A Virtual Summit that Highlighted and Elevated Educators and Voices Of African American People In The Social-Emotional Field
DURHAM, N.C. – Nov. 1, 2021 – PRLog — Dangers of the Mind recently hosted its 2021 Black SEL Matters Summit: State of Emergency on America’s Youth, virtually from Tuesday, September 28th – Thursday, September 30th from 4:00p.m. to 6:00p.m EST each day, expanding the national reach of this anticipated summit and introduced a memorable interactive experience that empowered attendees for years to come.
The three-day virtual summit gathered Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and Mental Health Specialist, Students, Educators, Influencers, and Community Leaders. The main focus was to create a healthy dialog around policy, critical race theory, and ways to expose social-emotional learning to surrounding communities and its key stakeholders.
“Throughout the nation there has been an uprise of violence in our communities and as students returned back to school,” said Dangers of the Mind Founder and Event Host, Kristen Hopkins. “This conference established some grounding moments of reflection to allow every African-American person to understand the vital need to embed Social-Emotional Development in the home and in our communities. This call-to action prompted some of the leading voices including one of the founders of Social-Emotional Development, Dr. James Comer, MD, MPH. These voices came together to answer the call and create dialogue around new exciting strategies for implementing Social-Emotional learning in Black Communities.”
This event consisted of five powerhouse panel sessions covering an array of topics, including five 30-minute sessions; the Black Mental Health Panel, Superintendent Panel, Community Panel, Athletes Panel, and a College Panel, inclusive of several diverse speakers from various industries including mental health professionals, education, sports and entertainment, and community involvement. Each panel discussion touched on practical ways to incorporate social-emotional learning in your school, work, home, or community.
Keynote Speaker Dr. James Comer, MD, MPH, one of the world’s leading child psychiatrists and a legend in the Social-Emotional Learning space, set the tone for the entire summit. His address stated the importance of working collectively to build a system of strong black leaders and ways to expose and sustain SEL in black communities. Dr. James Comer, MD, MPH commented, “We need economic power and sociopolitical understanding to survive in this work.”
Attendees walked away with tools to be ReSELient™, overcoming obstacles with Social-Emotional Learning skills. Each panel taught attendees key ways to activate a growth mindset and understand how intentionally practicing social-emotional learning will transform communities. In addition to examining the current SEL landscape, the summit featured special recognition of community leaders daily, highlighting six awardees to receive the Black SEL Award. The Black SEL Awards Gala is set to take place sometime in 2022 where attendees will receive their awards.
Key sponsors of this year’s summit included Dangers Of The Mind, Extol Ministries, The Urban Assembly, Dream It. Own it. Master it. Foundation, T3 Diversity Solutions, Juvenile Justice Institute, and The Chris Baker Foundation. Proceeds generated from tickets sales is helping build the capacity for the Dangers of the Minds Education Fund. To donate to the education fund click here (https://dangersofthemind.com/
Click here (https://lightroom.adobe.com/
