Missed some of the sessions this week — or just want to relive some of the great moments? We’ve gathered some outstanding quotes from our speakers in this post.
Conference attendees can also watch video replays of most sessions on the conference site, and everyone can follow along on Twitter at #EWA20.
“We are in the middle of a once-in-a-lifetime story. Our communities and these children are depending on us to ensure they’re being treated equitably and fairly and not being robbed of their right to an education.” — Nikole Hannah-Jones
“I need more white people to talk with other white people about race.” — @DrRichReddick on affinity groups in schools and conversations about race #EWA20 pic.twitter.com/J1RHfsp505
— Stephanie got boosted ?& kept rocking a mask ? (@sgermeraad) July 23, 2020
“There are stories the U.S. has been uncomfortable telling. Some countries know they have to understand their deepest wounds to be able to move forward. … Loving your country doesn’t mean lying about it.” — Wes Moore, Robin Hood CEO
“We always knew that we were covering a beat that was so much larger than what was taking place in the classroom. … We see and we know that when unrest unfolds, it doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It’s usually a reflection of years of pent-up frustrations and energy and injustice.” — Erica L. Green
“When you have the president saying, ‘Open the schools or I’m going to cut your funding,’ that’s not a plan,” says @BobbyScott, “without any regard to the safety, to the local circumstances…To the extent we can rely on the experts and the science, we’re much better off.’ #EWA20 pic.twitter.com/PbPPMSbExt
— Erik Robelen (@ewrobelen) July 24, 2020
“Typically, 5-10 private nonprofit colleges close each year. (This year,) I’m hoping the number is below 25 in the next month or so. It’s going to be brutal, but 25 is still well below 5% of private colleges.” — Robert Kelchen, Seton Hall University
“I understand that there’s a lot of fear out there. But for the majority of our students here in San Antonio, remote instruction is ineffective. … I grew up in a two-bedroom apartment, the oldest of 12 children, and I know I couldn’t have done well in the remote learning plan. Even if the district gave me a device and a hot spot. — Pedro Martinez, superintendent of San Antonio Independent School District
“Covid-19 wasn’t a ‘black swan’ event. It is a ‘black elephant’ event!” Matt Sigelman of @BurningGlass #ewa20 @edwriters National Seminar
— Kim Clark (@kclarkcollege) July 24, 2020
“We need to not have a deficit mindset on coming back. I really worry about that. We need to ask, ‘What is it we can do well with the resources we have and push through this period of time?’” — Rose Prejean-Harris, Atlanta Public Schools director of social-emotional learning
“Pull your school district’s zoning maps. You’ll see they are just as gerrymandered as the congressional maps. … We know black people suffer everything disproportionately. You have to get to the ‘how.’” — Nikole Hannah-Jones
“It’s caused us to rethink literally every operational aspect of school.” @AleesiaLJohnson on the challenges of planning for re-opening that are forcing districts to delay the start of school. #EWA20
— Travis Pillow (@travispillow) July 23, 2020
“When you go to a restaurant to pick up food, guess who’s working there? It’s my students and it’s my parents. They don’t have the luxury of working from home.” — Pedro Martinez, San Antonio Independent School District superintendent
“Institutions believe, because they have achieved a certain percentage of enrollment and they have a very pretty postcard of participation by underserved groups, that they’ve done their job. They walk away and say ‘You should be grateful you’re here. Now go and leave us alone.’ That attitude creates a tremendous resentment on the part of students, as well it should.” — Ruth Simmons, president of Prairie View A&M University
.@PVAMU President Simmons says HBCUs are dealing with same issues as any other college. One big concern – students who are reluctant to return.
If they leave now, it is less likely they come back, she says.
— Emily Donaldson (@EmilyJDonaldson) July 23, 2020
“Kids are never going to forget this period of time. What they’re going to remember is how we all coped with it.” — Elizabeth Englander, Bridgewater State University
“When we first went on quarantine and our schools went online, it felt like a lot of our teachers had kind of given up. … So one big thing for me is having the teachers remain focused, having Zoom classes where all the students can kind of still have that kind of interaction with their teachers and their friends, even if it’s on Zoom.” — Eric Luo, high school senior and co-founder of Six Feet Supplies
During the pandemic I’ve been more appreciative than ever of education reporters here in California and nationwide. Thanks for your great work – these awards are well deserved! (And a reminder to everyone to support independent journalism.) @EdWriters https://t.co/X33IxD2D4S
— Heather Hough (@hjhough) July 22, 2020
“Even as we try to stand in the gap in this moment, with creative solutions, we must lift our heads up. We’ve got to think about long-term solutions. The folks who are going to education are watching right now.” — Becky Pringle, NEA vice president
At #EWA20 session on edu and politics, @mstratford says we’re in unusual time: “I think we’re going to be in for a pretty big conversation about education” during appropriation fights, just a few weeks out from Nov. 3 election. @EdWriters pic.twitter.com/lJmoN7S1TP
— Greg Toppo (@gtoppo) July 24, 2020
