2023-2024 Community Education Series

Learn, Explore, Be Inspired

The Epiphany School Community Education Series offers an annual slate of diverse educational opportunities for the adults in our school community—parents/guardians, grandparents, friends, and neighbors.

In keeping with our strategic plan, the Epiphany School Community Education Series enhances our authentic and inclusive community by welcoming diverse thought, sharing our expanded vision and mission, and providing creative and engaging educational opportunities for our community. We welcome ideas for future programming and we will continue to collaborate with neighboring schools and the Epiphany Parent Council to develop and offer events that meet our community’s interests and needs.

As in past years, our programming includes virtual talks from the People of Color in Independent Schools' (POCIS) "Equity and Inclusion Virtual Speaker Series." Epiphany School is a member of POCIS, a consortium of NWAIS independent schools that exists to help people of color thrive in independent schools.

Presented in partnership with:

October 5, 2023, 6 - 7:15 pm (Virtual Event)

"Storytelling as Resistance: Experience at Predominantly White Institutions and Generational Trauma"

In this talk, Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez will name what it means to attend a predominantly white institution, PWI, as a non-white person. She will also address generational trauma, telling stories about her own experiences with therapy, the stigmas around therapy, being first-generation, and what the experience of being from a war-torn country has meant for her and her family. She will also explore ways to reclaim traditions while healing from generation trauma.

Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez was born in Managua, Nicaragua, but calls Nashville, Tennessee, home. She is a feminist, theologian, storyteller, advocate founder of Latina Rebels, and author of For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts: A Love Letter to Women of Color. Mojica Rodríguez merges storytelling with pedagogy to help folks understand the larger forces at play, also known as systemic oppression.

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Presented in partnership with:

October 19, 2023, 6 - 7:30 pm (In Person at Bush School)

"Inclusion in the Early Years: Why, What, and How"

Diversity leader Rosetta Lee will be leading a parent education event for Epiphany School and Bush School parents/guardians on the importance of engaging in diversity, equity, and inclusion work for young children and the power of affinity groups. The event will be held on Thursday, October 19, from 6:00-7:30 p.m. 
Folk wisdom tells us young children don't notice differences or have any biases, yet research is telling us otherwise. When do young children notice differences, bias, and stereotypes? What are age appropriate ways to develop intentionally inclusive and identity conscious children at home? How do school based programs like affinity groups support young people in developing a positive sense of self from an early age? Discover answers to these questions and more at this session for families. 

January 9, 2023, 8:30 - 10:00 am (Great Hall)

Parent Wellness Workshop: "PAUSE for Presence: Our Healing is Our Justice"

We're thrilled to invite you to a special session with Dr. Bre! Renowned for her insightful workshops, she's been collaborating closely with our school, aiming to nurture a space of healing and wellness.

In a world that often challenges our mental and emotional well-being, Dr. Bre's "PAUSE for Presence" workshop serves as a sanctuary where families can come together to explore the profound connection between individual healing and positive social change. Rooted in the belief that our personal healing journey is intrinsically linked to creating a just and compassionate society, this workshop invites families to embark on a transformative exploration of self-discovery, community, and social impact.

Join us for "PAUSE for Presence: Our Healing is Our Justice" and embark on a transformative journey of self-discovery, empathy, and collective healing. Together, let's nurture our educational community where individual well-being paves the way for a more just and compassionate society for all.

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Presented in partnership with:

February 15, 2024, 5 - 6:15 pm (Virtual Event)

"A Conversation with Dr. Bernice A. King"

Dr. Bernice A. King is a global thought leader, strategist, solutionist, orator, peace advocate, and CEO of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center For Nonviolent Social Change (The King Center), which was founded by her mother as the official living memorial to the life, work, and legacy of her father. In this position, Bernice continues to advance her parents’ legacy of nonviolent social change through policy, advocacy, research, as well as education and training through the Kingian philosophy of nonviolence, which she re-branded Nonviolence365TM️. Read her complete bio here.

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Presented in partnership with:

March 13, 2024, 6 - 7:15 pm (Virtual Event)

"Beyond the Model Minority: Asian American Histories of Resistance and Renewal in the Pacific Northwest and Beyond"

In this talk, Dr. Megan Asaka will examine how Asian Americans have responded to, challenged, and resisted anti-Asian racism and injustice. Though often portrayed as passive “model minorities,” Asian Americans have a rich legacy of resistance and militant action that has long been overlooked. Focusing on historical accounts from in and beyond the Pacific Northwest, Dr. Asaka will offer a new understanding of the Asian American past as a pathway for future action.

Award-winning scholar, writer, and teacher of Asian American history, urban history, and public humanities, she is the author of Seattle from the Margins: Exclusion, Erasure, and the Making of a Pacific Coast City, which examines the erased histories of the communities that built Seattle. The book was inspired by her own family history in Seattle as well as her work as an oral historian and archivist for Densho, a community-based organization that seeks to preserve and share the stories of the Japanese American incarceration. She is an assistant professor of history at the University of California, Riverside and lives in Pasadena.

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May 1, 2024, 9:30 - 10:00 am (Zoom)

Growing Up in Public - Book Talk-Back

We're excited to invite you to a thought-provoking event, a discussion on Devorah Heitner, PhD’s latest book, Growing Up in Public. This insightful work delves into the complexities faced by today's youth, growing up in the digital age, where their lives are often under the societal microscope.

What’s more thrilling is that we’ll have the author herself joining us live for a Q&A session via Zoom! This is a priceless opportunity to dive deep into the themes of the book, ask Dr. Heitner your burning questions, and gain firsthand insight into navigating the challenges and opportunities that come with raising children in an ever-connected world.

Don’t miss out on this chance to engage in a meaningful conversation that could significantly impact how we support our children in their public, digital lives. Details on the date, time, and how to join the Zoom session will follow soon. We look forward to seeing you there!

Presented in partnership with:

May 23, 2024, 6 - 7:15 pm (Virtual Event)

"Race to the Future? Reimagining the Default Setting of Technology and Society"

From automated decision systems in healthcare, policing, education, and more, technologies have the potential to deepen discrimination—while appearing neutral and even benevolent as compared to harmful practices of a previous era. In this talk, Ruha Benjamin takes us into the world of biased bots, altruistic algorithms, and their many entanglements, and provides conceptual tools to decode tech predictions with historical and sociological insight. When it comes to AI, Ruha shifts our focus from the dystopian and utopian narratives we are sold, to a sober reckoning with the way these tools are already a part of our lives. Whereas dystopias are the stuff of nightmares, and utopias the stuff of dreams… ustopias are what we create together when we are wide awake.

Ruha Benjamin is a professor of African American studies at Princeton University, founding director of the Ida B. Wells JUST Data Lab and author of three books, Viral Justice (2022), Race After Technology (2019), and People’s Science (2013), and editor of Captivating Technology (2019). Ruha Benjamin speaks widely about the relationship between innovation and inequity, knowledge and power, race and citizenship, and health and justice.

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