Season 3 Episode 10

Serving our LGBTQ+ Youth ft. Emily Grijalva and Erin Whalen – Season 3 Ep. 10

Our schools have undoubtedly done a poor job of serving our LGBTQ+ students. What are schools doing now to correct this, and what work still needs to be done in order to ensure that our LGBTQ+ students are given the education they deserve? We sit down with two transformative educators--Emily Grijalva and Erin Whalen--to discuss their work and advocacy for LGBTQ+ students. But first, we explore recent headlines in education regarding climate change curriculum, underprepared special education teachers, and a district that’s now allowing students to miss school for political protest

HEADLINES IN EDUCATION - S3 Ep10

Jeff and Manuel examine recent headlines in education. New Zealand introduces a national curriculum to address the climate crisis and eco-anxiety, districts struggle to fill vacancies in special education, and Fairfax County Public Schools has introduced a plan to allow students to miss one day of school to participate in a “civic engagement” activity.

SEMINAR - SUPPORTING OUT LGBTQ+ YOUTH

Our schools have undoubtedly done a poor job of serving our LGBTQ+ students. What are schools doing now to correct this, and what work still needs to be done in order to ensure that our LGBTQ+ students are given the education they deserve? We sit down with two transformative educators--Emily Grijalva and Erin Whalen--to discuss their work and advocacy for LGBTQ+ students.

One-on-one with Emily Grijalva

After filming our seminar discussion about serving LGBTQ+ youth, Jeff sat down with Emily to learn more about her work in education and her journey as an educator. Emily is the Restorative Justice Coordinator and sponsor of the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) at Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez High School in Los Angeles. She taught English for 12 years where her pedagogy was rooted in social justice and love. Emily received the United Way’s Inspirational Teacher award in 2014, was recognized in 2016 by the Obama administration's White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, and won the Partnership for LA School’s Courageous Teacher award in 2017. She is a UCLA Writing Project Fellow, where she earned her master’s degree. She is a mom, and proud, youngest daughter of Central American immigrants.

One-on-one with Erin Whalen

After filming our seminar discussion about serving LGBTQ+ youth, Jeff sat down with Erin to learn more about his work in education and his journey as an educator. Erin Whalen is the founding Assistant Principal at DaVinci RISE High School, a multi campus school serving students in South LA and Hawthorne who have experienced foster care, housing instability, probation, and other circumstances that have disrupted their journey in school. RISE was the recipient of a coveted $10 million dollar start up grant from the XQ Super School project, which funds educators creating innovating, new high schools. Erin has been a teacher in Miami and Los Angeles, a TFA Corps Member Advisor in Los Angeles and Phoenix, and was a Posse Scholar at Grinnell College. Erin is from a proud black, Chicano and Indigenous family, and was born and raised in Los Angeles.