AAREA® 16th Annual Professional Development Summit – February 1 2025
African American Regional Educational Alliances®' 16th Annual Professional Development Summit
Habari Gani: Sharing The Good News
Join the African American Regional Educational Alliances for another year of action-driven problem-solving, as we come together over crucial challenges.
AAREA®’s 16th Annual Professional Development Summit returns in-person on February 1st, 2025 at California State University – East Bay in Hayward, California
Online Registration Is Now Open!
Advanced registration pricing ends December 14th 2024 . Please call (510) 614-3000 with any questions.
ENGAGE. EXPLORE. EMPOWER.
The 16th Annual Professional Development Summit takes place on February 1st 2025 at California State University – East Bay. Join us for another year of action-driven problem solving to advance the success of African American students.
Join us for a transformative experience dedicated to equipping attendees with the tools, insights, and strategies needed to cultivate Black Student Serving Environments. As we embrace the spirit of Habari Gani – sharing the good news, this event will provide a platform for sharing best practices, celebrating achievements, and fostering a deeper commitment to supporting Black students’ academic and personal success.
We encourage participants to attend with team members from their respective institutions. Examples of teams include but are not limited to: Equity Teams, Instructional Leadership Teams, School Sites (K-12, Higher Education, etc.), or Academic Cohorts. If you register as a solo attendee, the AAREA team will place you in the best group to maximize your PDS experience.
In a time such as this, how can we as an educational community...
Cultivate African American students’ social and emotional well-being?
Combat and advocate against racism in classrooms and on campuses?
Strengthen relationships and community among African American families and our schools?
In the panel discussion and breakout sessions, participants will explore the following questions from their unique personal and professional perspectives:
How do we build and sustain strategic alliances with various stakeholders to support and advance the needs of African American students and their families?
How do we honor our past, embrace the present, and cultivate our future?
Our esteemed guests bring insights into building and strengthening strategic alliances and, with our participants, will facilitate discussions both galvanizing and crystallizing these efforts. Get ready to:
Discover a unique blend of vision, inspiration, and practical skills immediately applicable to your work.
Leverage a powerful resource to transform both yourself and your community.
Engage. Explore. Empower.
Early Registration Available October 15th - December 15th 2024
Registration includes:
- In-Person Attendance Ticket
- Access to On-Site Roundtables
- Commemorative t-shirt
- Curated music playlist to inspire Black joy
- On-demand access to all workshop sessions after the event
Regular Registration (December 15th 2024 to February 1st 2025)
Registration includes:
- In-Person Attendance Ticket
- Access to On-Site Roundtables
- Commemorative t-shirt
- Curated music playlist to inspire Black joy
- On-demand access to all workshop sessions after the event
Engage in hands-on sessions that explore culturally responsive teaching, equitable policy development, and inclusive campus environments.
Hear from thought leaders and practitioners who are at the forefront of transforming educational spaces into Black Student Serving Organizations.
Receive a toolkit of actionable resources, including step-by-step guides on aligning with
Senate Bill 1348 to better serve Black students.
Connect with like- minded educators, administrators, and advocates from institutions across the state to build lasting partnerships.
Be inspired by powerful stories of success and resilience from leaders who are driving change in education for Black students.
Leave this summit empowered with the knowledge, tools, and support to create an environment where Black students thrive and succeed.
I had no idea what to expect. This is one of the best, most rejuvenating conferences I have been to. Ready to take action and network!
Thank you for a very confirming and inspiring day. This type of conference is so needed in the Bay Area. Together we can!
What an incredible resource for the community! I encourage everyone to attend next year.
Thank you!!
The AAREA staff really knows how to put quality events together. So glad they do what they do!
Spread the word to your colleagues next year – this is THE PLACE to network with other educators and leaders!
Past Workshop topics have included:
- Be the Dream: How to Inspire and Ignite Student Interest in STEM
- Soil 2 Flower: A Leadership Development Framework for Families, Students and School Leaders
- Career and Technology Education (CTE): ”The Answer for Closing the Achievement and Opportunity Gaps for African American Students
- Freedom Through the Arts: Elevating Black Youth Voices through Explorations of Arts, History & Race
- Promoting Culturally Responsive Programming for African American Student Engagement: Practical Strategies to Seamlessly Integrate Culturally Responsive Teaching into all Classrooms
- Status Report on Black Girls in Oakland Unified School District: Challenges and Aspirations
- Prioritizing Institutional Care: Fostering and Maintaining a Culture of Care for African American Students
- The STEM STEPS Experience
Some Previous AAREA PDS Speakers:
Lawrence Ross, the author of The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities and Blackballed: The Black and White Politics of Race on America’s Campuses, is a renowned lecturer on race, diversity, and inclusion topics.
