WAKEFIELD — Executive Director Margie Daniels is pleased to share that Massachusetts Partnerships for Youth (MPY) held webinars this week on topics including managing equity in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and preparing for the fall.
“In particular, as we’re engaged in a nationwide conversation on systemic racism, we felt our webinar discussing how educators can manage equity amid the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic served as a meaningful, timely opportunity for educators ,” Daniels said. “Our entire goal with offering these webinars is to give educators the support and tools they need to navigate these circumstances, and this webinar really touched on a key conversation and resources that people are seeking out.”
The webinar, titled “(Re)focusing on Educational Equity During the Economic Crisis post-COVID-19” was held on Tuesday, June 9, and featured University of North Carolina-Charlotte Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership, Racial Equity Consultant and Author Tracey Benson.
“Understanding the impacts of racial bias is a responsibility of all community members, including educators,” Benson said. “Today’s opportunity to interact with more than 700 Massachusetts educators will help to build racial awareness as an important first step. MPY’s transition to highlighting equity issues speaks to their leadership in providing a foundation so that educators who teach children are able to address systemic racism.”
During the training, Benson discussed with educators how COVID-19 has exposed racial inequalities in education, healthcare and employment and how school leaders can better understand and address the post-pandemic realities of disenfranchised communities. The webinar also discussed how educators can dedicate various resources to pursue equity in their districts.
MPY began hosting remote workshops on March 24 after halting its planned in-person conferences due to COVID-19. With school facilities throughout Massachusetts closed due to the virus, MPY swiftly adapted and moved its programming online, for free, to offer educators resources to reach out and support students and families for the remainder of the school year.
MPY also held a webinar titled “Legal Compliance During School Closure and Beyond” on Monday, June 8. The webinar featured attorneys Michael Joyce and Craig Kowalski of Nuttall, MacAvoy & Joyce, P.C. During the presentation, Joyce and Kowalski discussed the evolving guidelines and requirements during the mandatory, ongoing school closure as a result of COVID-19 and strategies for legal compliance and exploring practical solutions to the challenges posed by the pandemic.
On Wednesday, June 10, Ivy Child International Founder and CEO Rose Felix Cratsley gave a presentation titled “Integrating Social Emotional Learning into a Virtual Learning Environment,” during which she discussed how educators can use the virtual learning space to recognize and understand emotions, develop self-regulation and develop empathy through various activities and exercises.
A webinar titled “Relationship Mapping: Connecting to Students During Social Distancing and Beyond” featured Glenn Manning, senior project manager of Making Caring Common at the Harvard Graduate School of Education on Thursday, June 11. During his presentation, Manning discussed the importance of a positive and stable relationship with a caring adult in a student’s life and how relationship mapping invests time in ensuring every student has at least one such adult in their life, whether it be a teacher, counselor, sports coach or other school staff member.
On Friday, June 12, Alex Hirshberg, managing director at James Levine and Associates, led a webinar titled “Preparing for Fall 2020: Utilizing Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) to Support Anxious Students.” During the webinar, Hirshberg discussed how districts can plan to support students in a more vulnerable state, only compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, through Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) interventions for anxiety in the fall.
About the Massachusetts Partnerships for Youth, Inc.
Massachusetts Partnerships for Youth, Inc. is a non-profit 501.c(3) organization that provides training, fosters collaboration, and develops programming to increase the health and safety of students. Member organizations include more than 140 public school districts, charter schools, private schools, special education schools, educational collaboratives, and youth community service organizations in the Commonwealth. MPY is committed to bringing cutting-edge information and high quality trainings to constituents and endeavors to provide solution-oriented, community-based, multi-disciplinary approaches to reducing and ideally eliminating risky behaviors for youth.
The nonprofit is governed by a Board of Directors made up of school superintendents, police and fire chiefs, and other community leaders who work closely with MPY staff to deliver this mission.
To learn more, visit www.mpyinc.org.
###