SUNY New Paltz to host ninth annual Multicultural Education Conference on Oct. 30

NEW PALTZ — The State University of New York at New Paltz will host the ninth annual Multicultural Education Conference titled “Encouraging Diverse Voices: Creating Space for All through Multicultural Education,” from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Oct. 30, in the Student Union Building.

This annual conference brings together educators, students, parents and community members to gather fresh insights and to make connections with others who are working to promote appreciation of diversity in our schools. This year’s conference focuses on ways to make schools a safer place for cultural differences or differences of opinion.

Keynote speaker Tom Roderick, executive director of Educators for Social Responsibility (ESR), Metro Area, will describe how courageous, imaginative teachers are helping students deepen their own understanding through dialogue with others whose perspectives are different from their own. His presentation is titled “Making Our Schools Safe for Democracy.” Based in New York City, ESR Metro is an independent nonprofit organization that works to make social responsibility an integral part of education.

“A vital aim of multicultural education is to prepare all students to be intelligent citizens and critical thinkers who can listen to, and learn from, those with diverse experiences and points of view,” said Nancy Schniedewind, professor of Humanistic/Multicultural Education at SUNY New Paltz, and a member of the conference committee. “This conference will support educators working toward this goal despite pressures of prescribed curriculum, high-stakes tests and post 9/11 challenges.”

There will also be an afternoon performance by the Flight Dance Company, titled “And That is What I Dream,” an original theatrical drama to prevent school violence and bullying. The Flight Dance Company is a diverse group of children from Ulster, Dutchess and Saratoga counties whose mission includes preventing violence, promoting tolerance and teaching children to be compassionate.

Examples of some of the workshop sessions offered throughout the day include: Dealing With Hate in Schools; Parents of Bi-Racial Children Speak; Brothers and Others, Racial Profiling of Arabs and Muslims, Post-Sept. 11, 2001; Encouraging Diverse Student Voices and Experiences in the Classroom; and many more.

The registration deadline for the conference is Oct. 20, and workshops will be assigned on a first-come, first-serve basis. For more information on specific workshops, call Nancy Schniedewind at 257-2827, and to register call Kirsten Fox at 255-1402.