Social Justice Teach-In

Welcome to “Meeting the Moment: Amplifying Our Voices and Efforts.” Join President Enyedi, Interim VP for DEI David Fryson, SA President Charlotte Feliz, Faculty Senate Chair Bridget Haina, and Black Solidarity Day intern Fatima Ba for remarks and insight on Black Solidarity Day.

Event will be streamed on this page and at https://plattsburgh.video.yuja.com/.

Concurrent sessions across campus. 

• Designing Human-Centered Discussions in Divisive Times — Presented by Bridget Haina and Michelle L. Bonati
• Neurodiversity-Informed Communication: Utilizing Language, Listening, and Presence to Better Identify and Meet Conflicting Needs — Presented by Sky Rolnick
• A Well-Meaning White Woman Teaches African-American History — Presented by Wendy Gordon
• Gallery Walk: A Celebration of Black Artists in SUNY Plattsburgh Collections — Presented by John McMahon, Kara Jefts, Michaela Rife, and Walter Early
• Rhetorical Listening, Rogerian Empathy, and You: Lessons from the Writing Center — Presented by Regan Levitte
• Is Our Will Free and Our Toughness Mental? — Presented by Cody Dulaney
• Books that Build Us Up: An Interactive Book Display and Reading — Presented by Lindsey Bradley, Holly Heller-Ross, Ayla Poovey, Margaret Baranoff, and Karen Volkman

Concurrent sessions across campus. 

• Hidden Voices:  A Panel Discussion with Local Citizens Who Lived the Jim Crow South — Presented by Dexter L. Criss, Bobbie S. Criss, and Eloise Lee
• Equity, Inclusion, and Democracy — Presented by John McMahon and Daniel Lake
• Beyond Mirrors and Windows: Diverse Voices in Children’s Books — Presented by Yong Yu and Elaine Ostry
• Guided Meditation Session — Presented by Gray Adkins
• Filming Protests: How to Capture Powerful Footage Safely, Ethically, and with Purpose — Presented by Lauren Zito
• Voices of Street People: An Open Studio Exhibition of Paintings and Drawings by Bright Kontor Osei — Presented by Bright Kontor Osei
• A Process, A Discovery: An Ekphrastic Writing Experience — Presented by Sara Schaff
• More Than a Fade: Black Hair, Care, and Community in the North Country — Presented by Taj Ellis, KINKS
• Reclaiming My Time: Boundaries and Priority Setting For Academic Faculty And Staff — Presented by Kelly Theisen
• The Tilma as Testimony: Guadalupe’s Coded Message to the Mesoamerican People, and the Civic Power of Inculturation — Presented by Margarita Garcia-Notario
• Standing Out, Fitting In — Presented by Kathryn Alton
• TRHT Virtual Healing Circle — Presented by Bridget Haina and TBD

Concurrent sessions across campus. 

• In Unity, There Is Strength — Presented by Elishua Oviedo and Board Members
• Healing Across Identities: Racial Trauma Workshop — Presented by Samantha Ward, Christine Parmeter, and Amanda Linares
• TRHT In-Person Healing Circle — Presented by Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation Center Student Facilitators, Jayda Harris and Adannya Carter
• Gallery Walk: A Celebration of Black Artists in SUNY Plattsburgh Collections — Presented by John McMahon, Kara Jefts, Michaela Rife, and Walter Early
• Student VOTE on Art Purchase! — Presented by Grace Pamaka Ebere and Students from the Art Acquisition Board
• Banned Books: How Censorship Limits Access to Marginalized Writers and Diverse Experiences — Presented by Tracie Guzzio and Students in HON 182
• Ice Cream, you Scream; We all Scream for Better Healthcare — Presented by Sarah Charles, Shannon Lindow, Heather Moussa, Mallory Mattison, and Disa Seymour
• Find Your Branch – A Moment To Meet Us! — Presented by Lindsay Farrar

Please use the noon hour to refresh and re-energize. Free light refreshments are available in the Angell College Center lobby, compliments of the Student Affairs and Diversity Board of the Student Association, Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and the Plattsburgh College Foundation.

Lunch is available for purchase or through the use of meal card swipes and/or dining dollars for use at the food trucks in Amitie Plaza. Additional food establishments including the Cardinal Market & Starbucks Cafe’, Halal Shack, Samuel D’s, Clinton Dining Hall, Kent Cafe’, Einstein Bros. Bagels, and Meals on the Move will be open and available throughout the day.

