I do not necessarily identify as a risk taker, but I would
not say I am risk averse. I like to know how things are going to turn out. I’ve
always had this need to know mentality. It is why I like learning so much.
Deciding to pursue Race Place in this course was both in and out of character
for me. It is a topic I feel passionate about and I pursue my interests, but I
had NO idea what it should look like or even what an ideal end result was.
Race Place is riddled with uncertainty and risk in almost
every facet of its being. What should students learn? Who should the students
be? Who do I hire? What makes someone qualified to talk about race? There are
plenty of known unknowns, but what about the unknown unknowns? What am I not
considering? This is such a contentious subject there must be plenty of things
that haven’t crossed my mind.
This document: Searching for Necessity, did not answer all
my known unknowns but it did help with some. It is really awesome resource and
I apologize for posting this blog so late BUT if anyone does read this and
wants to review successful ventures and review best practices here ya go! It
uses examples from Pittsburgh so yay 412!
http://issuu.com/tomorrowtoday/docs/searching_book_issuu/1?e=0/8008844
The biggest personal risk I have identified throughout this
process is checking my privilege at the door. I talked about this venture at a
dinner with an educator who happened to be African American. She brought up the
fact that I am indeed white. This is something I have been concerned about
since day one. A privileged white girl talking to students about race, really?
I’ve learned and been taught to check my privilege every day. I will learn from
Race Place as much as the students who participate. That’s the point. This
venture terrifies me, but that is why it is worthy of pursuit.
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