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The Role of Financial Need in College Admissions

1/23/2020

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When developing a college list, students are strongly encouraged to consider affordability. In college planning conversations, college access providers and counselors may ask students and families to consider financial fit, an evaluation of a family’s ability to pay for the cost of a college. Students are encouraged to utilize financial aid tools to get rough estimates of financial aid packages (e.g. FAFSA4caster, Net Price Calculators), and to do thorough research on the total cost of attendance for schools on the college list. Researching beyond the cost of tuition and room and board is important, because the total cost of attendance would also include fees (e.g. student activities, technology, etc).

In addition, students and families should be aware of a college or university’s stance on evaluating financial need in the admission process. When reviewing an applicant for admission, a college may consider the family’s income and expected contribution in determining admissibility. In other words, the extent to which a family is able to pay for a college or university, without aid, can impact whether a student is admitted. Colleges will adopt a need-blind, need-aware or need-sensitive policy in the admission process, and this determines how much a family’s income matters in gaining admission.

Like the term suggests, a need-blind policy means that a college will not consider financial status in the admission process. Colleges will admit students based solely on academic qualifications. While this can be ideal in certain situations (e.g. for low-income families where financial need could impact admissibility), schools that are need-blind usually cannot afford to meet a family’s need without the student taking on significant debt. Students and families are likely to see need-blind policies for public state schools like University of Maryland.

Need-aware means that an institution will consider the family’s financial need in determining admissibility. Schools that require the CSS profile, for example, often take a deeper dive into the family’s income, assets, and in some instances a non-custodial parent’s income, to determine how much the family could contribute. This is challenging, particularly for families that would require a lot of aid to cover the cost of college. However, schools that are need-aware may be more likely to package students better than need-blind institutions. The college is aware of the family’s financial situation when a decision is made, so there may be more of a commitment to covering the cost.

There is a sweet spot in this, with schools that are need-blind and meet 100% of demonstrated need. Demonstrated need means that a school will take the total cost of attendance and subtract a family’s expected contribution. The remaining amount, often referred to as a gap, would be covered by the institution with grants, scholarships and/or loans. For schools like this, admissibility is based on academic qualifications soley and the institution is committed to covering the student’s gap in the financial award package, often with grants and scholarships. There are a handful of US colleges and universities that do this, and the schools are quite selective. These schools are the exception, as most colleges simply do not have an aid budget that could cover the cost of college for all students. 
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It’s a tough space to navigate, but it can be done. Families should begin planning for college as early as possible. Students should develop a diverse college list with low cost options, as this is key. The college list should include institutions that would be considered a financial fit for the family. Given the rising cost of college and the nuances of financial need in admission, 2-year colleges, transfer pathways and commuting are additional options for families looking to fund an undergraduate degree without significant debt.
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Shannon Jeffries is the founding College and Career Coordinator at a charter school in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University and University of Maryland College Park, where she received her bachelor's in psychology and her master’s in education, respectively. Before transitioning to a secondary setting, Shannon worked in college admissions for two years. Through her experience in admissions, she developed a passion for college access and success for students from underrepresented backgrounds. In her personal life, Shannon is a published writer and wellness educator committed to the inner and interconnectedness of black women.

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The Community College Question

11/7/2019

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As a college counselor, I’m often in a tough position: encouraging students to dream and reach high, regardless of their academic history, while being informed by the increasingly competitive college world. I’ve had the following conversation a few dozen times: “I think you should consider a community college in the area, and explore opportunities to transfer.” The look that I receive from students is rarely one of agreement, pride or excitement. For many students, community college simply isn’t an option they’re willing to consider.

There is a commonly held belief that students who begin at a community college do not graduate at two-year or four-year institutions. Decades of research on community college is mixed, but there are some indicators of success. Data collected by the National Student Clearinghouse, a source that collects and verifies college data, shows that full-time community college students, including those who transferred to other institutions, graduated at a rate of 55% within 6 years (American Association of Community Colleges, 2017). 

Further, selecting a community college is a financial decision for students and families. With the rising cost of college and the student debt crisis, starting at a community college could be a wise choice in the long run. In-state tuition at community colleges is significantly more affordable for many students and families than tuition at a public four-year institution. Further, commuting instead of living on campus can save an average of $9000 per academic year for students (Monaghan & Attewell, 2014).

Even with the lower cost, there is still a stigma around continuing education at a community college. Often, students have a desire to attend a four-year institution and the thought of having an experience that is different from their peers is hard for them to fathom. For counselors seeking to advise students on community college, a strong angle to approach the conversation is through transfer pathways. Articulation agreements and transfer programs with four-year institutions are reasons that students may consider beginning their journey at a community college. Admissibility as a high school senior may be more difficult than as a transfer student, and explaining this to students has helped in many of my conversations. 

Below, please find a few programs in the DC Metro Area where students are taking advantage of transfer programs and pathways.

