Facilitator: Toni Graves Williamson

In this interactive presentation, Toni Graves Williamson will share a framework for hiring that will support communities to hire for wholeness. This means not just seeking out candidates of a particular identity background or qualification, but looking at what the community needs to be more whole, to more fully present mirrors and windows to their students, to attract candidates for whom the community will also be a healthy and robust place to grow and develop professionally. Often called “retention,” Toni will propose a framework that is less school-centric and more interconnected–the concept of “match.” Using her original framework “Game, Set, Match,” Toni will share concrete strategies and a Hiring for Wholeness T-chart. Participants will have time to practice and engage with the frameworks.

Facilitator: Sarah Halley

The system of white supremacy is full of either/or binaries, good v. bad being a primary example. Binaries erase the nuance of human life and interactions and justify the practices of othering and oppressing others. Being able to identify when a binary is playing out (in ourselves and in the systems we live and work in) and how to shift to a more effective and life sustaining “both/and” perspective is a critical skill.

In this workshop, participants will learn the fundamentals of Polarities Management, a tool for seeing and working skillfully with a complex system that polarizes around 2 interdependent value pairs. They will also identify a polarity that is central to their anti-racism work and develop actions to leverage that polarity in support of their anti-racism work.

Facilitator: Erica Snowden

Young children are naturally curious about the world around them—including the ways people can be the same and different. “Big Conversations, Small Books” is an engaging, practical workshop designed for lower school educators and families who want to support children in recognizing and appreciating difference with empathy and confidence.
Using thoughtfully selected picture books as our foundation, we’ll explore how to:

• Encourage respectful conversations about people, experiences, and perspectives,
• Choose books that reflect children’s lives and introduce them to new ways of being,
• Use simple language and open-ended questions to spark meaningful dialogue,
• Build consistent messaging between home and school.

Participants will leave with ready-to-use book lists, conversation starters, and strategies that align with children’s developmental stages and support their growth as thoughtful, inclusive learners.

Facilitators: Toni Graves Williamson and Ali Michael

One of the most beloved moments of the Race Institute is when we hear from students. Over the past 14 years of student panels, we have learned that no student panel is like any other. And as the social and political landscape shifts beneath our feet, that continues to be true. We invited everybody to join us for this final panel, in which students share some of their reality with us. Unlike our other workshops, the panels will not be recorded.

Facilitator: Ali Michael

This workshop will introduce educators to the anti-DEI campaign so that they can recognize and intervene with the campaign in whatever form it might manifest. We will then work collaboratively to differentiate between “good faith critiques” of DEI from politically motivated attacks. Finally, the workshop will help participants understand the purpose behind DEI so that they can take active steps towards helping it to evolve going forward. Participants will leave with a greater sense of how to make a difference in this moment, starting with who you are and where you are.

The Primary Contact is the person who enrolls your school for the workshop series. They will receive additional communications from the Race Institute regarding Zoom links, important reminders, and post Workshop resources to share with their school community.

Although sessions will be recorded and available for enrolled schools, attending live offers participants the ability to connect with presenters and post questions in real time. The final thirty minutes of the session will be more interactive and not recorded. Registration on Zoom is required to attend live.

Yes, all sessions except the final session – the Student Panel – will be recorded. A link to the recordings will be shared with participating Schools’ Primary Contact following each session. Recordings will be available until June 15, 2026.

Recordings must only be accessed by schools that enroll for the Workshop Series. Participants should not share the recording links with others outside your school community. To view the recording you must complete a form with your school’s information – the Race Institute will contact any non-registrant who completes the online form and will require a registration fee.

Yes! (Though don’t you want to attend them all?!) Your school will still need to have a Primary Contact to enroll in individual sessions. Individual sessions are $250/each.