possess. Just as our learning environments are complex, so are the individuals that comprise them. Everyone has visible as well as “invisible” cultural identities and culturally relevant pedagogy attends to those differences. Learning happens when we can connect the new knowledge we are receiving to our previous experiences, so being able to make those connections despite our backgrounds is really important. Similarly, a key aspect of learning is to feel safe. When we feel safe and recognize that our ideas are valued, we have the motivation to engage with the collective construction of knowledge. Best practices around CRP and some research results will also be shared.

Speaker Bio

Dr. Homero Murzi (he/él/his) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech with honorary appointments at the University of Queensland (Australia) and University of Los Andes (Venezuela). Homero is the leader of the Engineering Competencies, Learning, and Inclusive Practices for Success (ECLIPS) Lab, a research community focused on studying contemporary and inclusive pedagogical practices, emotions in engineering, competency development, and understanding the experiences of Latinx and Native Americans in engineering from an asset-based perspective. Homero has been recognized as a Diggs Teaching Scholar, a Graduate Academy for Teaching Excellence Fellow, a Global Perspectives Fellow, a Diversity Scholar, a Fulbright Scholar, and was inducted into the Bouchet Honor Society. Homero serves as the VT Engineering Education Chair for Equity and Inclusion, the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Incoming Chair for the Commission on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (CDEI), and the ASEE Faculty Development Division Program Chair. He holds degrees in Industrial Engineering (BS, MSc) from the National Experimental University of Táchira, Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Temple University, and Engineering Education (PhD) from Virginia Tech.