UWP to host K-12, criminal justice racial disparities workshop in July
PLATTEVILLE - The University of Wisconsin-Platteville has formed the UWP Racial Disparities in Criminal Justice and Education Task Force and will convene a workshop open to the public on July 24 and 25. The chair of the task force, Joe Lomax, professor of education at UWP, said he believes the workshop will be of particular interest to educators, criminal justice professionals, members of the clergy, community advocates and faculty, staff and students in higher education.
The title of the workshop is "Incarceration Rates Up, Graduation Rates Down: Reverse the Trend."
"The National Urban League's 2007 State of Black America report concludes that 'the problems facing black men represent America's most serious crisis,' and that is something we should all be concerned about. We are seeking interested people from every community to join us to focus on the disparities, discuss possible solutions and create action plans to examine conditions in criminal justice and education that impact minority youth," said Lomax. Each group will become a cohesive community action team which will return to their communities with viable solutions and alternatives.
Keynote speakers will include Pamela Oliver, professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison; Carolyn Stanford-Taylor, assistant state superintendent at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction; Jeffrey Lewis, assistant professor at the UW-Madison School of Education; and Michael Blackwell, director for Multicultural Education at the University of Northern Iowa.
Ben Wilson, assistant superintendent of the Aldine Independent School District in Houston, Texas, will also speak and share experiences from his school district, which serves a high percentage of minority and underprivileged students and has excellent success rates.
Early bird registration, due July 8, is $100 per person. Registrations received between July 9 and 18 are $150 per person. Anyone interested in learning more about the conference or obtaining registration materials may contact Lomax at (608) 342-1621 or lomaxj@uwplatt.edu.
Contact: Joe Lomax, chair, UWP Racial Disparities in Criminal Justice and Education Task Force, (608) 342-1621, lomaxj@uwplatt.edu Written By: Evelyn Martens, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, martense@uwplatt.edu
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