  • The Maryland Transfer Advantage Program allow students to transfer to UMD with guaranteed admission after their first year at a Maryland community college. Students in MTAP are also able to take courses on UMD’s campus for a discounted rate. Unlike many transfer agreements, students are not required to complete their associate’s degree before transferring to UMD through this special program.
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The NOVA Advance Program is a partnership between George Mason University and Northern Virginia Community College. When students at NOVA complete the program requirements, they are guaranteed admission into GMU. This program is committed to more than just admission, but the success of transfer students on campus, so students are matched with advisors and success coaches who work with them throughout their tenure.
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Shannon Jeffries is the founding College and Career Coordinator at a charter school in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University and University of Maryland College Park, where she received her bachelor's in psychology and her master’s in education, respectively. Before transitioning to a secondary setting, Shannon worked in college admissions for two years. Through her experience in admissions, she developed a passion for college access and success for students from underrepresented backgrounds. In her personal life, Shannon is a published writer and wellness educator committed to the inner and interconnectedness of black women.

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A Look at the College Landscape

10/17/2019

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The College Board, an organization that oversees the SAT, has been in the news quite a bit this year. The “Varsity Blues” scandal shook the admissions world when dozens of coaches and parents conspired to cheat on standardized tests and gain admission to top colleges through bribes. Among the parents in the scandal was Felicity Huffman, an actress known for her role in Desperate Housewives. The College Board was part of the conversation as concerns grew around the SAT and its validity. To add to the controversy surrounding “Varsity Blues,” a recent change at the College Board has caused additional contention among school counselors and college access advocates: the piloted Landscape platform.

Landscape and the SAT
“What is Landscape?” As a college counselor, this was a question that I raised on a recent university visit. Landscape is a platform developed by the College Board that provides data to help colleges better understand an applicant’s background. Used by select colleges and universities, Landscape accompanies a student’s SAT score and provides information about their neighborhood and school context. Historically, the SAT has been a barrier for Black students and lower-income students. A performance gap persists, with white, asian and higher-income students performing better on the test. To address this, the College Board developed Landscape to mitigate the impact of SAT performance discrepancies among underrepresented groups by providing additional “context.”

Landscape and College Admission
At its best, Landscape could be useful. Admission representatives often read applications from regions all over the country and if they have not visited the neighborhoods or schools for applicants, Landscape provides a snapshot of critical data that could have real implications for college admission. At its worst, it could be dangerous. Landscape doesn’t consider non-quantifiable factors like perseverance and an overreliance on the tool could create hazy narratives about a student and their background.

While the College Board makes it clear that the information in Landscape will not be the primary source of information to make an admission decision, it has the profound ability to shape the way that adversity and advantage are operationalized in the college admissions process. For families to understand the role of Landscape in an application review, it would require transparency on behalf of colleges and, frankly, students knowing the right questions to ask. When speaking with a college rep, consider asking the following:
  • Does the admission office at your institution use Landscape and to what degree? 
  • How are admission counselors trained to use this? 
  • What other data will an admission counselor consult to support or oppose the information provided in Landscape?
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The data provided in Landscape cannot tell a student’s full story. Many colleges and universities are moving toward a more holistic review of applicants (e.g. growing number of institutions no longer consider the SAT in admissions). But even with this push, it’s important for students, families and counselors to be aware of what the College Board is doing to impact admission and standardized testing.
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Shannon Jeffries is the founding College and Career Coordinator at a charter school in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University and University of Maryland College Park, where she received her bachelor's in psychology and her master’s in education, respectively. Before transitioning to a secondary setting, Shannon worked in college admissions for two years. Through her experience in admissions, she developed a passion for college access and success for students from underrepresented backgrounds. In her personal life, Shannon is a published writer and wellness educator committed to the inner and interconnectedness of black women.

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Standing in the Gap: Why Counselors Matter in the College Process

9/5/2019

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In a post-secondary planning meeting last spring, I sat across from one of our highest achieving students in the class of 2020. Latina, and the first in her family to consider college, she looked at her list of college options and glanced up at me: “I’m not sure where to start,” she said. In family meetings, she’s both a student and a translator, relaying information to her mother in Spanish about the confusing college process. Through my advising experiences with her and other students who are considering college for the first time, I’ve thought about what college access looks without counselors and resources for all students.
The allocation of resources (time, staff and budgetary support) to a college counseling program benefits all school constituents. Studies have shown that college attendance rates increase with a college prep curriculum, a college-going culture, and staff who are committed to supporting students (College Board, 2011). However, there continue to be discrepancies in the quality of postsecondary support in high schools across the U.S. Nationally, the average counselor-to-student ratio in secondary schools is 268:1. In my role, I’ve considered the level of support required to help first-generation and low-income students navigate the college process. Often, these populations aren’t guaranteed guidance in their postsecondary planning process. In schools with larger low-income student populations, counselors were less likely to spend their time engaging in postsecondary counseling and these schools were less likely to have a dedicated college counselor (NACAC, 2018).
    Despite this clear resource shortage in schools, the need for effective college counseling for underrepresented populations cannot be overstated. Counselors provide access to critical postsecondary social capital (ASCA, 2015) and in some instances, prove to be the most important voice in the college search and selection process for underrepresented populations (i.e. first-generation and/or African American).
    
