SEALAKSA HERITAGE ACCEPTING PROPOSALS FROM PRESENTERS FOR 2021 EDUCATION CONFERENCE
Testimony heard in last of a nationwide series of consultations with Indigenous people
May 5, 2021
Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) is accepting proposals from presenters for its fourth Culturally Responsive Education Conference, which is part of a larger effort to promote culturally responsive pedagogy in schools.
SHI is soliciting proposals from early childhood, K-12, university and community educators to speak at hour-long breakout sessions on topics related to culturally responsive education and equity in education and Alaska Native education.
For the second time, the three-day event will be held virtually because of the COVID-19 virus.
“We went virtual last year after the pandemic derailed our in-person event, and it turned out to be a good thing,” said SHI President Rosita Worl. “An evaluator found that despite the inherent challenges in shifting to an online format, participants expressed high satisfaction with the conference. In fact, because of the virtual format, the 2020 event more than doubled its reach from the last conference.”
The conference, scheduled Aug. 5-7, is open to educators from across Southeast Alaska and to students enrolled in the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) Preparing Indigenous Teachers and Administrators for Alaska Schools (PITAAS) program and UAS’s Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program.
The conference is part of SHI’s education program Thru the Cultural Lens, which was founded in 2012 to give cultural orientations for educators.
Sealaska Heritage Institute is a private nonprofit founded in 1980 to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures of Southeast Alaska. Its goal is to promote cultural diversity and cross-cultural understanding through public services and events. SHI also conducts social scientific and public policy research that promotes Alaska Native arts, cultures, history and education statewide. The institute is governed by a Board of Trustees and guided by a Council of Traditional Scholars, a Native Artist Committee and a Southeast Regional Language Committee.
CONTACT: Amy Fletcher, SHI Media and Publications Director, 907.586.9116, amy.fletcher@sealaska.com
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