AKRON, Ohio -- The University of Akron's LeBron James Family Foundation College of Education announced it will hold a free town hall forum on race and social justice Wednesday, Oct. 11.
The forum will take place from 5:15-6:45 p.m. in Zook Hall room 108, located at 310 Buchtel Commons, on the university's campus.
The discussion is intended to open conversations about issues of race and racial inequity for area educators.
The forum is open for all members of the community to attend.
University of Akron education and psychology faculty will lead the discussion on best practices for engaging area youth in difficult conversations about race and social justice in elementary, middle and high school classrooms.
Brad Maguth, associate professor in the Department of Curricular & Instructional Studies at The University of Akron, said protests by NFL athletes and Black Lives Matter advocacy groups have increased media attention and a larger national conversation on racism and its impact on communities.
"Principals, teacher leaders and teachers often feel unprepared to engage in difficult conversations amongst themselves, let alone with students, concerning issues of racial inequity," Maguth said in a news release. "In particular, educators often find themselves ill-prepared to respond to concerns expressed by youth and in connecting these conversations back to the course of study."
Maguth will be among the educators invited to speak at the forum about meaningful instructional practices for discussing racial topics with students.
The following University of Akron faculty members will also present at the forum:
Francis Broadway, professor, Department of Curricular & Instructional Studies
Bridgie A. Ford, professor, Department of Curricular & Instructional Studies
Denise Stuart, professor, Department of Curricular & Instructional Studies
John E. Queener, professor, Department of Psychology
Nidaa Makki, associate professor, Department of Curricular & Instructional Studies
Visit uakron.edu/education for more information.
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