The Center for Teaching Excellence

Drop-In Mindfulness Meditation

You are invited to take a much-deserved mindfulness break each Thursday from 12:30pm to 1:00pm on zoom, beginning Thurs, 2/18.  Appropriate for all levels - no prior experience necessary. All members of the SMC community are welcome!

DATE: Every Thursday beginning 2/18/21
TIME: 12:30pm to 1:00pm
PLACE:  Live on Zoom https://zoom.us/j/94646498836    Meeting ID: 946 4649 8836

For additional resources, please go to www.smc.edu/resources

Please call 310-434-4503 for more information or regarding confidential matters.
For 24/7 emotional support for SMC students, please call (800) 691-6003 

Using Psychological Strategies to Cope with Stress During the Pandemic 

Thursday Fireside Chat Series from the SMC Psychology Department

• 2/25/21 - 9:00 to 10:00 a.m.: "Making Mindfulness a Habit" with Professor Hald
• 3/4/21 - 4:00 to 5:00 p.m.: "Why Ask Why: Casual Attributions for Success and Failure" with Professor Cue
• 3/25/21 - 11:15 to 12:30 p.m.: "Take a Breath: Theory and Practice" with Professor Schwartz
• 4/29/21 - 1:00 to 2:00 p.m.: "Write On! Writing as Coping and Self-Expression" with Professor Chin
• 5/13/21 - 1:00 to 2:00 p.m.: "Why So Critical? Cultivating Self-Compassion" with Professor Anderson

Zoom Link: https://cccconfer.zoom.us/j/98600453328 

MEETING ID:  986 0045 3328

Spring Community Read

SMC is a Hispanic-Serving Institution.  How do we define "servingness"?

Beginning this coming Monday March 29th at 12:30 PM, please join the Decolonizing the Academy Committee for the first Community Read discussion of Professor Gina A Garcia's Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) in Practice: Defining "Servingness" at HSIs

Please watch your email for upcoming dates!

https://cccconfer.zoom.us/j/3438964877

Thank you to the SMC Library, one of our wonderful co-sponsors, the text is available for free as an E-book.

The discussions will be co-facilitated by different members of the campus community.  Jenny Merlic, Ciaran Brewster, and Silvana Carrion will kick-off the series on Monday, March 29th at 12:30 PM with a discussion of Chapter 1, "Connecting Research, Practice, and Policy to Define 'Servingness' at Hispanic Serving Institutions." 

Our goal for the Community Read is to create a collaborative campus-wide space to share information and clarify our goals and values as an institution. 

The discussions of Professor Garcia's book will culminate in a webinar with her on May 5th at 1:00 PM sponsored by the Global Citizenship Committee.

All Community Read events are open to everyone on campus, even if you haven't done the reading! 

If you cannot attend, you can send questions to: herbert_shannon@smc.edu  The event will be recorded and posted to the Decolonizing the Academy website.

The Community Read Series is co-sponsored by:

Academic Affairs
Adelante
Black Collegians
The Equity and Diversity Committee of the Academic Senate
Human Resources
The SMC Library
The Student Equity Center

"Insurrection at the Capitol: Justice and Reconciliation on our Campuses and in our Nation"
From the Center for Organizational Research and Education (CORA)

WATCH WEBINAR RECORDING
From Thursday, January 14, 2021 - 5:30 p.m. (Pacific)

The events of January 6, 2021 rattled the nation to its core as thousands stormed the Capitol in a planned attempt to unturn the results of a democratic election and to siege elected officials. In the wake of this insurrection, the nation’s college and university leaders are contemplating how to respond. The extreme ideologies that led to the insurrection at the capitol are reflective of radicalized ideological and theological perspectives that are evident in larger society and on college campuses. Within this context, this webinar will examine the viewpoints and perspectives that led to the insurrection at the Capitol. The speakers will also offer recommendations for college and university leaders on how to advocate for justice and reconciliation in on our campuses and in our nation.

