The Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions (GSEAP) invites local educators and the Fairfield community to attend an evening with internationally recognized scholar, activist, and professor, Antonia Darder, PhD. Dr. Darder will deliver the keynote address for Fairfield’s annual Diversity Lecture Series, entitled, “Teaching for Social Justice: Building Equity with Teachers, Students, and Parents.” The lecture will take place on March 13, 2019 from 4:30 to 7 p.m. in the Barone Campus Center at Fairfield University. Those interested in saving a seat can register here.

Dr. Darder, professor of Education Leadership at Loyola Marymount University, has for over three decades examined political questions and ethical concerns regarding topics such as class inequalities, critical pedagogy, and social justice, specifically concentrated in school and community settings. She currently holds the Leavey Presidential Endowed Chair in Ethics and Moral Leadership in the School of Education at Loyola Marymount University as well as the title of professor emerita of educational policy, organization, and leadership at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Dr. Darder’s scholarly publications, inspired by themes such as racism, political economy, and education, have garnered national and global recognition. Her work engages the contributions of Paulo Freire, a revolutionary Brazilian educator and philosopher, as she sets forth critical theories linking culture, power, and pedagogy to social justice concerns in education. She was nominated in 2015 for the prestigious Brock International Prize in Education, and a year later won the Alpha Sigma Nu Outstanding Book of the Year award for her work entitled International Critical Pedagogy Reader.

“The GSEAP Diversity Lecture Series brings internationally known scholars in multicultural and social justice education to discuss current issues in the field,” said Stephanie Burrell Storms, EdD, associate dean and associate professor of educational studies and teacher preparation. “Dr. Darder will address the importance of culturally relevant teaching to the social and academic needs of students who come from marginalized communities. This is significant in the state of Connecticut due to our persistent achievement gap among students from low-income families. Participants will learn how specific strategies, such as meaningful parent/teacher dialogue, can improve students’ academic achievement.”

The event will feature a panel of local experts as well as an opportunity for the audience to participate in an interactive conversation.