Five educators from KIPP Lanning Square’s campus headed to Philadelphia in November to participate in the Black Male Educators Connect Conference hosted by the Center for Black Educator Development. 

The group included Marcus Woods, a teacher at KIPP Lanning Square Primary, along with KIPP Lanning Square Middle math teachers Shawn Harper, Christopher Collins, Rahim Shiver, and science teacher Dennis Nelson. 

Together, they participated in sessions ranging from teacher wellness to community engagement. Check out this reflection below from Mr. Nelson on his experience at BMEC!

“One of the sessions I attended was about supporting young Black boys and about having an equitable lens when approaching classroom management strategies. Something I’m mindful of is that students are coming to our classroom with different life experiences and academic strengths. My goal is to teach the whole student in my science classroom and recognize that each of them brings something different to the table. 

It felt empowering to be in a space with hundreds of other Black men who are trying to make a difference in the lives of Black and brown students. I’m from Camden and the work I do at KLSM is personal to me; I want my students to have the best possible experience in my classroom. We need more Black men in education, but it’s reassuring to know how many of us across the country are impacting students every day.”

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