The work must be done, but how? For public school counselors seeking to develop effective postsecondary planning for underrepresented students, consider the following program additions:
  • Invite financial aid and admissions professionals from local two-year and four-year institutions to host workshops with families
  • Develop a quick “handy guide” with resources for students to pick up in the counseling office and update this annually
  • Create demo accounts for the Common Application and FAFSA and create screencasts for students and families that can be accessed via phone or computer (Free Resource: Screencast-o-matic)
  • Manage a counseling Twitter or Instagram and plan tweets and posts in advance over the summer or with annual planning
  • Team up with teachers for college planning lessons and units (e.g. SAT/ACT prep, college essays in junior english and borrowing/lending for financial aid in math)

Sources:
College Counseling for Latino and Underrepresented Students, NACAC (2015)
The College Completion Agenda, College Board (2011)
State of College Admissions, NACAC (2018) - School Counselors: Academic and College Counseling
Are School Counselors Impacting Underrepresented Students' Thinking about Postsecondary Education? - ASCA (2015)
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Shannon Jeffries is the founding College and Career Coordinator at a charter school in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University and University of Maryland College Park, where she received her bachelor's in psychology and her master’s in education, respectively. Before transitioning to a secondary setting, Shannon worked in college admissions for two years. Through her experience in admissions, she developed a passion for college access and success for students from underrepresented backgrounds. In her personal life, Shannon is a published writer and wellness educator committed to the inner and interconnectedness of black women.

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Religion Has a Body: A Blackademic's Response to Priscilla Shirer

11/20/2018

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“I am not a black woman.  I am a Christian woman who happens to be black.”  Priscilla Shirer, Christian public speaker and daughter of mega church pastor, Dr. Tony Evans of the Urban Alternative in Dallas Texas, uttered these words at a recent speaking engagement at LifePoint Church in Crowley, Texas.  Shirer may have thought her words were well-meaning and innocent. But, I found it interesting that she did not discount her woman-ness for she said, “I am a Christian woman who happens to be black.”  Her statement should have been, “I am a Christian who happens to be black and a woman,” if, as she put it, “no other identity is to be put above her Christian one.”  Shirer ignited a social media firestorm last month with her words. Many African-Americans took to Facebook and Twitter to comment feeling offended and angered that another member of the African American community would use her national platform in this way.  I agree with the sentiment expressed by other African Americans online. However, my agreement is for a different reason. Much of Christian religious understanding and engagement in Westernized culture has been influenced by Greek philosophers like Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates.  These philosophers relied, mainly, on reasoning and logic making religion and spirituality an exercise in intellect thus disembodying it, or engaging the brain only and ignoring contexts and identities.
 
Historically, the disembodiment of religion and spirituality has justified wars and called for the slaughtering of whole ethnic groups and communities, displacing entire indigenous peoples.  In the Christian religion disembodiment is dangerous and antithetical to its central message: God came and dwelled with us incarnationally – in a human body. All other religions share this idea of incarnation in various ways too.  Islam was founded by the prophet Muhammad in Arabia.  Buddhism, although a pathway of personal spiritual development, claims Siddharta Gautama as the Buddha and his narrative of spiritual enlightenment.  Shirer’s comment disembodies her from her Christian faith effectively communicating that, regardless of her blackness, she relates with God in Christ and the Christian faith just like all other Christians.  This sentiment is simply untrue. I am certain Shirer does not view Christ’s death and resurrection in the same way that a white Christian woman may. I am certain Shirer does not view confession of and deliverance from sin in the same way that a white Christian woman may.  I know because as a fellow black Christian woman, I do not view these doctrines and ideologies in the same way my white Christian siblings do.


I have served in cross-racial ministry settings for most of my ministry.  In these settings, I have served predominantly white congregations as the pastoral leader.  I have observed, in various conversations with pastoral staff and congregants in white churches, that confession of sin in public worship is approached from an individualistic standpoint.  The words said in worship may sound like this: “I confess my sins before God because I have done something wrong or hurt another person.” However, originating from the Black Church context, I know, through experience, that confession of sin in public worship for most communities of color is approached from a communal standpoint.  We tend to confess sin before God on behalf of the entire community that are caught in systems of domination, racism, and oppression.  Our words in worship may sound something like this: “God, we confess our participation in the sinful systems of racism, domination, and oppression.”  Usually, in public worship for communities of color, our confession is followed by prayers of deliverance due to our historical and present interactions with oppressive and racist systems.  The disembodiment of religion and spirituality does not allow any of us to see the diverse contexts and identities of human beings.  Disembodiment simply permits us to live in our heads accepting every religious doctrine and ideology as having one way of application and one way of understanding.  This does violence to individuals, groups, communities and nations.  Consider King Leopold II of Belgium and the Congo Free State - presently the Democratic Republic of Congo.  The monarch commissioned Belgian Christian missionaries to not teach the Congolese people about God.  King Leopold II, in a letter, instructed the missionaries to use their understanding of the Scriptures to subjugate and enslave the Congolese people.  This action led to the genocide and dismembering of 10 million people. The monarch amassed a large personal fortune from these acts of violence.
    
