We hope your summer is restorative, reinvigorating - or whatever you need it to be!

We want to send happy summer vibes to the young people who are beginning “Summer Rising,” the K-12 summer program that started last week in NYC’s public schools. A special shout-out to staff at our three PAZ after-school programs hosting Summer Rising at PS 24 in Brooklyn and PS 214 in the Bronx.

These staff members have done heroic work throughout this impossible year, and now they are back again to spread care, learning, and joy to children and families in the hard-hit communities of Tremont and Sunset Park.

We're grateful for you!

We are also grateful to everyone who contributed to our spring campaign - which helps support our work throughout NYC and beyond. Thank you! (And if you'd like to give now, we cheer you on! Please give here.)

And now, on to new activities, good stuff to read, and more. Enjoy!

SEL Tip: Two Quick Techniques for Calming Down

Amid a controversy over a plan to provide debt relief to Black farmers, students dig deeply into history to grapple with the question, “Do all farmers matter?”

Anti-Critical Race Theory Laws & the Assault on Pedagogy. "Don’t be fooled. The current crusade against critical race theory has nothing to do with critical race theory itself." By Robert Kim (Morningside Board member) in Phi Delta Kappan.

Five Equity Practices for Principals. "The current political dust-up around critical race theory is yet another reason principals have to develop an understanding of race and be prepared to navigate a sea of resistance to stay on course." By Mark Anthony Gooden at ASCD In Service.

Teacher Voice: This wasn’t a ‘lost year'. "While enduring isolation and, in some cases, depression, my students found ways to learn about literature and themselves. Let’s not welcome them back to classrooms with a battery of tests and a ‘business as usual’ attitude." By Will Johnson at Hechinger Report.  

July 23-25: Caring for Each Other & Our Planet is "a first of its kind gathering in the SEL and mindfulness space where K-12 educators will engage with the interrelated nature of racial and climate justice." Morningside's Founding ED Tom Roderick will be speaking! Omega Institute July 23-25, 2021. Register by June 25 using the code ERD for a 10% discount. The conference will also be available via live stream - register here.

“To bring about change, you must not be afraid to take the first step. We will fail when we fail to try." ― Rosa Parks