#TFALLGC2015

Speaker bio

DeRay also became known for his work in Ferguson, as his deft use of social media provided protestors a viral voice to broadcast to a Twitter following (@deray) that has now sprouted to over 123,000. He has since left his job as senior director of human capital for Minneapolis Public Schools to pursue his activism full-time with We The Protestors, most recently in Baltimore following Freddie Gray’s death.

“We want to make people feel as uncomfortable as we feel when we hear about Mike, about Eric Garner, about Tamir Rice,” DeRay told The New York Times. “We want them to experience what we go through on a daily basis.”

DeRay and Brittany Packnett have teamed up to facilitate “#FergusonFireside” virtual calls for young activists, and released a series called “Open Letters from Ferguson” that captures the protestors’ demands for justice and have been viewed by over 260,000 people.

My sessions

Mobilizing communities for social change

October 17, Saturday
15:00 - 16:00
OGGB3 (Lower level)

Throughout history, social movements—from the U.S. Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and ‘60s, to New Zealand’s Māori Protest Movement in the 1970s, to Perestroika in the USSR in the 1990s—have been driven by the groups most affected by oppression. How do we support this motivation for social change in the communities and countries where we work, where not every student will enjoy equal life opportunities due to race, socio-economic status, and other factors?

Alumni roundtable: Supporting alumni to fulfill their potential

October 15, Thursday
14:00 - 14:45
Limelight 1

Description: Our Theory of Change hinges on creating a movement of leaders whose commitment to challenging educational inequity endures long after their initial classroom commitment has ended. This session will bring together alumni from across the network whose work is having a significant impact in their local contexts to discuss specific ways their programs prepared them to be effective in their current work, and what changes programs might make to be even more supportive of alumni impact.