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ALPENA -- The public is invited to a discussion at 7 p.m. on Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 15) at the Fitzpatrick Room of Van Lare Hall on the Alpena Community College campus.
The discussion will be led by Dave Rabbideau, superintendent of Alpena Public Schools, and moderated by Tom Orth, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church and chair of the MLK Jr. Committee of Northeast Michigan.
Rabbideau will share his thoughts from his experiences as an educator in a system that changed from a mostly white student body to mostly African-American while the staff stayed mostly white. This experience was the subject of his doctoral thesis.
Rabbideau's career in education began in a school district in which the student body was 78% white, and the staff was 100% white. In less than 10 years, the student body's demographics had shifted to over 80% African-American, yet the staff demographics remained unchanged. The adult responses to this demographic change included deficit thinking, low expectations, strict discipline practices, white flight, and more.
Rabbideau's research explored:
¯ the role that race played in shaping his responses to the demographic changes,
¯ how he could use this new understanding to improve his practice as an educational leader, and
¯ how his research and experience could serve as a model for other white leaders, who like him, represent most educational leaders serving all students and African-American children.
The program will also be available on the web.ex connection of the college. Email the following address to receive the web.ex connection: abelovedcommunity.alpena@gmail.com
Van Lare Hall is located on the river side of Johnson Street, and the Fitzpatrick Room is to the left of the center hallway.