Anti-Bias Plenary

The goal of this session is to help participants better understand who we are and how we perceive others, which will enable us an opportunity to develop high-performing teams.

We will evaluate, investigate, and discuss key factors, hurdles and challenges to group interactions and engagements, including self-awareness, biases, self-identity perception, and developing emotional intelligence.

Javette Johnson is a veteran of the United States Army, a public servant and a small business owner. She is also an educator and advocate who assists the US Department of Education with meeting goals through equitable access to small business opportunities.

Johnson's civil service experience extends to federal contracting with the Department of Defense, US Navy and US Marine Corps. Her most important and proudest accomplishment is being a mother four children.

Johnson has a bachelor's degree in Legal Studies and Criminal Justice and a master's degree in Forensic Science from National University of La Jolla California. She also holds master's degrees in Business and Project Management.

Join us in discovering tried and true strategies to build stronger connections within the classroom community. We will explore the four goals of anti-bias education – identity, diversity, justice and activism, as we learn more about culturally responsive practice.

Dr. Judy Krause serves as associate dean and program director for the Doctor of Education in Early Childhood Education program in the School of Human Development and Education at Pacific Oaks College.

Krause has been working with young children and their families since 1978 and began her work with college students in 1989. Her research focuses on developmentally and culturally appropriate pedagogy and she enjoys presenting hands-on, interactive workshops at the national, state, and local level.

In her spare time, Krause takes joy in traveling along the coast with her husband, as well as spending time with her grandchildren.

The lifelong work of becoming anti-bias requires that we go beyond, and often away from, being nice. In this workshop, we will explore current cultural phenomena in the US, including ALOK and campus protests, and the scariest video you will likely never see from Gilliam’s research study on how Black and white teachers interpret the behaviors of Black and white children.

Doing anti-bias work on ourselves and within our professional communities requires that we get uncomfortable and brave, breaking out of the pressure to be “nice.” If you feel nervous about this, consider challenging yourself to participate in this workshop.

An early childhood education expert with over 30 years of experience in community-based children's learning settings, Dr. Seer focuses on social-emotional development and equity.

Born in Houston and raised in Texas, Seer returned to Texas last year to be near loved ones and her favorite rivers – the Guadalupe and the San Marcos. She has served as an early educator, center director, community college instructor in child development, and quality improvement lead, and she has worked with organizations including Head Start, WestEd, Stanford University, and Mission College in California.

Seer holds a B.A.  in Human Biology from Stanford University, and both an M.A. in Leadership in Early Education and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from Mills College.