Blog

Over 200 years ago, the United States signed a treaty with the Cherokee Nation, granting them representation in Congress. However, this position was never filled until Kimberly Teehee entered the scene. In 2019, Teehee became the first Cherokee Nation delegate in the House of Representatives. As a lawyer, activist, and former advisor to President Obama, Teehee has quickly become a monumental figure in history. Kimberly Teehee was born on March 2, 1966 in Chicago, Illinois. Due to a federal...

Although it was very dangerous for African Americans to speak out against white people during the Jim Crow era, Recy Taylor refused to remain silent about sexual violence. She bravely testified against the group of white men that kidnapped and raped her. Decades later, her story has been told in both a book and a documentary film. Recy Taylor was born as Recy Corbitt on December 31, 1919. She grew up in Abbeville, Alabama to a sharecropping family. When she was 17 years old, her mother died...

Growing up in a royal family, Queen Lili‘uokalani was trained to be a monarch. Even though becoming queen was probably not a surprise to her, she may not have known that she would also become the last sovereign monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Unfortunately, she was only able to reign for three years because the United States overthrew the Hawaiian monarchy. However, Lili‘uokalani published her side of the story in a memoir that became the only autobiography written by a Hawaiian monarch.

Great documentary. Please watch, share your thoughts, reactions and ways we can build healing communities here in NJ. This video shows in detail how we infuse language, pedagogy and praxis to move individuals and community healing. We Came to Heal” follows H.O.L.L.A!’s Healing Justice Movement - over a three years period capturing Healing Justice circles, the Healing Justice Summits and H.O.L.L.A!’ s human healing-centered praxis led by The Youth Organizing Collective (Y.O.C). We believe to...

You are invited to attend: NJ Spotlight News Virtual Roundtable: Maternal Health in New Jersey: Pursuing Equity Through Systemic Change Thursday, April 1, 2021 from 4:00 PM - 5:15 PM Online via teleconferencing This will be an online event only. Please register to have a teleconferencing link emailed to you Thursday, 4/1, at 3pm with a repeat send at 4pm. Alarmingly, in the United States mothers are dying at the highest rate in the developed world with the crisis being most severe for Black...

Highlights and thoughts from an article by Howard I. Bath: Calming together: The pathway to self-control Neuroscience shows that humans develop their abilities for emotional self-regulation through connections with reliable caregivers who soothe and model in a process called “co-regulation.” Since many troubled young people have not experienced a reliable, comforting presence, they have difficulty regulating their emotions and impulses. Co-regulation provides a practical model for helping...

Re-thinking how we relate to and build relationships with students who have social-emotional needs, as well as connect with students who may have experienced trauma in their lives. Dr. Fox is a passionate educator with 17 years of experience in public education. She began her career as a special education teacher in the Nanuet School District and went on to complete a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from Fordham University. Upon completion of that degree, she expanded her role...

A new national report estimates a shortage of about 7 million affordable and available rental homes for Americans living at or below the poverty level. Such a gap, as explained by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, also exists in New Jersey, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the problem. "I think what we've seen is, this crisis actually makes worse some of those conditions that were in place pre-COVID," Arnold Cohen, senior policy advisor for the Housing and Community...

New York Times bestselling author Janet Mock continues to make history as a writer, director, and advocate. In 2018, Mock became the first transgender woman of color to write and direct an episode of television. Most recently, she signed a three-year multimillion-dollar contract with Netflix, making her the first openly transgender woman of color to sign a deal with a major content company. Mock hopes that her creations will continue to “empower people and equip them to tell their own...

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN! Join the New Jersey Pediatric Residency Advocacy Collaborative (NJPRAC) at the 2021 NJPRAC Summit on Wednesday, April 21 to: Learn about the achievements of NJPRAC Faculty and Residents Discuss the Collaborative’s impactful partnerships with New Jersey’s network of Family Success Centers Understand the intersection of NJPRAC’s work with related statewide initiatives to buffer the effects of adversity on children and families Speakers will share insights into the...

Co-founder of the United Farm Workers Association, Dolores Clara Fernandez Huerta is one of the most influential labor activists of the 20 th century and a leader of the Chicano civil rights movement. Born on April 10, 1930 in Dawson, New Mexico, Huerta was the second of three children of Alicia and Juan Fernandez, a farm worker and miner who became a state legislator in 1938. Her parents divorced when Huerta was three years old, and her mother moved to Stockton, California with her...

Join NJEA in celebrating International #SEL Day on March 26, 2021 from 3:00– 4:00 pm. Members will hear from Alisha Delorenzo, SEL specialist and a panel of educators who have incorporated SEL practices into their schools and classrooms. Please click HERE to register and join the meeting. ***NJEA pin NOT mandatory to register*** A short video that explains SEL and its benefits.