Campus Event: Pre-K to Prison Pipeline: Changing the Odds for Boys of Color

On Monday, September 9^th, 2013 the African American Studies Department at the University of Maryland, College Park will host a discussion “Pre-K to Prison Pipeline: Changing the Odds for Boys of Color.” Educational and incarceration trends among boys of color remain a concern within public and academic dialogues. The conversations we hope to inspire during this symposium should not only describe the problem, but also address prevention, rehabilitation, and the successful educational engagement of boys of color so that the Pre-K to Prison cycle can be broken.  As such, the likely topics for this symposium include:

• School discipline and “zero-tolerance” policies
• Relation of incarceration trends to African American social outcomes
• Developing culturally “competent” school staff
• Family and community determinants of educational disengagement and juvenile incarceration
• Urban neighborhoods as sites of educational and incarceration risks
• Impact of federal sentencing guidelines, past and present
• Racial profiling, racism and Trayvon Martin
• Early childhood intervention
• Mental health and boys of color

The panel discussion will be moderated by Dr. Ruth Zambrana, and feature four distinguished guests, Dr. Pedro Noguera, Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education, New York University; Dr. Oscar Barbarin, Lila L. and Douglas J. Hertz Endowed Chair, Dept. of Psychology, Tulane University; Dr. Becky Pettit, Professor of Sociology, University of Washington and Dr. Howard Stevenson, Professor of Education and Africana Studies, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education.

The symposium will begin with four mini-forums featuring each of the speakers:  10:00 am - 11:00 am, “Oscar Barbarin and Graduate Student Roundtable" 1102 Taliaferro Hall; 11:00 am – noon "Becky Pettit talks about incarceration and Black Progress"  1126 Taliaferro Hall; 1:00pm-2:00pm,"Howard Stevenson on Race, Mental Health and Boys of Color" 3302 F School of Public Health Building; 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm, " Black Boys and Street life”: Tara Brown talks with Pedro Noguera" Stamp Margaret Brent B 2112.

The main program will be held in the Atrium Room 1107 in Stamp Student Union, University of Maryland, College Park from 3:00pm-4:30pm. The event will conclude with a reception from 4:30-6:00 p.m. in the David C. Driskell Center.

The event is free and open to the University of Maryland campus community and the general public. For further information please visit http://www.aasd.umd.edu  or contact the African American Studies Department directly at 301-405-1158.

This program is sponsored by the African American Studies Department and co-sponsored by:  Upsilon Iota Lambda and Iota Zeta Chapters of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Maryland Population Research Center, Department of Psychology, College of Education, Consortium on Race, Department of Sociology, Gender and Ethnicity, Nyumburu Cultural Center and Maryland Center for Health Equity.