Time: 4:30–6:00 p.m. Central Time

Location: Goodman Community Center
149 Waubesa Street
Madison, WI 53704

Description: Join REL Midwest for a screening of the new documentary High Hopes and Higher Education: Honoring Black Students’ Aspirations, a documentary produced in collaboration with Wisconsin Public TV and the Midwest Achievement Gap Research Alliance at REL Midwest. This documentary explores evidence-based programs in Wisconsin focused on supporting black students’ higher education aspirations.

Researchers Dr. Jameela Conway-Turner (REL Midwest) and Dr. Deborah Faye Carter (Claremont Graduate University) discuss promising practices that educators can use to support black students on their journey to postsecondary education, including embracing culturally responsive education, communicating high expectations, and developing strong student-teacher relationships.

The documentary features the Precollege Enrichment Opportunity Program for Learning Excellence (PEOPLE) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison; Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, Professor Emerita at the University of Wisconsin-Madison; students and staff from the Minority Student Achievement Network; and staff and students from the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD). The documentary focuses on examples from Wisconsin, but the information and evidence shared in the program offer important learnings for people and groups based outside the state.

After the screening, REL Midwest will facilitate a panel discussion with the researchers, students, and staff featured in the documentary, and attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions about the research and programs.

Partnership or Research Alliance: Midwest Achievement Gap Research Alliance

Audience: REL Midwest created this documentary as a tool for K–12 and postsecondary educators, parents, and students to learn about evidence-based approaches to support black students as they prepare for college. The documentary focuses on examples from Wisconsin, but the information and evidence shared in the program offer important learnings for people and groups based outside the state. REL Midwest hopes viewers will watch the program and use the viewing guide as a starting point for a discussion on how to support black students’ pathways to college.

Speakers:

• Jameela Conway-Turner, Researcher, REL Midwest
• Madeline Hafner, Executive Director, Minority Student Achievement Network (MSAN), Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin–Madison
• Andrea Jones, Multicultural Student Coordinator, James Madison Memorial High School, Madison, Wisconsin
• High school students