Tanya Kateri Hernández is an internationally recognized comparative race law expert and Archibald R. Murray Professor of Law at Fordham University School of Law. She is the author of Multiracials and Civil Rights: Mixed-Race Stories of Discrimination and Racial Innocence: Unmasking Latino Anti-Black Bias and the Struggle for Equality.
Dr. Lanette Jimerson is a writer, scholar and educator with 20+ years of experience helping equity-minded leaders bring forth their ideas through teaching and writing. Currently a professor at the University of Houston, Lanette has served as the director of U.C. Berkeley’s English Credential and Master’s program, a K-12 educator, and a literacy specialist.
California Mathematics Project/UCLA – co-author of “Choosing To See: A Framework For Equity In The Mathematics Classroom”.
Kyndall Brown has over 35 years of experience in mathematics education. He was a secondary mathematics teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District for 13 years, teaching at both the middle and high school levels. He has been a professional development provider for over 25 years, serving as a mathematics resource teacher for the Los Angeles Systemic Initiative in LAUSD, and as mathematics teacher consultant for and director of the UCLA Mathematics Project (UCLAMP). He is currently the Executive Director of the California Mathematics Project, a statewide network of professional development organizations.
California Mathematics Project/UCLA
Dr. Pamela Seda is an educational consultant with over 30 years of educational experience. She currently lives in metro Atlanta with her husband and four adult children. She is the owner of Seda Educational Consulting, creator of The VANG Game math card game, and co-author of the book, Choosing to See: A Framework for Equity in the Math Classroom.
Genealogist / Communal Wellness Artivist
Regina “Califa” Calloway, founder and creator of nzoCALIFAncestry, specializes in curatorial research of African-Ancestored cultural histories. She is a member of the inaugural class of the Midwest African American Genealogy Institute. Her Communal works utilizes Genealogy as a guided tool to cultivate vital roles of identity, personal transformation, and to advance cultural competence.
Producer/Director/Writer/Performer
Brandon Hughes is an Oakland native, and a multi-hyphenate Producer/Director/Writer/Performer. He has degrees in Theater, Film, and Television and Media from UCLA. He created and performs in the acclaimed one-man show, “The Absent Father, The Wayward Son,” and wrote the novel “The Man Behind The Curtain.” Currently, Brandon not only has productions in the works in the entertainment industry, he also partners with schools and organizations in creating entertaining educational videos, and leads a literacy and filmmaking program with our youth.
University of California, Berkeley, Professor of Education
William and Mary Jane Brinton Family Chair in Urban Teaching; Faculty Director of the School’s educational doctorate (Leaders for Equity and Democracy) and for the School’s Principal Leadership Institute’s Masters degree program. He is Leadership Board Chair of the 21st Century California School Leadership Academies funded by the California Department of Education, a board Member and Governance Committee Chair of the National Writing Project, and the Faculty Director of the Bay Area Writing Project. He also is an Adjunct Professor for Columbia University’s Summer Leadership Academy. The most recent of his seven academic books is “Deconstructing Race: Multicultural Education Beyond the Color-Bind” (2017).
Special Guest Speaker – Integrating Arts Strategies to Cultivate Joy, Community, and Cultural Connections in the Classroom
Concerned Parents Alliance and The College Bound Academy Programs; Author of “REVEALED:True Testimonials and Life Lessons on Covert and Blatant Racial Expressions”
Dr. Darlene V. Griffin-Willis serves as the Co-Founder/Executive Director of the family-empowered non-profit Concerned Parents Alliance and The College Bound Academy Programs. She served as an administrator at nationally recognized public and private institutions for more than twenty years and understands the importance of education, equity and cultural competence.
Dr. Willis is the author of a two books titled, “REVEALED: True Testimonials and Lessons Learned on Covert and Blatant Racial Experiences,” and Empowering Parents: A Guide to Taking Back Control of Your Child’s Educational Journey as well as the creator of “The Million Parent WAKE-UP Challenge.”℠ She is working on her third book challenging parents and caregivers to strategically manage their households while utilizing the Willis Family Model that has changed countless family situations at home and in the schools.