Embodiment, or incarnation, of religion and spirituality – in Shirer’s case, Christianity – redeems and reclaims human beings in all their varied contexts and identities – gender, sexual orientation, culture, ethnicity, place of origin, social location, and color. Embodiment calls for the presence of an Incarnate God always and, therefore, always affirms us – the created – as full, complex human beings with equally complex identities that God does not call us to dismiss or erase.  If we pay attention to the biblical narratives, when God broke into human history again and again, God always came at a specific time, to a specific people, and to a specific place.  God spoke to Moses - a Jewish man with Egyptian identity due to his adoption as a baby by Pharoah’s daughter - in the wilderness out of a burning bush while he was still a murderer on the run.  God met Elijah – depressed and discouraged – in sheer silence in the cleft of a rock. God met two teenage immigrants telling them they were going to be the parents of Christ – God Incarnate – in the city of Bethlehem in a stable among stinky animals.  This is Who the Divine is and always will be – with us, in us, and among us calling us to employ all the contexts and identities the Divine has given us to live whole and well.


If Priscilla Shirer were standing in front of me, I would share these words with her:
“My sister, God has given us the identities we hold.  None of these were given to us or fashioned for us by human beings which means we are supposed to use them for divine, life-giving purposes.  My challenge to you is not to create a hierarchy of identities. White supremacy does enough of that for us in our society espousing that one race, gender, and class is superior to everyone else.  My challenge to you is to discern and reflect on how you might use all the identities God has given you to impact and shape the world for divine good, and to love the world to life all the time. How does God call you to do that in your context?  How does God call you to do that as black, as woman, as able-bodied, as cis-hetero, and as upper middle-class?”
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My challenge is the same for all of us, too.  In this current climate of immigrant children in cages, labeling those seeking safer and better lives in other countries as a “migrant caravan,” and the uptick of gun violence and hate crimes across the country, we cannot afford for our religious and spiritual practices to be intellectualized.  Now is the time for each of us to embody love.  Now is the time for each of us to embody hope.  Now is the time for each of us to embody faith.  We all need to see God in all her blackness and woman-ness.

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Enger Muteteke is a provisional minister of the Baltimore-Washington Conference currently serving in the Greater New Jersey Conference.  She has a passion for justice ministries, community-based outreach ministries, critical learning, and critical pedagogy.  Enger has served in pastoral ministry in Severna Park, MD and Glen Burnie, MD.  Most recently, she served as national program director at Lutheran Volunteer Corps in Washington, DC.  Currently, she serves in a cross-racial appointment as Lead Pastor at Grace Union United Methodist Church and Winslow United Methodist Church.  Enger holds a B.A. from William and Mary, two Masters’ degrees in Theology from Wesley Theological Seminary, and a Master of Arts in Social Responsibility and Sustainable Communities from Western Kentucky University.  Enger lives in southern NJ with her husband, 4 daughters, and their dog, Belle.  In her spare time, Enger loves exercising, cooking, writing, reading, and drinking great cups of coffee with good sister-girlfriends.

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Pieces of Me

10/25/2018

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Anger.  This was my immediate feeling when I heard about the interaction between the tennis umpire, Carlos Ramos, and Serena Williams.  Male tennis athletes have done and said much worse to umpires with hardly any consequences of that magnitude. Serbian tennis great Novak Djokovic is known for smashing tennis rackets into the grass in anger.  Tennis great Andy Roddick once berated an umpire questioning his education and whether or not he had ears.  And how can any of us forget tennis legend John McEnroe’s famous temper?  

The words of tennis great Billie Jean King ring true here: “When a woman is emotional, she’s 'hysterical' and she’s penalized for it. When a man does the same, he’s 'outspoken & and there are no repercussions.  Thank you, Serena Williams, for calling out this double standard. More voices are needed to do the same." After reading racist comments in which some linked Serena’s anger to her blackness, I thought: “And how many of us, as black women, have to hide our anger and outrage about workplace discrimination we’ve experienced because we do not want to be labeled as angry and black?  How many of us, as black women, have to strategically reveal pieces of ourselves when we experience sexism and racism?” Reflect on those words - pieces of ourselves. Now, reflect on those words personally - pieces of me - while I tell you a story.

When I was 18 years old, I was a freshman at the College of William and Mary.  As is the case with most first semester college students, my grades were not the best.  In fact, during orientation, professors and college administrators often remind first year students that everyone will need time to adjust to college life socially and academically.  Failure will happen. I had a meeting with my college advisor after the first semester. He did not know me at all. He only had a file of information about me, which included my high school grades (I graduated Valedictorian) with test scores, and a picture.  He also had a copy of my first semester college grades which were terrible.

The advisor met with me and said without compassion or grace, “You need to get acclimated to William and Mary’s standards or you won’t graduate.  You graduated Valedictorian? Well, that was at your high school.” Now, I was not sure if he had said these words to other students. I do know that I left the meeting - a meeting with someone I thought was going to help me and give me other academic tools to use - feeling discouraged, defeated, and filled with shame.  I learned that, as a black woman, I am not necessarily permitted to fail, a central human experience. I also learned that, for this reason, I could only reveal certain pieces of me - my failures, my anger, my disappointment, my sadness - in safe, nurturing spaces.

