Building Community and Student-Led Teacher PD to Address Mental Health and Racial Trauma

About the Presenters

Damita Harvey has been with NJM Insurance Group since 2004, with the majority of her career focused on developing talent and providing educational solutions. Damita joined the administrative team of No Longer Bound, a grassroots prevention-based organization, in 1999, and currently serves as the Prevention Manager. One of Damita’s passion projects is serving as the community organizer for the Bristol Cares Coalition. This is a true collaborative effort between members of the community, school district, and local agencies with a desire for creating a community where youth feel valued, have a vision for the future, and a sense of self and belonging. Damita also serves as a co-lead for Bristol Township’s Digital Promise Project supporting the mental health of students that have faced racial trauma. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family.

Malikah Upchurch is an educator and Instructional Coach in Levittown, Pennsylvania. She began her career as a high school English teacher at charter schools in Philadelphia before transitioning to middle-level English language arts and English language learning in Bristol Township School District where she currently serves. Her belief in every person’s ability to make a positive impact in society fuels the energy and optimism behind her work. Her passion for child development extends beyond the classroom through coaching multiple extracurricular activities and volunteering with a national non-profit organization. As an aspiring school administrator, she plans to be an empowering learning leader and advocate for all.

Dr. Latia White, Senior Inclusive Innovation Researcher, has over 20 years of experience working in the education sector as an educator, instructional coach, and researcher. As a practitioner-researcher, Dr. White has supported school administrators, instructional coaches, and teachers to create equitable and inclusive environments to respond to the needs of historically and systematically excluded students. Dr. White has created culturally responsive curricula and educational programming to support students’ academic and social-emotional development and supported teachers as they worked to create culturally responsive learning environments for their students. As a researcher, Dr. White’s focus has been on inclusive research practices that center youth and communities. Dr. White leads efforts within the Center for Inclusive Innovation to co-research educational challenges and co-design educational solutions with students, teachers, and community members.

Kristian Lenderman, Ed.D. is currently a Senior Program Manager at Digital Promise’s Center for Inclusive Innovation, overseeing a variety of equity-centered, education R&D projects. She has dedicated her career to working on educational equity and her research focuses broadly on school climate and teacher training. Dr. Lenderman has over ten years of experience in education at the classroom, district, and state levels. As a teacher, coach, and facilitator, she focuses on reaching equitable outcomes by building a positive and inclusive culture. She received her Ed.D. from the University of Houston in 2020.