The Art of Collaboration: Building Belonging through Anti-Bias Approaches
How can collaboration and team building cultivate spaces of belonging and transform school communities? How does our sense of belonging impact our relationships with students, our quality as educators and leaders? In this innovative session, participants will explore their own sense of belonging and the existing conditions that contribute to or hinder anti-bias adult cultures in our schools. Collectively, we will identify barriers to belonging and share specific ways to build inclusive and collaborative elements within a school culture starting with existing structures within school communities.
Presented by
Program Developer and Project Manager
Roots ConnectED
Brandi Forté has worked in educational settings since 2004. She joined Community Roots, a RC learning site, in 2006 as a founding teacher. In addition to her years in the classroom, she has worked as a literacy coach and supported programming for a Teacher Training Residency by designing and facilitating professional development for Mentor Teachers and Supervisors. Brandi currently creates curriculum, tools and resources that support RC coaches. Her work drives leadership and staff development at school sites across the nation. She regularly speaks at education conferences and co-leads institutes based on RC’s Anti-Bias framework.
Executive Director
Roots ConnectED
Sahba Rohani is the Executive Director of Roots ConnectED, which she co-founded in 2017 to transform schools and workplaces. Her vision emerged after over a decade at a stand alone charter, a pioneer in the intentionally diverse school movement. As a founding teacher and later Director of Community Development, she led efforts to build community across lines of difference. With over 25 years in education and community development, She speaks nationally and delves deeper into identity and belonging in her TEDx talk, How I Came to Accept My Name. Sahba holds an MA from Teachers College, Columbia University.