But, while this strategy is wise, it does not allow for others to see me - a black woman - as a human being.  It allows others to paint a caricatured picture of me seeing only parts of me, and not my whole self in all of my humanness and complexity.  When we only see pieces of one another, it flattens us all. It makes us into human beings in the eyes of others, rather than human beings created in the image of God.  When we only see pieces of one another, we fail to see the work each person has done and is doing on themselves - everyday - to become complete, whole, and healthy. When we only see pieces of black women - the parts that make us feel comfortable, pleasant, and safe - we dehumanize and racialize an entire segment of humanity God has created and blessed.

The way I resist others seeing only pieces of me everyday is to show up and be present.  I look others in the eyes when I am speaking with them. When I fail, I take ownership of my mistake.  I accept that there are limits to my capabilities and ask for help. I boldly use the gifts, skills, and capabilities the Divine has given me to work, live, and play.  I boldly share my experiences with others claiming the identity God has given me.  To some, this form of resistance may sound pedantic and silly.  However, to those for whom showing up and being present is painful, frightening, and endangers our lives, this form of resistance is radical, courageous, and hope-filled.  Sometimes, I think I have a choice to show up and present. And I do. However, as a mother and life teacher to four future black women, I do not have a choice. I must show up, stand the way God made me with God’s strength, and be present - be present in all I feel, experience, think, and do each day.  Because they are watching.

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Enger Muteteke is a provisional minister of the Baltimore-Washington Conference currently serving in the Greater New Jersey Conference.  She has a passion for justice ministries, community-based outreach ministries, critical learning, and critical pedagogy.  Enger has served in pastoral ministry in Severna Park, MD and Glen Burnie, MD.  Most recently, she served as national program director at Lutheran Volunteer Corps in Washington, DC.  Currently, she serves in a cross-racial appointment as Lead Pastor at Grace Union United Methodist Church and Winslow United Methodist Church.  Enger holds a B.A. from William and Mary, two Masters’ degrees in Theology from Wesley Theological Seminary, and a Master of Arts in Social Responsibility and Sustainable Communities from Western Kentucky University.  Enger lives in southern NJ with her husband, 4 daughters, and their dog, Belle.  In her spare time, Enger loves exercising, cooking, writing, reading, and drinking great cups of coffee with good sister-girlfriends.

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Making the Digital Physical: AADHum’s “Intentionally Digital, Intentionally Black” Conference

10/23/2018

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​Following the opening session of University of Maryland’s African American History, Culture and Digital Humanities’ (AADHum) “Intentionally Digital, Intentionally Black” conference on Friday, the first thing I did was run up for a hug from a young man named Nathan Dize. Nathan and I were strangers in real life; but we were also twitter friends. This process of linking up with people that I knew digitally IRL was a huge personal theme of this particular conference. Not only were we in community by virtue of our research interest, but many of us were connected virtually. While the content of this conference, which I’ll get to I promise, was incredible, a large part of the joy I derived from this experience came from the opportunity to be in physical proximity with the people that provide me with a large amount of my academic support. What does it mean to make the digital physical? Better yet, how does it feel to make the digital physical? For me, it feels like the best of me is being seen, supported and loved. Now, how many academic conferences can you say do that kind of affective labor?
 
I understand that it seems gauche to talk about love in an academic setting, but so much of my intellectual growth stems from Black women scholars at this conference who loved me simply for being a “Black girl [doing] grad school.” Black women scholars both on twitter and in the digital humanities have nurtured me; they have pushed me; they have included me. While enraptured by wonderful panels featuring Black women scholars, such as Always at Work: Black Women Online and Do It For the Culture: Black Humor and Narrative Strategies Online, I found that some of the best intellectual conversations I had with Black women scholars were by chance.

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​ I ran into Dr. Gabrielle Foreman while trying  to catch another panel and she talked to me about how she came up with the idea of project CVs, which emphasize collective work for digital humanities projects. Dr. Raven Maragh Lloyd told me about a conversation with her Uber driver on the way to the conference in which she was asked how the work she creates benefits the community. These innovations and questions should lead us to ask our own important questions: who are we serving and why? How can our relationships with community partners be mutually beneficial? How do we adequately represent the work we do on collaborative digital humanities projects? As Dr. Andre Brock and Dr. Jessica Marie Johnson pointed out in their keynote, we also need to be occupied with the banal and the joy that brings— so I point to these examples of everyday joy I experienced while being in an extraordinary, yet admittedly still ephemeral, space.
 
Though only a  temporary space, it was constructed in such a way that everyone could feel included and cared for. From the pronouns on our badges and gender neutral bathrooms at the Riggs Center, to the lactation and quiet rooms, participants were cared for in a way which should be standard. Our humanity was acknowledged, respected and catered to. While I did not take advantage of many of these spaces, it was a comfort to know they were there should I have needed them. These touches (which were by no means “small”) helped effectively translate the communities of safety we have been building online into a physical space.