Also Enjoy:

• Gallery Walk: A Celebration of Black Artists in SUNY Plattsburgh Collections (open until 4:45) — John McMahon, Kara Jefts, Michaela Rife, and Walter Early

Concurrent sessions across campus. 

• Who Gets Counted Counts: Justice in Data-Driven Decision Making — Presented by Mary Alldred
• Voices of First-Generation College Students — Presented by Lauren Gonyea, Anny Nelzy, Simon Melgarejo, Joshua Severino, and Charlotte Feliz
• Algorithmic Bias — Presented by Kevin McCullen
• Intro to Stepping Workshop — Presented by Montreal Steppers
• “My Culture, My Style” Open Mic & Fashion Jam — Presented by Ashley Rufino, Isabella Patrocinio, Haljazir Headley, and Jolene Lin
• Conscious Relaxation Session — Presented by Shawna Mefferd Kelty
• Hands That Nurture: Exploring Perceptions of Masculine Devotion — Presented by Shawndel N. Fraser and Drew Goerlitz
• “The Loving Our Country Project” of John Brown Lives! — Presented by Amy Mountcastle, Alexis Adamkowski, Ben Anderson, Renee Augustine, Anika Brown, Olivia Davis, Mrudangi Purvesh Trivedi, Martha Swan, and Anna Forsman
• Archaeology and Race: The Career of John Wesley Gilbert — Presented by TJ Miner, Cooper Scherer, Laurel Van Lone, and Owl Merle
• The Oneness of Humanity and the Urgent Need to Eliminate Racism — Presented by Chahbaz Azarkadeh
• Solidarity in Motion: Voices, Advocacy, and Action — Presented by Joseph Twumasi-Ankrah, Patricia Weldon, and Julie Richards
• Virtual Solidarity in Motion: Voices, Advocacy, and Action — Presented by Chenique Boutelle, Heather Fronckowiak, and Maureen Rotondi

Concurrent sessions across campus. 

• Campaigns for Change: Marketing’s Role in Social Justice — Presented by Priyanka Singh and Angel Chandra (AMA Marketing Club)
• Shoulder Arms! Marching from Wye House to Freedom — Presented by Robin Caudell
• Another Facet of Modern Slavery — Presented by Helwanji Fadi
• Interview with Dr. Tracie Guzzio: Kindred, a novel by Octavia Butler — Presented by Connie Oxford and Tracie Guzzio
• Gallery Walk: A Celebration of Black Artists in SUNY Plattsburgh Collections — Presented by John McMahon, Kara Jefts, Michaela Rife, and Walter Early
• Celebrating Diverse Writers through Writing Workshops — Presented by Sigma Tau Delta, the English Honor Society: Kylie Ayala, Grace Estus, Jelani Hamilton, and Jenna Charland
• The Co-op Movement: History, People, Principles, Values, and Social Justice — Presented by Natalie Casey-Sanger, Shawna Mefferd Kelty, and other NCFC staff members
• Imagining Freedom: Building a Better Future Together — Presented by Jasmine Hawkins-White

Concurrent sessions across campus. 

• Race and Representation in the Broadcast Era and Beyond — Presented by Ben Medeiros, Molly Ryan, Nora Bowler, and Olivia Moeller
• Book Discussion: “Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom” by Ilyan Woo — Presented by Kim Irland
• Staying Connected — Presented by Julianna (Jules) Coppola and Michelle L. Bonati
• Gallery Walk: A Celebration of Black Artists in SUNY Plattsburgh Collections — Presented by John McMahon, Kara Jefts, Michaela Rife, and Walter Early
• Diversity, Anti-Racism, and Tutoring: A Learning Center Tutor Panel — Presented by Elizabeth Mahoney, Sami Goodman, Jasmine Vargas, and Regan Levitte
• The Importance of Books: The ‘Great Book’ Tradition in Historical and Contemporary Perspective — Presented by Gary Kroll
• Social Justice in Children’s Literature — Presented by Students from EDU 325 and Instructors Megan Lawless & Mary Lou LaRocque
• Debunking Myths about Immigration and Immigrants, 2025 — Presented by Elizabeth Onasch

Join Montreal Steppers for an energetic and powerful performance, live in the Giltz Auditorium, Hawkins Hall.

