Contact: Jennifer Teramoto Pedrotti, 

805-756-2359; jpedrott@calpoly.edu

SAN LUIS OBISPO — Over 40 talks and workshops centered around social justice and equity will be offered during Cal Poly’s seventh annual Social Justice Teach In on Thursday, Feb. 9. Hosted by the College of Liberal Arts and the Office of University Diversity and Inclusion, the Teach In features presentations by students, staff, faculty and community leaders, whose diverse voices will share their expertise in a multitude of fields, working to create a just society for all.

 

All events are open to the public, and attendees can register for sessions on a wide range of topics, including “Muted Voices in Virtual Meeting: How to Address DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) in Virtual Meetings,” “Artistic Activism to Disrupt the Single Story of Incarcerated Populations,” and “ANDOR: Writing Resistance in the Star Wars Universe.” Five presentation tracks are focused on specific topics to help attendees identify sessions that best match their interests, including pathways to Hispanic-serving institutions; diversity, equity and inclusion in engineering; reproductive justice; pop culture and media; and restorative justice: beyond incarceration.

Jennifer Teramoto Pedrotti, College of Liberal Arts associate dean for diversity and curriculum, noted how the event has grown to support audiences beyond Cal Poly’s campus.

 

“This year, we’re offering a hybrid schedule of both in-person and virtual sessions to allow a broader group of people, including alumni, community members, faculty, staff, and students, to join in these important sessions,” Teramoto Pedrotti said. “We also have resources on our website for those who would like to develop post-Teach In conversations with their friends or units across campus."

 

The Teach In will culminate in a keynote session from Claude M. Steele titled “Stereotype Threat and Identity Threat: The Science of a Diverse Community” from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Steele is a social psychologist and a professor of psychology at Stanford University. He is best known for his work on stereotype threat and its application to racial and ethnic minority student academic performance, including his popular book, “Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do." His earlier work dealt with research on the self as well as the role of self-regulation in addictive behaviors.

 

Learn more about the sessions and register at: https://cla.calpoly.edu/teach-in.