 
The lessons I learned while at #AADHum2018 will stay with me throughout my career as a scholar, especially as echoes of the conference will likely reverberate through tweets for months to come. I contended with Timeka N. Tounsel’s idea of “monetized resistance” as I work to reframe the way I think about my own blog for example. Tounsel argued that there’s work to be done in reframing the way Black women think about their digital labor— we should not cast it off as leisure, but acknowledge it for the intellectual intervention that it is. Grace Gipson’s presentation, “Exploring the Black Female in Comics Fandom through Digital Storytelling (Black Girl Nerds and Misty Knight’s Uninformed Afro)” gave me a colleague that discusses everything I’m interested in: fandom, aca-fans, Black girl nerds, superheroes, blogs and podcasts all rolled into one. I didn’t know it was possible to make sense of all of those things together, but then again Black women have always found ways to do the impossible. I’m still reeling from Marissa Parham’s incredible talk on the This Code Cracks: A #BlackCodeStudies Roundtable in which she had the audience consider what it would mean for a reader to remix an essay for oneself, amongst a number of other insanely evocative questions, all while dragging sections of her essay, “Break and Dance”, gifs and graphics around a remixable screen. Seeing these powerful Black women scholars captivating audiences with words and technical skill inspired me to walk in my own truth and power. My words are magic too, I just need to learn to harness their energy. 
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My primary focus on the Black women scholars at this conference throughout this piece stems from a lack of intellectual and emotional sanctuary and support at my own institution. Nevertheless, I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the Black men that did not come to play. Dr. Julian Chambliss took time out of his day to talk with me, a budding comics scholar; Rashad Timmons had everybody retweeting quotes from his paper, “Hashtag Bodies, Hegemony and 
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the Deadly Terrain of Civil Society”; and Dr. Andre Brock snatched everybody’s edges with his assertion that colored peoples’ time is a, “Joyous disregard for modernity and labor capitalism.” (He said what he said, y’all.) 

In addition to the wonderful roundtables and panels that AADHum put together for participants, there were also  digital poster and demo sessions. This was one of the many moments where I wished I could be in multiple places at once during the conference. I wanted to see all of the posters, but I also wanted to experience a demo, as I had never seen humanities people give poster presentations; nor had I seen a digital humanities demo in the way that AADHum had conceived of it. I intended to stop in at each poster for a few minutes, but during the first session I was so enthralled by Sherri William’s presentation, “Amplifying Black Voices Through Digital Journalism,” that before I knew it, a member of the AADHum team was letting participants know that the session was over. The posters provided an excellent alternative presentation format which encouraged both small group and one-on-one conversations around the presenter’s topic; which for someone like me, who is often too intimidated to ask questions in large group settings, was a perfect opportunity to engage with scholarship on a more personal level.
 
It was beautiful. It was wonderful. It was Black. It was digital. It was an honor to have been in community with so many wonderful thinkers. It was a thrill to watch my digital world transform from pixelated into reality.

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Ravynn K. Stringfield is a Ph.D. student in American Studies at William & Mary, where she works at the intersection of Literature, Black Studies and Comics Studies. In addition to her scholarly work, she is in her second year working as the Graduate Assistant for the William & Mary Lemon Project: A Journey of Reconciliation, which works to rectify wrongs perpetrated against African Americans by the College through action of inaction. She is also a HASTAC Scholar and a William & Mary Equality Lab Fellow. When she is not researching or working, she writes and curates guest posts for her blog/webmagazine, Black Girl Does Grad School.

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Why Every Book Made For Our Black Girls Ain't A Good Book

10/11/2018

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In 2017, the fact of the matter is that being a Black girl is undeniably lit.


It’s true.


Our public image today spans age, wealth, profession and interests with icons such as Black-ish’s Yara Shahidi, Chicago’s own yoga and wellness guru Lauren Ash and straight-forward and no-nonsense Senator, Maxine Waters.


Even so, many parents raising Black girls do not rely on media to make an impression on their children.


Multicultural books and literature are a common frontline approach for educators and families alike, to validate the lived experiences and cultures of non-white folks.


Think Marley Diaz—the 10-year-old Black girl, who, at the time was “tired of reading about white boys and their dogs.”


Her disinterest led her to create her now famous campaign, #1000BlackGirlBooks and now there is a surge in the scholarly interest of representations of Black girls in kid’s lit.


It’s important to note however, that just because a book a cute picture of a Black girl on the front of it, doesn’t mean it’s quality—by all means, it could be quite the opposite.


As reviewer for a national publication of children’s literature, I see absolutely outrageous and culturally inaccurate and insensitive books on a weekly basis but one book that I recently reviewed really struck a hard chord.


In hopes to keep the Black community informed, especially as we work towards educating and uplifting our young girls, I want to share this review with you all, in hopes that you get a glimpse into some of the hurtful and demeaning messages that are cleverly embedded into the colorful and fun looking books that catch our kids’ eyes.