Featured Speakers: Lasana Hotep, Frank Harris III, and J. Luke Wood

#BlackMindsMatter

Addressing Disproportionate Suspensions of Black Students

Free Webinar
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
1:00 p.m. Pacific

Facilitated by CORA (Center for Organizational Responsibility and Advancement)
With hosts Dr. Frank Harris II, Dr. J. Luke Wood, and Dr. Joseph Johnson Jr.

Access Recording on YouTube

In recent years, there has been increasing attention and educational policy efforts designed to address the disproportionate suspensions of Black children and youth. Using data from California public schools, the presenters will highlight persistent disparities in the application of exclusionary discipline. A reactor panel will then provide insights on how schools and educational leaders can support ongoing efforts for change.

Speakers:

Dr. J. Luke Wood, Distinguished Professor of Education SDSU
Tony Thurmond, State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Dr. Frank Harris III, Professor of Education SDSU
Dr. Medina Abdullah, Professor of Pan-African Studies CSU LA
Dr. Tyrone C. Howard, Pritzker Family Endowed Chair in Education to Strengthen Families UCLA
Dr. Shirley Weber, Secretary of State CA
Dr. Joseph Johnson Jr., Executive Director of NCUST SDSU
Dr. Daniel Lee, Deputy Superintendent of Equity - CA Dept. of Education

On February 17, CORA released the report: "Suspending our Future: How Inequitable Disciplinary Practices Disenfranchise Black Kids in California's Public Schools." The report details high rates of expulsions, restraints, seclusions and suspensions facing Black children and youth. While the report primarily focuses on egregious suspension rates, it also represents (to their knowledge), the first public release of data on physical restraints, mechanical restraints, and seclusions. 

Increasing Inclusivity for Undocumented Asian Pacific Islander (API) Students On Your Campus!

Immigrants Rising is excited to announce the launch of our newest resource Increasing Inclusivity for Undocumented Asian Pacific Islander (API) Students On Your Campus! This resource provides tangible ways for educators to effectively connect and engage with undocuAPI students. 

Join us for our Increasing Inclusivity for Undocumented API Students on Your Campus Webinar on Thursday, February 18th at 10 - 11 a.m. to learn about the experiences of current undocuAPI students, as well as gain an overview of our newest resource with promising practices to better uplift and support this student population.

Despite increasing support for undocumented students in higher education, undocuAPI students still feel underseen and underserved today. It’s important to remember that with APIs being a growing population within undocumented students in higher education, it is critical that campuses better uplift and serve these students. 

Help us close this gap and sign up for our resource launch webinar! Encourage your campus colleagues to join by forwarding this email to them. Please also make sure to invite your API-serving programs and organizations on our campus, as well as API faculty and academic departments. 

If you’d like to keep in touch with our undocuAPI engagement efforts, please sign up for our UndocuAPI Engagement Project Listserv, and encourage your interested colleagues to do the same.

"Racelighting: A Prevalent Version of Gaslighting Facing People of Color"

Wednesday, March 3, 2021
11:30 - 12:30 Pacific

Watch Recording Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AryVSRYz808 

recently held was a special, conversational webinar featuring Drs. Frank Harris III and J. Luke Wood on the topic of Racelighting. Racelighting refers to the process whereby People of Color question their own thoughts and actions due to systematically delivered racialized messages that make them second guess their own lived experiences with racism. When experiencing racelighting, People of Color often feel invalidated and become overwhelmed by feelings of inferiority and self-doubt. Here are some examples:

• A Black staff member who has been passed over for a promotion may start to believe it was because they are not “professional” enough.

• A Latinx administrator who receives unnecessarily harsh feedback and destructive criticism of their work from colleagues may begin to question their own intelligence and capabilities.

• A Native American professor whose scholarship is viewed as lacking rigor because it focuses on racial equity and social justice may question if they belong in the academy. 

Drs. J. Luke Wood and Frank Harris III recently had an article on Racelighting published in Diverse Issues in Higher Education, who is serving as a co-sponsor for this event.