ECC Student Equity Reenvisioned (SER) Faculty Coordinator Jason Suárez has been invited once again to join the USC Center for Urban Education (CUE) in the upcoming Equity-Minded Teaching Institute set for June 4-5. At this event, 18 community colleges and two four-year institutions will learn strategies to redesign their courses using equity-minded principles. Suárez will be one of five panelists comprised of educators representing equity-minded faculty. This presents a great opportunity for Suárez to showcase El Camino College's equity-minded best practices, while also sharing information about his journey to becoming a teacher, how he views his role as an educator, and how being aware of equity enriches the classroom culture. Suárez will also join a team of CUE staff and doctoral candidates who will act as the primary facilitators at the institute. In this advisory role, Suárez will work with faculty teams during group discussions/activities.
A member of the El Camino College history faculty since 2001, Suárez became the SER faculty coordinator three years ago. El Camino College's Student Equity Reenvisioned is a Behavioral and Social Sciences Division and Student Equity Program initiative that addresses disproportionate impact and student equity by providing faculty with frameworks for creating culturally sensitive learning environments. SER faculty strive to create learning environments in which content mastery and college readiness are facilitated and reinforced through instructional methods and interventions that specifically address the barriers African-American and Latino students face when attempting general education course completion.