Session Title: Organizing Inside and Outside
Speakers: Alan P Knoerr, Angela “Laila” Hasan, Kyndall Brown, Robin Wilson, Kiwi Wilson, Bootsie Battle-Holt
Description: The local alliance in Los Angeles – we call ourselves “Algebra Project LA” – is pursuing a two-pronged strategy. One is organizing within institutions, chiefly (but not restricted to) the University of Southern California (USC)’s Rossier School of Education, USC’s Neighborhood Academic Initiative, and the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The other is organizing a group of teachers and young people who will gain experience in the Algebra Project, the Young People’s Project and other liberating pedagogies. The goal is to catalyze a transformation of how mathematics is taught and learned in LAUSD and to create employment opportunities for youth knowledge workers in LAUSD schools. Primary vehicles for this coordinated strategy are (1) a summer math academy for students and teachers, featuring the Algebra Project’s “Tripline” curriculum as well as an explicit organizing and math identity curriculum, and (2) bringing the Young People’s Project to each of the four sub-districts of LAUSD, in part but not only through a research study YPP is conducting, funded by the Gates Foundation.
The Summer Math Academy has concluded a week before this conference is being held. Our session will give some of our students, teachers, and organizers the opportunity to share their experiences and to engage with participants having similar interests and concerns. In particular, we will highlight the importance of attending to relationships and being intentional about the community we are creating. We will also situate this recent work in our long-term strategy.