3rd Annual Central Coast
Social Justice Education Conference

View the Conference on our youtube channel!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NchK3Gxuxrg

3rd Annual Central Coast Social Justice Education Conference: 
Pedagogies of Hope, Disruption, & Transformation

Join us virtually!
Saturday, May 16, 2020
10:00 a.m. to 12 p.m. (PDT)
Register at https://2020-CCSJE.eventbrite.com and receive up-to-date information about the event.

The conference will focus on our collective work to build community and engage in social justice in this unprecedented time. Our keynote speaker is Dr. Farima Pour-Khorshid — a Bay Area teacher educator, community organizer, critical scholar, and former elementary school teacher. We will also be featuring a panel of K-12 educators and undocu-advocates from the Central Coast.
 
This event is organized and sponsored by: Central Coast Coalition for Undocumented Student Success, Santa Maria Joint Union High School District, Central Coast Coalition for Inclusive Schools, Cal Poly Office of University Diversity & Inclusion, and Cal Poly School of Education.

About our speaker

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​Dr. Farima Pour-Khorshid is a proud Bay Area educator-organizer-scholar. She has taught at the elementary grade levels for over a decade throughout California, as well as teaching, supervising and supporting educators locally, nationally and internationally through her roles as a university professor, teacher supervisor, educational consultant and community organizer. She graduated with a Master’s degree and Ph.D. at the University of California, Santa Cruz and is currently an assistant professor and teacher supervisor at the University of San Francisco in California. She holds leadership roles in the Teachers 4 Social Justice organization (www.T4SJ.org), the People’s Education Movement [Bay Area Chapter], the national Education for Liberation Network (www.edliberation.org) and the Radical Healing Leadership Team at Flourish Agenda (www.flourishagenda.com). Her research interests and areas of expertise include critical professional development, grassroots social justice teacher organizing, healing centered engagement and racial affinity group approaches to support educators within and outside of the field.
Pedagogies of hope, disruption, & transformation illustration by Isabela Presedo-Floyd

MEET THE PANELISTS

Elizabeth Cortez (she/her/hers) is an educator, community advocate, and long-time Santa Maria resident. For over twelve years, she has taught middle and high school students in Santa Maria and the greater Los Angeles area.  Elizabeth is a founding member of the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District Ethnic & Gender Studies Committee, where she works with students, parents, community members, and colleagues to create Ethinc Studies courses across the district and advocate for an Ethnic Studies graduation requirement. In addition, she has developed and led professional developments on culturally responsive teaching and supporting English Learners across Santa Barbara County and in the SMJUHSD. Elizabeth attended local schools: Fairlawn Elementary, El Camino Junior High and Santa Maria High School. She has a Bachelor's degree in Chicana/o Studies and Sociology, and a Master of Education from UCLA. ​
​Mariana Carlon (she/her/hers) is a first-grade classroom teacher for the Santa Maria Bonita School District, where she has taught for the past 6 years. Originally from Northeast Portland, OR, she and her family now reside in Santa Maria, CA. Mariana Carlon received both her teaching credential and Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, CA. She is an educator of social and racial justice with an emphasis on anti-bias, anti-racist and praxis framework usage in the classroom. Mariana has a keen ability to integrate social justice topics and make them understandable and relatable for primary students. She has engaged young children in topics such as desegregation, civil rights, systemic racism, queer topics, colorism, and Indigenous rights. Her passion for educating students of color stems from her own experience at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary in N.E. Portland where she was engaged in a culturally relevant environment.
Veronica X. Valadez (she/her/hers/ella) is an educator, community activist, visual artist, and traditional Aztec dancer of over 20 years. She was born and raised in Santa Maria, CA. She has 14 years of experience as a bilingual elementary school teacher and is currently an instructor of Chicana/o Studies at CSU Channel Islands. As a traditional Aztec dancer, Veronica established an Aztec Dance course at CSUCI with the permission and blessing of the local Chumash community. She is also a renowned Xicana artist who brings forth the ancestral knowledge and cultural heritage of her Indigenous Mesoamerican ancestors through her artwork. As an advocate of Ethnic Studies, she is a lead member of Ventura Unified’s “Ethnic and Social Justice Studies” steering committee, and Ventura County’s Ethnic Studies Now Coalition. Veronica is also a co-founder of Ehecatl Wind Philosophies, a consulting company that provides school districts with support and professional development to build Ethnic Studies programs.
Estella Vasquez  (she/her/hers) is a community advocate and activist. Originally from Guadalajara, Jalisco Mexico, she immigrated to the United States in 1976 as an undocumented youth. She became a permanent resident and then a U.S. Citizen due to the Immigration Reform Act of 1986. She lives in Santa Maria with her husband Martin Vazquez and three daughters. Estella is the Monarch Dream Program Coordinator, Dreamers United Student Club advisor, and board member of the Latina Leadership Network at Cuesta College. Estella is a founding member of the Central Coast Coalition for Undocumented Student Success. She also holds leadership roles with Promotores Collaborative of San Luis Obispo County, Just Communities, and HOPE Leadership Institute.
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  • ​Welcome to the 3rd Annual Social Justice Education Conference (10:00-:10:10 a.m.)
  • Keynote speaker, Dr. Farima Pour-Khorshid (10:10-10:40 a.m.)
  • Panel (10:40-11:40 a.m.)
  • Q&A with Panelist & Keynote (11:40-11:55)
  • Closing (11:55-12:00)
(Times are approximate) ​