Black Oxygen

Each year the Women Artists Forward Fund selects, honors, and awards two women visual artists in Dane County with a cash prize. Alice Traore, a Madison based artist, is one of the recipients of the 2021 Forward Art Prize from the Women Artists Forward Fund. In addition to being an artist, Alice is a learning communities facilitator and curriculum designer for the Division of Diversity, Equity and Educational Achievement at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. In this episode of Black Oxygen, recorded in Fall of 2020, Alice and I discuss what it is like being a Black women doing DEI work and the role of Black mermaids in the middle passage. Alice is phenomenal and my heart leaps every time I see her. I hope that you enjoy this conversation.

#BlackOxygenPodcast #BlackinWisconsin #BlackArtists #EducationInWisconsin #BlackMermaids #ForwardArtPrize

Black Oxygen was honored with a Wisconsin Innovation Award in the non-profit category! Thanks to everyone who voted and everyone who listens.

Dr. Roxie Hentz is the founding Executive Director of CEOs of Tomorrow headquartered here in Madison Wisconsin. In this episode of Black Oxygen Dr. Hentz and I discuss how her 5th grade teacher made a forever impact on her, the brilliance of children and the importance of culturally relevant education. She begs the question of “how do we see kids as partners in their own education?” And says, “kids should be able to own their learning.” This a great conversation best suited for educators, parents and all that want to co-create a liberated future with our children.

#BlackOxygenPodcast #BlackInWisconsin #EducationInWisconsin #CEOsofTomorrow #RoxieHentz #AbolisionistEducationinWisconsin #AbolistionistEducation #YoungInnovators

Letesha Nelson, the new Director of the Goodman Community Center, is this week’s featured guest on the Black Oxygen podcast. We cover a wide range of topics in our conversation including Letesha’s educational journey, parenting, self-forgiveness, and authentic leadership. We also discuss Goodman Community Center’s role in supporting wholistic education for the entire family. During our conversation, Letesha says, “Goodman is all the things I needed when I was a single mom on welfare.” Listen with an open heart and open mind - and get to learn about a new leader in Madison, WI - Letesha Nelson.

#BlackOxygenPodcast #AdverseChildhoodExperiences #BlackInWisconsin #EducationInWisconsin #LeteshaNelson #MeetLetesha

Click here to learn more about the Goodman Community Center: https://www.goodmancenter.org/

This week on Black Oxygen we feature Ali Muldrow and Savion Castro, President and Vice President of the MMSD School Board. We cover a broad range of education topics including their educational journey, the treatment and labeling of Black children, leading as a Black person in Madison and much more. This episode is filled with laughter, job and lots of wisdom. During this episode Ali says, “we cannot underestimate the advocacy of Black parents.”

#BlackOxygenPodcast #BlackInWisconsin #MisEducationoftheNegro #EducationinWisconsin #AbolisionistEducationinWisconsin #MMSDSchoolBoard #AliMuldrow #SavionCastro

Season 4 of Black Oxygen starts off featuring a conversation with Ann Terrell, current President of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Ms. Terrell is an early childhood education professional serving 40 years in local, state and national leadership capacities. She has held a variety of positions and roles over her career including teacher, center director and administrator, child care licensing specialist, school district early childhood education director and higher education faculty. In 2018, Ms. Terrell authored and published her book Graceful Leadership in Early Childhood Education. In this episode we discuss the history of early childhood education in the United States, centering equity in early childhood education, what Black joy and love look like in the classroom and much more. Near the end of the episode Ann reminds us that we must, “acknowledge that early education is the start of education … learning begins at birth.”

#BlackOxygenPodcast #BlackInWisconsin #MisEducationoftheNegro #EducationinWisconsin #AbolisionistEducationinWisconsin #EarlyChildhoodEducation #NAEYC