About Montreal Steppers

Montreal Steppers is a performance collective and non-profit organization committed to the art form of step — a black diasporic dance that uses the body as an instrument to create rhythms and beats, through stomps, claps, and chants.

Founded in 2019, the organization has used stepping to influence dialogue around the importance of black art, black lives, and black history in Canada, by way of workshops and performances.

Learn more about Montreal Steppers

• 10 a.m. — Scrabble and Board Game Cool Down hosted by Kim Irland and Title IX, ACC Meeting Room 1
• 11 a.m. — Community Coloring hosted by the Career Development Center, ACC Career Development Center
• Noon — Lunch Break — No sessions scheduled
• 1 p.m. — President’s Office Cool Down with Beckett (Therapy Dog) hosted by Heather Haskins, ACC Meeting Room 1
• 1 p.m. — Using Your SuperPowers hosted by Holly Heller-Ross and Women in Technology, ACC Meeting Room 8
• 2 p.m. — Popcorn Cool Down with Kristie Stanton and the Feinberg Library, ACC Meeting Room 1
• 3 p.m. — Health and Wellness and EAP Cool Down with Sarah Erno, ACC Meeting Room 1

Activist, and former SUNY Old Westbury professor, Carlos Russell created Black Solidarity Day in 1969. He was inspired by Douglas Turner Ward’s play, “Day of Absence.” The plot focuses on a fictional town where the Black residents suddenly disappear, resulting in the White residents realizing how much of their lives rely on Black labor. As part of this annual day, and to highlight their contributions to society, Black people were encouraged not to work and not to shop as a form of economic protest. Instead, they were encouraged to engage in educating and enlightening their communities (Price, 2018). Since 1969, members of college campuses have recognized Black Solidarity Day by convening panel discussions, educational workshops, rallies, and other culturally enlightening forums.

Learn about the origins of Black Solidarity Day

Black Solidarity Day is a student-driven initiative. Shiyiheeim Nartey-Tokoli, the former treasurer of the Student Association wrote the proposal to have SUNY Plattsburgh recognize this day as a holiday. The proposal was revised and re-submitted by Mac-Olivier Lalanne, a former senator of the Student Association. Ohemaa Owusu-Poku, a former member of the Student Association executive board and the former coordinator of student affairs and diversity, and Ahmed Metwaly, the former president of the Student Association worked with the Faculty Senate Executive Committee to develop a plan for how the campus could recognize Black Solidarity Day. After the proposal was revised for the day to be celebrated as a social justice teach-in, it was endorsed by the Faculty Senate and by the administration. In Spring 2022 Black Solidarity Day became part of the SUNY Plattsburgh academic calendar, to be held annually on the first Monday of November.

In recognition of Black Solidarity Day, our campus hosts a social justice teach-in featuring programming for the Plattsburgh community about racial justice, anti-racism, and social justice, broadly defined. A teach-in is an organized event, typically hosted on a university campus, focused on raising awareness and developing knowledge to address inequities and social justice. The overarching goal is to support the educational empowerment of students, staff, faculty, and community members who participate in the day, and to honor the diverse voices of those who contribute to our community. A social justice teach-in aligns with Dr. Russell’s vision for Black Solidarity Day to engage in educational empowerment. Social justice teach-ins were held in 2017 and 2019 on our campus. SUNY Plattsburgh has institutionalized the Black Solidarity Day teach-in, as an annual event which aligns with our commitment to inclusion, equity, belonging, and justice for all.

The Social Justice Teach-In will be a full-day event. During the morning and afternoon, students, staff, faculty, and community members can choose from over 50 breakout sessions ranging from workshops, readings, performances, discussions, and presentations on a diverse range of issues related to social justice.

During lunchtime, there will be food truck vendors to buy lunch, free hot chocolate and cider provided by the DEI Office, and entertainment. Multicultural businesses, student entrepreneurs, and community groups will also host tables to share information about their organizations.

We will cap off the day with a keynote presentation. Faculty, staff, students and community members are encouraged to attend as many sessions as possible. A virtual track will also be available for those who want to attend from afar.

We welcome all SUNY Plattsburgh faculty, staff, and students to attend all events.