Free non-credit certificate on diversity for students and k-12 teachers
Thanks to a College of Education Graduate Student Grant of $5,000, a project developed by a group of graduate students will provide an opportunity for Purdue University students and education professionals to gain skills in building a just, equitable, and diverse community, inclusive of all racial and ethnic minorities. The program focuses on anti-racist education that is suitable for current classroom teachers, undergraduate and graduate students, and the general Purdue community.
The aim of the program, Building a Community of Diverse, Inclusive and Justice-Oriented Scholars through Engagement and Critical Perspectives, and its constituent modules is to increase awareness related to justice and inclusivity. The goal is to build urgency for the development of a culture of care and cooperative responsibility towards change and that begins with a central focus on critical theoretical perspectives and practices of activism that promote diversity, inclusion, and social justice.
“Building a Community of Diverse, Inclusive and Justice-Oriented Scholars through Engagement and Critical Perspectives” was developed by College of Education graduate students:
- Troy Bell, PhD student in curriculum studies
- Alandrita Chhikara, PhD student in curriculum studies
- Razak Dwomoh, PhD candidate in social studies education
- Araba A. Z. Osei-Tutu, PhD candidate in curriculum studies
- Stephanie Scherer, PhD candidate in curriculum studies
- Lili Zhou, PhD candidate in mathematics education
The program is free for all and runs January 12 through May 4, 2021. It includes four online modules and all four modules must be completed to earn the certificate of completion.
Current teachers can receive five Professional Growth Plan points per module for a total of 20 PGPs.
The modules address:
- Critical Theories to Race
- Critical Understandings of Immigration (Discrimination and Deficit Perspectives)
- Critical Understandings of English language learners
- Critical Approaches to Women and Gender
Each module will be active for one month with weekly assignments and discussions, culminating with a guest speaker forum. However, one module will run for three weeks instead of a month in order to allow for the completion of all modules in one semester.
See the program page for more details.