Equity in education Globally! (ADDRESSING the 2024 UNESCO Conference)
- knjwhite
- Mar 17
- 5 min read
Guest author Korbey White
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Korbey and Regina White at the 2024 UNESCO Conference
April 8, 2024, is a day that I will forever remember as the day launched into the space of making change related to equity on a global scale. I had received an email and immediately thought it was spam. Of course it was spam, after all they were inviting me to present at the UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) day in Paris, France, regarding educational equity for marginalized students in the United States. My wife, who worked for Rotary International at the time, was organizing a panel discussion on education inequities on a global scale. She kept it a surprise that I was asked to speak. I had almost erased the email until I noticed in the CC line, the name Gordon McInally (the then International President of Rotary).
So, I respond to the email saying, first of all, yes, and secondly why me? Unbeknownest to me, my wife had alerted Rotary International of the national attention the Verona Area School District had garnered with our Strategic Framework centered on education being grounded in equity. Did I mention that that I sit on and serve as the Board Clerk of the Veron Area School District Board? In August of the 2023 then First Lady Dr. Jill Biden had visited The Verona School Disctrict at, one of the nation’s most groundbreaking, and innovative elementary schools, Glacier Edge Elementary where she provided words of encouragement that kicked off our school year. On May 1, 2024 my Wife and I headed to Paris for what would be a life changing event.
For once, and I couldn’t believe it, there were no flight issues whatsoever as we arrived on the morning of May 2nd. The hotel was located in the Montmartre section of Paris across the street from the hotel we had spent our honeymoon in the previous year. The speaking engagement was in two days and no matter where we went, it was all I could think about. Paris was certainly gearing up for the Olympics and several streets were detoured and bleachers/mini stadiums were being built right in front of our very eyes. The Omega countdown to first day of the Olympics was certainly an attraction for everyone who could actually get to it. We spent most of the time visiting places and doing things we didn’t get a chance to experience when we were there last September. A major highlight for me was visiting Pablo Picasso's former apartment, where he had created many of his masterpieces. The Basilica of Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre continues to loom large in my memory as it did during that visit. Regardless of religion, it remains an incredible work of art. But enough of that, it was time to get to work!
The morning of May 4th I had the worst case of jet lag and struggled to even get dressed yet alone to prepare to present to a jam-packed room of excited faces. We Ubered to the United Nations building and immediately were greeted by security detail which felt a lot like going through TSA. Gordon McInally was the first person to greet us when we hot to the room, and his warm smile and infectious personality was simply amazing. I enjoyed hearing all about Scottland and talk about coincidences. He was scheduled to visit Madison for the first-time the following month. After exchanging pleasantries, we sat down, and I tried to get focused and overcome this jet lag. I sat in the reserve for speakers’ section at the very front of the room only to turn around 10 minutes later and notice the approximately 400 people in attendance. I loved it. I fed off the crowd's energy.
I was extremely excited, I thought, until the moderator alerted us that 35 different countries would be listening and also had their representatives in attendance. There were headsets available at each seat and on different channels interpretators were translating to the language of your liking. My time to take the stage seemed to come much quicker that I expected, and as I was introduced a I felt a sense of calm but also a surge of extreme excitement that I had never felt before. I was about to present on issues many may not know even exist in the US, and I would get to champion these issues.
I talked about what equity in education means to me and how it impacts marginalized communities.
I talked about what our school district does to disrupt those systems of inequity and address the opportunity gap issues that plague many of our students.
I talked about what we can do to support our educators on this quest as well as successful ways to support teaching and learning in our classrooms. And, I left my audience chewing on the significant academic, social, health, and developmental impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our students and how the Verona School District had mobilised to address those issues. And as I ended my international conversation translated as it was in many languages, the magic happened. The crowd erupted in one the universal language of appreciation - ovation, thunderous applause.
The Governor of the Paris District said it was the best thing he had heard in recent years. The ambassador of Ecuador said she had chills, the Ambassador of Israel said it was incredible. The Ambassador of Italy said he could feel what I was saying and that it was so powerful. While that was all well received and immensely appreciated, the most impactful words I heard came from Valerie. Valerie is an exchange student from New York to Paris that I had met at the conference. She came up to me and he appreciation was simply “wow, you have motivated me beyond belief!”. I remain eternally change by that till today.
After speaking with many prime ministers and ambassadors, what I learned is that this equity in education situation is not specific to the United States. It is a global issue that needs to be addressed. Any involvement helps. Whether it be mentoring on weekends, participating in events in your local school district that promote literacy or simply providing words of encouragement to children you encounter on a daily basis would do wonders! This entire experience instantly reminded me of our slogan or motto of the 100 Black Men of Madison that goes, “what they see is what they will be.”
COPYRIGHT 2024 BY DR. ALVIN THOMAS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION.
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