DESCRIPTION: The Institute for Entrepreneurship in Education recently launched two events:

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• (Re)creating Safe Learning Environments – a symposium for K-12 educators to discuss how to foster civil dialogue on school campuses after contentious events and during the age of Trump

• Spark Series – a convening of thought leaders around fostering equity and innovation in our schools

 

My task in both events was to manage all aspects of the project (logistics, marketing, booking speakers, sales, etc), help craft the program for each event through relationships with the community, and emcee the event.

 

MY ROLE(S): Project/event manager, marketing director, salesperson, community engagement/relations specialist, emcee, branding and graphic designer

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OUTCOMES:

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• The (Re)creating Safe Learning Environments (SLE) event was a success by multiple metrics:

  • The event nearly sold-out with only five weeks to put it all together

  • There was positive coverage in the San Diego Union-Tribune

  • Most important, educators came away expressing feelings of empowerment to confront tough issues at their school. Similarly, the student leaders who were featured committed to advocating for student panels at their own school campuses to foster civil dialogue.

  • Some feedback from the event:

    • “I was blown away by how well you pulled together last week’s symposium. You launched an important dialogue last week and would greatly enjoy working with you to build on this foundation in 2017.”- Dr. Carl Luna, Institute for Peace and Justice, USD

    • “I was delighted to participate in an outstanding panel & would be glad to hear of any other opportunities to be involved.” - David Loy, ACLU

    • “The conference was very well organized and very impactful. Congratulations to you!” - Steve Dinkin, Executive Direct, National Conflict Resolution Center

    • “Thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of yesterday's symposium! It's truly amazing to hear how other educators are actively creating listening cultures within their classrooms and schools. Thank you for bringing such a diverse group of voices together! It was an honor to be a part of this.” - Melissa Han, Principal Baker Elementary

    • “What an amazing day we had yesterday! It truly is an honor to have been part of a solution based symposium with such a dynamic group of people. I would like to thank you and your fabulous team for your flexibility, leadership and kindness. I look forward to our work together. I do believe that this is the beginning of something pretty powerful.” - Family and Community Engagement (FACE) Office, San Diego Unified School District

    • “It was an honor to be invited, thank you for the opportunity and yes, I look forward to collaborating with USD.” - Edward Velasquez, Interim Superintendent, San Diego County Office of Education

    • “I am very excited about furthering the work of this symposium, and strengthening the community of educators working toward these goals in San Diego. Thank you so much for organizing and hosting this wonderful event!” – Anonymous

• The Spark Series pilot event was similarly successful by multiple metrics. The event sold out weeks in advance (200+ people), received incredible feedback from participants, and led to a full three-part series for the 2017-2018 school year.