Pictured above: During E-Term, BSC education students often have the opportunity to collaborate with local teachers at a private, rural elementary school in Mukono, Uganda. Photo from 2019.

In October 2020, Birmingham-Southern’s Department of Education hosted the Association for Constructivist Teaching (ACT) annual conference, which took place virtually with more than 300 participants from 48 states and three countries. The theme of the conference was “Peace, Justice, and Equity in the Classroom,” which members of our BSC faculty incorporated into all parts of the event.

Dr. Kelly Russell, associate professor of education, serves as ACT president-elect and worked closely with Dr. Gay Barnes, assistant professor of education and active ACT board member, to organize topics and speakers and, during the onset of COVID-19, move the typically in-person event online.

Russell has served on the ACT board since 2017, but this year was different than any other year – and not just because it was all virtual. The team decided to reduce the usual $325 professional conference fee to just $19.64 to honor the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which provided integration for schools.

The price reduction emphasized ACT’s commitment to social justice and helped make the learning experience more accessible to educators.

“By making the conference online and affordable, we were able to invite classroom teachers and pre-service teachers,” Russell says. “They are often overlooked at conferences, and they are really the backbone of education and ultimately the reason why we do what we do.”

A portion of each fee was also donated to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which works toward the promise of the civil rights movement. This donation is another new aspect of the conference, and with Birmingham educators at the head of the conference committee, they chose to support an influential nonprofit headquartered in Alabama.

“We saw disparities in race and socio-economic status amplified in 2020, not only because of the civil unrest but also because of the stark reality of children living in poverty not having the resources needed to participate in remote schooling,” Russell says. “We felt that this opportunity to use the conference as a way to raise money to donate to SPLC as a moral and political act.”

Crystal Hawkins ’19 works with Birmingham students in spring 2019.

The conference featured 34 workshop speakers and two keynote speakers. The first keynote was Dr. Christopher Emdin, published author, professor, and Columbia University’s Science Education Program Director and Institute for Urban and Minority Education Associate Director. Emdin was someone the committee never dreamed they would be able to feature, Russell says.

The second keynote was especially important for our BSC faculty and Birmingham teachers – Dr. Martin Nalls, the head of school for I3 Academy, a K-5 charter school in Birmingham whose mission is to prepare children to problem solve and excel in a global society. “I3” stands for the school’s core principles – imagine, investigate, and innovate – that have been foundational since the school opened in August 2020.

BSC education faculty and students have developed a strong relationship with I3 Academy, and fifth grade I3 teacher Taylor Eads was able to join Russell and Barnes on the 2020 ACT conference committee. As BSC students intern at I3 and learn about their mission, conference participants also had the opportunity to hear about the school’s growth in Birmingham.

Workshop speakers included K-12 teachers and higher ed faculty and staff from around the country who shared their research and experiential expertise, including Dr. Amelia Gunn Spencer ’85, associate professor of education, and Alex Levinson ’14, who shared his perspective as a white man living and teaching in South Seattle.

The conference also brought together speakers and participants outside of the education world who still had an interest in the themes discussed. Dr. Steven Leonard Jacobs, Aaron Aronov Chair of Judaic Studies at the University of Alabama (and husband of Dr. Louanne Jacobs, associate professor of education), spoke about antisemitism. Professionals in theatre arts, psychology, scientific research, and other fields also brought their knowledge to the table.

The Department of Education works hard to create courses focused on social justice, equity, and how racial and economic disparities impact K-12 students. The conference allowed them to continue that conversation between educators and see ACT become a force for change.