In Episode 6 of DON’s podcast series about the education system in the United States, co-hosts Brian Le (@brianlele) and Elizabeth Fisher (@_elizabethafisher_) connect the dots between settler colonialism and higher education, discussing Land-Grant Universities, colleges’ real estate investments, and whiteness in academia.

Sources:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/11mUz9uQdfP2W5JdNtDYAeMdLVCkAtQbiUz3zO2626HE/edit?usp=sharing

In Episode 5 of DON’s podcast series about the education system in the United States, co-hosts Brian Le (@brianlele) and Elizabeth Fisher (@_elizabethafisher_) trace the history of higher education in the country and discuss why college is so expensive and what it is students are paying for.

Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xE_yVyonhsrnwyC1CmGnSTrRyLiqz2sc2Si31SdBkj0/edit?usp=sharing

In Episode 4 of DON’s podcast series about the education system in the United States, co-hosts Elizabeth Fisher (@_elizabethafisher_) and Brian Le (@brianlele) discuss why STEM education is valued over the arts and how this came to be.

Sources:

“How the Educational System in America Compares to Other Countries,” Critical Issues in Education

“50-State Comparison: High School Graduation Requirements,” Education Commision of the States

Brown , Chelsey. Murray State's Digital Commons , 2020, The Importance of Having Properly Funded Art Programs and The Benefits It Brings to Public Schools. 

Zhao , Z. (2020). (rep.). Comparison of Art Education Between China and Foreign Countries Taking Educational Ideas as an Example. Atlantis Press. 

Elpus, Kenneth. Research: Art Works Program of the National Endowment for the Arts, Understanding the Availability of Arts Education in U.S. High Schools

“The Evolution of STEM and STEAM in the U.S.,” Resilient Educator

“The Rising Popularity of STEM: A Crossroads in Public Education or a Passing Trend?,” Public School Review 

“What Trump Cut in His Agency Budgets,” The Washington Post

“New York City’s 2021 Budget Slashes Already Modest Funding for Public-School Arts Education by 70 Percent,” Americans for the Arts 

“Employment in STEM occupations,” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could not be Televised), Hulu

In a conversation with the Co Founders and Executive Directors of Diversify Our Narrative, Katelin Zhou (@katelinzhou) and Jasmine Nguyen (@jasminenguyeenn) discuss their educational backgrounds, the origin story and inner workings of DON, and their plans for the near and long term future of the organization.

Sources:

diversifyournarrative.com

Register for #DONCON

@bathrooms_at_williams

@zenerations

@dearasianyouth

@afropuffchronicles

In Episode 3 of DON’s podcast series about the education system in the United States, co-hosts Brian Le (@brianlele) and Elizabeth Fisher (@_elizabethafisher_) define educational equity, discuss barriers to equity and how this affects one’s schooling experience and life trajectory, and consider what can be done to ensure a more equitable education system.

Ilyasah Shabazz —award winning author, speaker, educator, and activist, and the third daughter of Malcom X and Dr. Betty Shabazz— speaks on her educational experience, the necessity for honesty and accuracy in history curriculum, and how learning about diverse cultures and histories helps young people find their purpose and love themselves, in an interview with DON’s Director of Special Projects, Victoria Gorum.

“The omission of Black, Indegionous, Brown, Asian, and Latinx history is not accidental. These exclusions distance people from their own heritage, their own lineage, and, ultimately, their own sense of self. A whitewashed curriculum enforces the myth that there have never been scholars, thinkers, innovators, caregivers, iconoclasts, artists, and revolutionaries across these identities.” — Ilyasah Shabazz

Sources:

ilyasahshabazz.com

In Episode 2 of DON’s podcast series about the education system in the United States, co-hosts Brian Le (@brianlele) and Elizabeth Fisher (@_elizabethafisher_) cover the historical and contemporary role of textbooks in K-12 classrooms, Texas’s disproportionate influence on the textbook publishing industry, and who is being protected and harmed by censorship and misinformation in textbooks.

Sources:

Brunner, Tyler. "Censorship in History Textbooks: How Knowledge of the Past is Being Constructed in Schools," Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado: Vol. 3 : No. 2 , Article 9, 2013.

Oliveira, João Batista. “Understanding Textbook Quality in the USA: How Governments Distort the Market.” International Review of Education / Internationale Zeitschrift Für Erziehungswissenschaft / Revue Internationale De L'Education, Vol. 41, No. 6, 1995, pp. 481–500.

“Texas Mother Teaches Textbook Company a Lesson on Accuracy,” The New York Times

“Showdown over science in Texas,” Slate

“Texas Takes Steps to Improve Accuracy of Future Textbooks. Except It Doesn’t.,” Slate

“How AP History became so controversial that Oklahoma is trying to ban it,” Vox

“How Book Banning Works,” How Stuff Works 

In Episode 1 of DON’s new podcast series about the education system in the United States, co-hosts Elizabeth Fisher ( @_elizabethafisher_) and Brian Le (@brianlele) discuss the intentions and short-comings of Common Core, reflect on their educational experiences, and compare and contrast statistics about public and private schools.

Join @ccameronadams and @ceciliagao_ in discussing Valentine's Day, Relationships, RomComs, and more! 

Join @ccameronadams and @ceciliagao_ in discussing New Year's Resolutions and Anti-Racist Goals for 2021!