Natalie’s Hair is Wild-Laura Freeman


Natalie’s hair is large and in charge. Paired with her bright African print clothes, she is the gleaming image of a carefree Black girl. In fact, there isn’t a comb, scrunchie, barrette or bobby clip that can “tame” or “restrain” her natural mane. So when a bird takes up residence in her hair, it’s no big deal. But soon, the pages are filled with the black cloud-like fuzz of Natalie’s growing hair as the birds are joined by a frog, owl, and a host of other creatures—even a lion. It’s not until the noisy animals keep her from sleeping that she finally decides something must be done. With the help of the fire department and local zoo, the creatures are captured and Natalie’s hair is hosed down—it was that big a job. Many garden shears and rakes later, we join Natalie back at home, happy with fresh cornrowed braids and this lesson learned: “the hair on your head, is no place for a zoo.” This title is the first authored book of Laura Freeman, illustrator of the early chapter series Nikki and Deja. A fair-skinned and loose curled African-American woman, she notes that, like Natalie, she too grew up “wild-haired.” However, Natalie is brown-skinned with a kinky hair texture—her Blackness not as palatable as Freeman’s. It is highly unlikely that should Freeman have portrayed a girl reflected in her own image, that the resolution to her problem would be cornrows and a warning to maintain personal hygiene from the local firemen turned hairdressers. While the vibrantly textured digital art is appealing, don’t be fooled—the accompanying text lacks flow and is mediocre and didactic at best. Perhaps if Natalie were depicted in the likeness of her illustrator this might have been silly and fun with no real implications, this book effectively works to undo much of self-reclamation work that Black women have done to combat the stigmatization of kinky Black hair. If you’re really looking for great hair stories featuring Black girls, skip this title and check out Crystal Swain-Bates’ Big Hair, Don’t Care! Or Natasha Anastasia Tarpley’s I Love My Hair! MK



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MK is a 3rd year doctoral student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the department of Curriculum and Instruction. Her research interests include gender, sexuality and multiculturalism in children’s literature, literary representations of Black Girlhood and the Digital Literacy Practices of Black girls and women.
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The Piece of Our Childhood We Carry With Us

9/27/2018

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There was a time in history long before we reached adulthood and bonded with each other through Twitter timelines and Facebook newsfeeds. A time where what we cherish now as adults and taught our kids morally came from the same relatable fables and short stories. Lessons from stories that were taught and passed down by our parents and their parents for centuries. The same stories that help shape what many of us value today. Children’s literature is often referenced or analogized in American culture to put emphasis on or back up a point. In American culture, the popular children’s books read and promoted often give an idea of events that happen and problems that are solved “in a perfect world.” While we know this is far from true, we do know teaching them to children who are growing and developing allows them to practice critical thinking and communication skills. It’s imperative especially in the technology era, that we don’t have our children stray from the art of reading books. Children’s literature is necessary because it provides students with opportunities to respond to literature, gives students appreciation about their own cultural heritage as well as that of others, helps children to develop emotional intellect and creativity, encourages growth and development of their personality, and conveys important societal themes from one generation to the next.

One of the biggest benefits to children’s literature is teaching children HOW to think instead of WHAT to think. It provides students with the opportunity to develop their own opinions about the topic. Stories that circle around opinions or perception allow them to think critically and form their own opinion. This strengthens the cognitive development and simultaneously encourages deeper thought about the story. This is an early introduction kids can use to learn and evaluate stories, as well as summarize the topic. Picture books are the icing on top of an already developing brain. The illustrations help children develop their own dialogue for the story. Pictures and illustrations strengthen students’ cognitive functions in being able to form opinions on their own and to express themselves through language and reference to the story.

One of the best things about children’s books is that sometimes they teach children to get in the habit of having an open-mind. It provides an avenue for students to learn about their own culture as well as the traditions of others. It is crucial for children to learn these values because as society continues to grow, it will be expected that children know how to interact with others from different backgrounds. When teaching students about the cultural heritage of others, it is important parents are selective about books that pride themselves on providing these lessons, especially for young readers. They should be open minded about learning about the cultures of others and be taught about not being critical about traditions they aren’t used to. Our children should understand pride without judgment. There are many stories, folktales, and fables which contain deliberate stereotypes and inaccuracies about certain cultural groups. Many of these stories were written by authors who lived in a different time period in American history and whose point of view was based off the society’s interpretation. As society continues to move forward, there are many authors from all backgrounds who are able to diversify books on cultural heritage by writing children’s books from their perception. There is a website diversebookfinder.org that allows parents to search from authors of all backgrounds and religions who tell children's stories often reflective of their individual culture.

Children’s stories that play on emotional intelligence or help students to develop empathy are some of the most important stories in children’s literature. Stories have the power to promote emotional and moral development. It allows the parent to teach life lessons using the story’s analogy. This is an important skill for children to see modeled. When I grew up, The Boy Who Cried Wolf was always a point of reference in my house growing up when my mother wanted to prevent one of us from telling a lie. The story was about a boy who no one believed when he finally told the truth after telling a few lies beforehand. As a child, it helped me shape that lying was not only wrong, but that it had consequences too, even if back then I did not know what consequences were. The point was, it allowed me as a child to think deeper about my own feelings.

Children’s books encourage growth of a student’s personality and can teach early lessons into empathy. Children are very impressionable and gullible during the early years. Books help them develop into kind, intelligent, and welcoming people. Literature encourages kids to be polite and friendly people, and these traits may be consistent with developing students into quality adults.

