There’s so much to celebrate this past Fiscal Year 2018-2019,
and even more to look forward to in the new one!
Reflecting on this past Fiscal Year (July 2018 – June 2019), RE·Center Race & Equity in Education has much to celebrate and to look forward to in the new year!
First off, we turned one! It has been one year since we made the shift from The Discovery Center to RE·Center Race & Equity in Education. Not only did we re-brand our name and look, but we made an intentional change in our name to better reflect the work that we are doing. Over this past year, we have been learning to center our work in anti-racism, and we have been collaborating with school districts, nonprofits and other partners to help create equitable and sustainable systemic change.
This year, we worked throughout Connecticut, but also got to take our workshops and Equity Shifts on the road! Our facilitators and Program Directors traveled across the country to present and facilitate at national conferences, in cities such as: Boston, Detroit, San Diego, Houston, Austin and Cambridge! We had an opportunity to expand our audience and find new partners working at a national level.
In addition to growing our audience, we’ve also expanded our RE·Center community. We welcomed three dynamic new board members, Dr. Terrell M. Hill, Cheryl Hilton and Sean Mosley, bringing our team of board members to a total of 13 individuals based throughout the state of Connecticut. We also held our second annual Facilitator Training Institute (FTI) gaining 5 new Per-Diem Facilitators
(In the photos appearing from left to right: Dr. Terrell M. Hill, Cheryl Hilton and Sean Mosley)
And as we ended the fiscal year, we also said goodbye to some folks. After 11 years on the board, one of our best advocates, Dr. Diane Clare-Kearney stepped down as chair of our Board. We welcomed Joelle A. Murchison as Chair in December. We also said goodbye to one of our star camp counselors and program associate, Jae Aviles, who is now exploring freelance work and new opportunities.
The end of the fiscal year also meant the completion of a fellowship for our Newman’s Own Foundation Storytelling and Research Fellow, Amaryst Parks. Amaryst was a part of our team for only a year, but she played an instrumental role in helping us launch our new website. She taught our team a lot about the impact and ethics of storytelling, and the importance of self-narrative. Amaryst will be continuing her educational career in the Midwest, and we’ll still be cheering for her here in Hartford.
And after six years, three as a full-time staff member, Derek Hall is saying goodbye as our Youth Program Director. Derek was a fundamental thought partner here at RE·Center and was responsible for overseeing our talent management and youth programming. He helped develop and facilitate various programs and workshops and played a big role in developing our community. Derek directed the final season of our 25-year-old residential camp program and launched our new pilot Equity Teams for Positive School Change.
(In the photos appearing from left to right: Jae Aviles, Derek Hall, and Derek Hall again with Suri Seymour.)
With Derek moving on, we appreciate the support of Suri Seymour, who is working with us temporarily as a Program Specialist. She will help us manage the hiring process and re-organize the program department to take full advantage of all that Derek brought us in his time here. Suri’s been working with RE·Center as a facilitator since October of 2018 and was our Operations Manager during the Equity Teams Retreat this past spring. She’s going to be an essential partner in our new programming this year!
The team is also getting ready to welcome our new Newman’s Own Foundation Storytelling and Communications Fellow, SabriAnan Micha. As a recent Amherst College graduate with experience in community engagement and advocacy work, we’re looking forward to seeing how they will help us expand our engagement.
RE·Imagine:
RE·Center is in the process of expanding. We’re looking to grow into our new name and examine what it means to make sustainable change within our communities. We’re grateful for the lessons that we learned last year, and we’re ready to reflect, assess, and make this year even better. We’re taking on new projects, team members, collaborators and ideas to help us better understand what our role can be in making sure every student has what they need to grow and thrive.
What are some of your goals for growth this year?
