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Uprooting Inequity Seminars

The Office of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion would like to invite you to participate in the Uprooting Inequity virtual seminar series. Equity, diversity and inclusion are active processes that require a continuous commitment to promoting equity-minded practioners amongst our Bobcats, building healthy communities, and ensuring the overall success of present and future generations. 

Uprooting Inequity by Ayo Magwood offers in-depth, evidence-based remote seminars on the history, economics, and behavioral science of structural racism. All seminars consist of a 90-minute presentation followed by an (optional) 1-hour discussion. 

Uprooting Inequity will be a great resource for our UC Merced community as we continue to advance equity and justice. Each of the Uprooting Inequity Seminars will build upon one another. Participants who complete a total of six sessions (the three mandatory sessions alongside three others) will be recognized and receive a certification of completion to add to their portfolio.

All seminars will be recorded and will be uploaded the week after each seminar.

About Ayo Magwood

Profile picture of Ayo Magwood

   Ayo Magwood (Uprooting Inequity LLC) is an educational consultant specializing in in-depth, evidence- based education on the history, economics, sociology, and cognitive psychology of structural racism. She  also equips institutions with the tools and strategies to foster more productive conversations about racism using her “perspectives consciousness approach.” Her “ProEquity” model is a K-12 instructional approach for teaching an inclusive and critical/honest curriculum that also fosters perspectives consciousness, civic skills and dispositions, and a shared “we” identity. She has over 10 years of classroom experience in both majority low-income Black/Latino charter schools and majority high-income White private schools. Ayo has a B.A. in economics and international relations from Brown University and a M.Sc. in applied economics from Cornell University.

   Ayo is the author of the book chapter “Why ‘Elite’ Independent Schools Can’t Retain Black and Brown Faculty” in K. Swalwell & D. Spikes (Eds.) Anti-Oppressive Education in “Elite” Schools: Promising Practices and Cautionary Tales, Sep. 2021 (available for pre-order), and co-author of the article “Using Conceptual Tensions and Supreme Court Cases to Increase Critical Thinking in Government and Civics Classrooms”, in Social Education Vol. 77 No. 4, Sep 2013.

 Ayo’s passion for anti-racist, civics, and social justice education and her lifelong quest to help people understand the perspectives of others are informed by her personal identity and experiences as a cultural “border crosser.”  She identifies as African American and biracial; grew up in East Africa, West Africa and the Middle East; lived and worked in Mexico for 5 years (and returns there every summer); and speaks near-fluent Spanish. Her personal and parenting experiences with mental illness, dyslexia, and ADHD have also influenced her border-crossing perspective on these issues.

Seminars: 

Seminar #1: Origins: The Social Construction of Race, Ethnicity, and Racism (Mandatory)

Seminar #2: The Historical Reproduction of Anti-Black Racism

Seminar #3: Causes and Impacts of Structural Racism (Mandatory)

Seminar #4: A short history of Latino Americans

Seminar #5: A Short History of Asian Americans 

Seminar #6. Conflict and Cooperation Between Racially Marginalized Groups

Seminar #7: Towards an Equitable “Us” Society: Lessons learned and Directions Forward (Mandatory)