The Wealth and Poverty Theme presents Dr. Theda Gibbs Grey on “Disrupting the School to Prison Pipeline through Restorative Teacher Training” on Thursday, Feb. 8, from 3-4 p.m.n Alden 319.
Dr. Theda Gibbs Grey is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Teacher Education in the Patton College of Education at Ohio University. She currently teaches undergraduate and masters courses that focus on developmental reading, reading assessment and reading across the content areas, all with a focus on culturally relevant pedagogy. She also advises and supports masters students as they develop and complete literacy research projects. Dr. Gibbs Grey is committed to educational equity through her teaching, research and practice. Her research explores how to create more equitable learning spaces that embrace the literacies and lived experiences of Black youth both in and beyond school. Through a second line of research, she explores how teacher preparation programs prepare prospective teachers to develop culturally relevant teaching practices in all content areas, with an emphasis on reading courses.
Abstract: Researchers continue to report the dire need for increased research that highlights the experiences of Black girls who have been suspended, and widespread implementation of school structures that support their social, emotional, and academic well-being. Dr. Harrison and Dr. Gibbs Grey seek to center and improve the school experiences of Black middle school girls who have experienced school suspensions. Utilizing an ethnographic case-study methodology, Dr. Harrison and Dr. Gibbs Grey explore the home and school experiences of Black middle school girls who have experienced school suspensions. Over the course of an academic year, Dr. Harrison and Dr. Gibbs Grey continue to utilize multiple qualitative data collection methods inclusive of interviews with study girls, their teachers, parents and principal; classroom observations; collection of student artifacts, academic records and progress reports. Additionally, Dr. Harrison and Dr. Gibbs Grey have designed and implemented a weekly Girls Forum, focused on providing support for the social, emotional and academic well being of Black middle school girls. Findings from the study can increase what researchers and teachers know about the experiences of Black middle school girls’, particularly those that have been suspended and identify school structures that potentially inhibit and support their future success in school. They also help to further disrupt the perpetuation of the School to Prison Pipeline among Students of Color.
Her talk is part of a week in February at Ohio University dealing with identities and inequalities. Wealth & Poverty Week on Identities and Inequalities is Feb. 5-9.
Dr. Theda Gibbs Grey
About Wealth & Poverty Week on Identities and Inequalities: Our identities affect our lives profoundly; some start impacting us before we are even born and continue until we die. The enforcement of identity norms and the hierarchies associated with different identities can be highly problematic and result in undesirable outcomes. At the same time, our identities can often be a source of belonging and pride. The Wealth and Poverty Week on Identities and Inequalities brings the Ohio University community together to discuss specific inequalities related to identities and also how identities can be part of the solutions to these inequalities.
Any questions? Email Yeong Kim at kimy1@ohio.edu.
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