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Conference Schedule

LUNCHTIME SESSIONS - 11:30 am–12:30 pm

1. Education and Islam: Advice for educators and administrators in providing appropriate services to Muslim students

Presenter: Adam Jeffers, Counselor, Career Services, San Diego State University

Room: Calmecac
Audience Level: General

The purpose of this workshop is to provide educators and administrators with a working knowledge of common behaviors and fundamental practices of our Muslim student population. In an environment as diverse as San Diego State University, it is important to learn about the students we serve in an effort to serve them better. With increasing numbers of students with diverse experiences and belief systems, our thoughts and opinions can become exaggerated and misunderstood if they are not based on firm knowledge. Those in attendance will view a short Power point presentation on Islam and education, which will be followed by a brief Q & A session. You will be encouraged to ask critical questions and provided with an Islamic educational guide for future reference. This promises to be a very informative and thought provoking session and we hope you will be able to attend.

2. Bring Affability and Serenity in Understanding Ethnicity and Race

Presenters: Mridusmita Borah, M. Phil International Relations, South Asian Studies, M.A. Political Science, M.A. Educational Technology (pursuing)

Room: Quetzalcoatl A & B
Audience Level: Educator and students and University Level

Understanding ‘differences’ is like management. “Managing international and domestic diversity and learning to work with difference are increasingly becoming key managerial and organizational skills. Focus should be on, “how do we understand tolerance of racial/ethnic minorities?” Diversity could be altered into an asset by converting it into a common commitment, quality and work force and thereby productivity.

When we are discussing about understanding ethnicity/racial differences, it leads us to a discussion of a negative or a positive self-image stemming from one’s ethnicity/race and often from gender, or physical condition. This understanding has a powerful effect on the way one relates to others and leads his/her life. This session should particularly benefit mostly the students who are searching for an understanding of ethnicity/racism within the environment where they are present and among themselves like their friends, colleagues etc. It is also for those who are willing to take first and fast foot ahead for an affirmative action to eradicate the concept of dominance through racism or ethnicity.

3. Black Women and Representation: A look at Historical and Social Constructions of Inequality

Presenters: Erica Aguillon

Room: Presidential Suite
Audience Level: General

Borrowing extensively from feminist writer’s bell hooks and Kim Marie Vaz, this presentation offers a deconstruction of racial iconography pertaining to African American women, and traces historical representations from pre-slavery contexts to the present day. I compare the role of women in West-African societies to the images perpetuated by European and American White Patriarchal hegemony, and analyze the resulting iconography of the American postbellum period.

This article also discusses the exclusion of Black women from the feminist reconstruction of women’s oratorical past, the role of the media in feminine subjugation and exploitation, and the statistics revealing the alarming disparity in the economic, social, and health arenas. I ultimately conclude that the persistence of racism within the United States limits the avenues for which Black women are offered successful, self-affirming opportunities; negative attitudes towards Black women transcend popular media becoming inscribed, as Vaz notes, in the current welfare and housing policy.

This session should particularly benefit students and others who have had very limited exposure to cultural studies theory, and the historical contributions to social constructions of racial assumptions.

4. Gender Matters: Differences in State Probation Officers

Presenter: Dr. Sharla Colbert

Room: Chantico
Audience Level: General

The causes of stress for criminal justice practitioners, including probation officers, can generally be categorized into four areas: internal to the organization, external to the organization, the job or task itself, or personal in nature. Historically, criminal justice agencies have been characterized as male-dominated organizations. However, the presence of females in the criminal justice arena is growing, as evidenced in this project.

The purpose of this analysis is to examine female and male perceptions of stress among what has been a predominately male-occupied position, probation officers. Overall, the findings suggest that female probation officers exhibit greater signs of physical stress yet, remarkably, reflect lower levels of occupational stress in the study at hand. With the limitations of this study in mind, prospects for further research are delineated.

5. Focusing in on the Rainbow

Presenter: Blake Baza, President LGBTSU San Diego State University

Room: Council Chambers
Audience Level: All

The purpose of this workshop is to distinguish the differences between sexual orientation and gender identity while exploring true life aspects of growing up into the LGBTQIA community. This workshop will separate a variety of labels within the LGBTQIA with clear definitions. This presentation will also include video and audio clips of different members within the community describing their own experiences. This will explore the LGBTQIA umbrella terms and the labels that fall beneath it dealing with sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.

6. Jail Pedagogy: Teaching Prisoners

Presenter: Jerry Flores, Graduate Student Department of Sociology, San Diego State University

Room: Aztlan
Audience Level: Community, Educators

In recent years the United States has been reported to have the largest population of prisoners in the world. Along with this massive imprisoned populace comes the need to rehabilitate and educate these peoples. Much has been published regarding teaching in prison, but few publications have addressed directly how prisoners are being taught. This research paper discusses teaching techniques used in detention facilities, the experiences of those teaching in these settings, and, the educational content of what is being taught to imprisoned students.

In order to gain a comprehensive look into what is taking place within these classrooms, I have interviewed teachers that are currently working in detention facilities in and around San Diego, California. Through semi-structured qualitative interviews and participant observations, I took an in-depth look into teaching techniques used in jails and prisons, while also discussing the experiences of instructors that work in these unorthodox setting.