Empowering Every Child: Innovating for an Inclusive Future
Thursday, May 15, 2025

The very foundations of our profession have shifted profoundly in the last half decade. That shift has not been without some pain. We have mourned the losses of familiar routines, and time-honored customs. Curriculum is changing, and we are questioning the ways that we have traditionally served students. In the face of all these transformations, all of us (at some point in this journey) have longed for a return to “normal”.

In this presentation, Cornelius Minor will explore how our nostalgic reverence for life Pre-March 2020 is misplaced… that even though we felt certain about some things, that there were still too many kids, families, and whole communities left at the margins of our work. In this extended study, we will spend time reflecting on the lessons of the last two years, and creating blueprints for the new things that must come next in terms of our teaching and our leadership.

Cornelius Minor is a Brooklyn-based educator and education consultant. He works with teachers, school leaders, and leaders of community-based organizations to support equitable literacy reform in cities (and sometimes villages) across the globe. His latest book, We Got This, explores how the work of creating more equitable school spaces is embedded in our everyday choices - specifically in the choice to really listen to kids.