This page provides a brief overview of Teach for Justice Lab Projects as well as links to resources when relevant. If you wish to learn more about a specific project, please feel free to email us at T4JLab@uvm.edu.
Strategies To SUPPORT Social Justice Advocacy
Strategies to Support Social Justice Advocacy is a resource that was created through the Teach for Justice Lab in collaboration with social justice advocates in education to help support and sustain the advocacy work of educators and activists who are engaging in justice-oriented work within organizations that serve youth (e.g. P-12 schools, non-profit organizations, and advocacy groups). These strategies assume a commitment to justice-oriented education and advocacy and are not designed to convince those who are resistant to dismantling oppressive systems and creating liberatory spaces to better serve youth. It is our hope that this resource can serve as a source of affirmation and sustenance for educators and activists who are taking up the challenge of critical advocacy during this challenging socio-political moment.
This full resource can be downloaded below in two formats: 1) a color version, and 2) a fully accessible version in black and white.
Project Leads: Jessica DeMink-Carthew, Kathleen Brinegar, Kristie W. Smith & Lucia Liencres
CURATED RESOURCES ON CONFLICT RESOLUTION
This project as created in response to a request by education activists in our network for more resources connected to the topic of conflict resolution. The Conflict Resolution Resource Guide includes definitions and a list of curated resources related to the following topics: transformative justice, conflict transformation, calling in vs calling out, community accountability, healing-centered engagement, courageous conversations, appreciative inquiry, restorative justice, and creative problem solving.
Project Lead: Harry Marek
Ongoing: Teach for Justice Lab Liaisons for Edmunds Middle School YPAR
UVM students in the Teach for Justice Lab have the opportunity to work with and support the work of the Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) group at Edmunds Middle School. Teach for Justice Lab liaisons attend the YPAR class at Edmunds Middle School and in partnership with the YPAR classroom teachers, support the various justice-oriented initiatives that the middle school students in YPAR are leading. You can learn more about YPAR at Edmunds Middle School at this website: YPAR@EMS.
YPAR Liaisons Past & Present: Dean Impastato, Lucia Liencres & Pigeon Nelson
Ongoing: Crowdsourced Unlearning Resources
Over the past few years, we have been crowdsourcing resources that folx have found to be impactful in their journey to unlearn and disrupt oppressive ideologies. We offer them here as a Crowdsourced Starter List that include a mix of podcasts, books, and websites. Got a resource you love and would recommend to others for unlearning/disrupting oppressive ideologies? Email us at t4jlab@uvm.edu
Project Leads: Lucia Liencres & Jessica DeMink-Carthew
Youth Friendly Website of Social Justice Activists
This project was inspired by a request from social justice educators at Edmunds Middle School in Burlington, VT. The goal of this project was to create a curated website for Grade 6 students to use to learn about the work of some contemporary social justice activists. The resulting Social Justice Activists Website was designed for use by learners who are in the middle grades or older but also includes a few entries (coded with a *) that are designed with emergent readers in mind. We encourage other social justice educators to use this website to inspire youth activism and infuse critical hope into their social justice teaching.
Project Lead: Kay Trevett; Project Partner: Caleb Marcus
Advocacy for Indigenous Education
In the Spring of 2022, the Teach for Justice Lab launched a student-led initiative to advocate for greater visibility and exposure to Indigenous perspectives within the UVM College of Education and Social Services. This initiative led to the creation of a report and proposal, which included findings from a student survey as well as recommendations for curriculum innovation and faculty support.
Project Co-Leads: Sage WhiteCloud and Kay Trevett