Finally, children’s literature is of value because it is one form of word art that will never go out of style. Children are only young for a short time, so we must give them access to a myriad of books with bigger morals and lessons. If the book plays less into society’s trends and more into growth and development of the child, then children’s literature has the power to captivate audiences for many generations. It is valuable in providing kids an opportunity to respond to literature, learn about their own culture as well as others, promote creativity, emotional intelligence, and personality development. Early exposure to reading will continue to create responsible intelligent children who then form into critical thinking adults.
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Steph Ox is a unique writer of many genres. Her work is rooted in her ability to understand many perspectives and point of views. With her writing catalog including many variations of poetry, informative articles, stories, think pieces, monologues, songs and book series, it's clear she has the ability to reach and relate to many different audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Steph Ox recently published the first book in her rhyme along Children's Book series aiming to provide relate-able lessons for millennial children with values that shape our children to move in the right direction morally. Steph is passionate about changing the world through the art of writing and storytelling. Most of us live and dwell in  the life experiences we individually face. It is also why many of us accept our content point of view on the world. Steph’s mission is to continue to create and provide literature that force readers to be not only open minded but compassionate as well in a world that’s often filled with judgment.
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My Hidden Burden: Navigating Law School with Depression

9/12/2018

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Summer 2016. I was working in my new home of Philadelphia. I had left my job as a teacher of three years and had been on medication to treat my depression for about a year. I was talking to God daily and was feeling good about myself, so good that I stopped taking my medication regularly. Eventually I had a huge breakdown. Crying non-stop, yelling at God, asking him why he was letting me suffer, trembling, low blood pressure, the works! And I was supposed to be starting law school in a month?
 
I did it though. I started law school. I did my work. I put on a face during the school day and flopped on my bed at the end of the day, exhausted from pretending I was ok around my new classmates. It sucked. I didn’t tell anyone at school that I was struggling with depression. I started seeing a therapist and I liked her, but sometimes I just did not want to talk, so I stopped attending my sessions. I felt like my medicine wasn’t working anymore and my depression worsened as my period came around. I didn’t know how to help myself but what I did know how to do was function exceptionally well on autopilot. I had been doing it for years. I put a smile on for my students every day as a teacher. I got up and did my job, some days better than others. Law school was not different in that regard.
 
The truth is I actually enjoyed law school my first semester. But as the school year progressed and I experienced academic challenges that made me question my intelligence and abilities, my feelings started to change. Slap on depression and with it, a huge lack of motivation. Having 100 pages (literally) to read for class the next day which I couldn’t afford to postpone. Knowing that unlike teaching, no one was going to suffer if I gave into my lack of motivation. At least when I had my kids, I was working with and for other people. In law school I was only going to hurt myself, and that didn’t seem like such a bad thing. It wasn’t a crappy feeling a few hours of sleep couldn’t take away.
 
I wouldn’t say I was completely apathetic, but there was certainly a time at which I had a “you-gon-get-what-I-give-you” attitude towards my work. At one point, I showed up late for class often, truly just grateful to be there. I did some work fully, some partially, again, just proud that I did anything at all. Quite simply, it was hard to care about anything. There were times when I was motivated and many times when I was not. I would get so overwhelmed sometimes and think to myself “where can I go, for free, where I can just get away and not tell anyone? Maybe leave a note or something, so they will know I’m alive, but that’s it.” I never followed through, mostly out of fear of all the work I would come back to if I left.

By the grace of God, I have done well in law school. However, I attribute this to allowing myself to not be perfect. I put law school into context. Yes, law school matters, but I was not about to let it drag down my mental health. I was determined not to let any social or professional venture I embark on rob me of my sanity. I practiced grace. I am the type of woman who likes to have a plan all of the time. However, extending grace to myself taught me that I am not a machine, and if I fell asleep because I was tired, that was ok! I also accepted the grace that my family and friends extended to me. Lastly, I took things one day at a time and tried my best to put self care first. Sometimes it meant getting a manicure, other times it meant taking a break from reading to watch mindless television. These self care practices gave me the peace of mind that I craved, even if it was for a moment. This newfound peace allowed me to renew my focus, resulting in more consistency in my daily tasks.
 
Depression is still difficult. Every day is its own battle, and some days the battle is easier than others. As much as I wouldn’t mind not suffering with depression as I navigate law school, I am so grateful that I have managed to put one foot in front of the other and will be graduating in May. I have learned that knowing myself and listening to what I need in small moments goes a long way. I thank God that He has given me the faith to know with absolute certainty that things will get better; I am just trying to play my role in my healing.

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Fanta Freeman is a native of Sierra Leone, West Africa. She was born of her wonderful parents, Horatio and Isa Freeman, on June 11th, 1991. Fanta attended grade school in Nairobi, Kenya at the International School of Kenya (ISK). After graduating from ISK, Fanta attended Boston College in Chestnut Hill, MA. She double-majored in Communications and Studio Art, with a focus in photography and painting. She entered the Teach for America (TFA) corps in 2013 and finished her commitment to TFA in 2015. She decided to stay a third year to teach English to her wonderful students at Weldon Middle School. Currently, Fanta is attending law school at the Kline School of Law and will be working at Ballard Spahr, a corporate firm, after she graduates in May 2019. 

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