Clara B. Cox
(540) 231-9054
csquare@vt.edu
VIRGINIA TECH SYMPOSIUM EXAMINES EQUITY IN VIRGINIA SCHOOLS
BLACKSBURG, September 9, 1999 – Segregation, desegregation, and re-segregation will go under the microscope during a three-part symposium on September 21, September 28, and October 5 at Virginia Tech as educators and Christiansburg Institute alumni examine the way Virginia addressed those issues.
"This symposium will examine how past experiences with issues of educational equity in the commonwealth can inform contemporary educational policy discussions. The discussion will be directed toward identifying strategies and programs that can effectively address such current equity concerns as student discipline, curriculum content and performance standards, and public school choice," said Benjamin Dixon, Virginia Tech’s vice president for multicultural affairs and a symposium organizer.
The three sessions, which begin at 6:30 p.m., are sponsored by Tech’s Office of Multicultural Affairs, Department of History in the College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate School, and the Department of Educational Leadership and Administration and Department of Teaching and Learning, both in the College of Human Resources and Education. Organizers have worked with the Montgomery County Human Relations Council. The first two symposium sessions will be held in Donaldson Brown Hotel and Conference Center, with the final session in Owens Hall. All are open to the public and are free.
"Our goal is to increase public understanding of the need to address equity issues in public education, and we plan to document and disseminate symposium results to key stakeholders and decision makers," Dixon said.
The September 21 session will review the impact of public education policies during the era of school segregation. The keynote speaker will be Peter Wallenstein, associate professor of history, who will speak on "Race, Policy, and K-12 Education: Segregated Schooling in Jim Crow Virginia, 1870-1950."
The September 28 session will review the impact of education policies on public schooling during the transition period between segregation and desegregation and will identify the lessons learned about the challenges of achieving equity and excellence for all segments of the population. Keynote speaker will be Andrew Lewis, a fellow at the W. E. B. DuBois Institute at Harvard University, addressing the topic "The Moderates’ Dilemma: The Lessons of Massive Resistance."
The October 5 session will examine contemporary education policies and practices—discipline, curriculum, assessment, and public school choice—in terms of their impact on and relationship to public schooling in an era that some have characterized as re-segregation. Wayne Harris, superintendent of Roanoke schools and a graduate of a local segregated public school system, will deliver the keynote address on current equity issues from both a personal and professional point of view.
The three sessions will feature a case study of Christiansburg Institute during the periods of segregation, desegregation, and today. Each session will also have a panel of reactors and will include audience participation.
For additional information, call 231-1820.
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