WELCOME TO THE RCH WEBSITE! Posted on Wed Dec 4 @ 1:36:17 PM by Kaye Johnson

International Women's Day/Week!! Posted on Mon Mar 8 @ 10:05:58 AM by Kaye Johnson March 8th is International Women's Day! It was started in 1909. In 1977, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution calling on member states to proclaim a day for women's rights and international peace. Later, it became a full week of celebrations. This year, International Women's Week runs from Sunday, March 7th to Saturday, March 13th. Additionally, in Canada, the month of October has been declared Women's History Month. For more information, visit the Status of Women Canada at: http://www.swc-cfc.gc.ca/index-eng.html .

83 Years of Celebrating African Heritage in February! Posted on Tue Sep 2 @ 3:14:10 PM by Kaye Johnson In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson started what was then called Negro History Week. February was chosen as it contains the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Dr. Woodson hoped that this special observance would foster togetherness and mutual respect for various backgrounds and contributions The week was lengthened to 1 month in 1976. In the 1970s with the changing of language around Black self-identification, the celebration became known as Black History Week/Month. In Nova Scotia, as well as in other places in Canada and throughout the United States, it is now called African Heritage Month. The Theme this year, as reflected in the 2010 AHM poster below, is Leading Ladies, Lasting Legacies SO RECOGNIZE AFRICAN HERITAGE/CONTRIBUTIONS YEAR ROUND, BUT JOIN IN THE CELEBRATION OF AFRICAN HERITAGE MONTH IN THE SPIRIT OF COMMUNITY & MUTUAL RESPECT… For Nova Scotian information, visit The Office of African Nova Scotian Affairs .

Enbridge Presents The Canadian Aboriginal Writing Challenge Posted on Wed Jan 20 @ 2:45:40 PM by Kaye Johnson Enbridge Presents The Canadian Aboriginal Writing Challenge a creative writing contest for young Aboriginal Canadians (ages 14-18 and 19-29). Participants can showcase their talent and creativity and win great prizes. Deadline March 31, 2010. Participants must be of Aboriginal ancestry (Status, Non-Status, Inuit and Métis). The age categories are 14-18 and 19-29. Stories in the 14-18 age category should be no longer than 1400 words. Stories in the 19-29 age category should be no longer than 2000 words. For additional information on how to be involved in the The Canadian Aboriginal Writing Challenge ask your classroom teacher or click on the following direct link The Canadian Aboriginal Writing Challenge or visit http://www.our-story.ca/index2.html/ .

Frederick Alexander Meade's critique of the film Avatar Posted on Mon Jan 18 @ 9:29:16 AM by Kaye Johnson Author, Frederick Alexander Meade, addresses some of the racialist messages inherent in the film Avatar in the following link... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFpYQktoMTA Frederick Alexander Meade is an educator and journalist providing analysis on social and political matters. For more articles, issues, information, visit http://fredmeade.blogspot.com/

Annual Mi'kmaq Cultural Education Retreat Once Again A Great Success! Posted on Tue Sep 15 @ 2:51:10 PM by Kaye Johnson The annual Mi'kmaq Cultural Education Retreat, held at Bear River First Nation on October 15 & 16, 2009, was once again outstanding! This two-day experiencial PD for AVRSB employees included teachings on Mi'kmaq traditional territories and modern lands, the Indian Act, Mi'kmaq language, traditional plants and nature, sharing circles, the medicine wheel, basket making, wooden flower making, and much more. (See the archive for the event's 2009 announcement for further links to the organizers.) Thank you once again to the facilitators and to the community of Bear River First Nation!

The 2009-2010 Mathieu Da Costa Challenge Posted on Sun Apr 5 @ 12:16:15 PM by Kaye Johnson The Mathieu Da Costa Challenge is a chance for students to discover Canada's rich cultural diversity through their own creative writing or artwork. The Deadline for the 2009-2010 Mathieu Da Costa Challenge is February 19, 2010 . Mathieu Da Costa, a navigator and interpreter, is one of the first of many persons of African descent to contribute to the building of Canada. His first record of being in Canada is in 1605 at Port Royal, where he served as an interpreter between the French and the Mi'kmaq for the Pierre Dugua de Mons expedition. Historians suggest that Da Costa may have travelled with de Mons expeditions to Nova Scotia and Quebec, and likely travelled extensively throughout the Atlantic world in the late 1500s and early 1600s. The Mathieu Da Costa Challenge invites students from anywhere in Canada between the ages of 9 and 18 to submit a piece of creative writing (e.g. short story, poem, etc.) or artwork celebrating the contributions made by Canadians of Aboriginal, African or other ethnocultural backgrounds to the building of Canada. Each year, three winners are selected from each age group (9–12, 13–15 and 16–18). The winners, accompanied by a parent/guardian, receive an all–expenses paid trip to Ottawa where they take part in an Awards Ceremony hosted by the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism. For additional information on how to be involved in the Mathieu Da Costa Challenge ask your classroom teacher or click on the following direct link http://www.pch.gc.ca/special/mdc/dacosta/index_e.cfm or visit http://www.cic.gc.ca/.

Racism. Stop It! -- 2009 National Video Competition Posted on Sun Apr 5 @ 12:14:24 PM by Kaye Johnson Think! Write! Direct! Shoot! Edit! The Racism. Stop It! National Video Competion is part of Canada's campaign against racial discrimination. Youth betweeen the ages of 12 and 20 are invited to create a 45 to 60 second video on their thoughts on eliminating racism.The Deadline for the 2009 competition is Friday, 15 January 2010. March 21 is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. It was declared by the United Nations in 1966 in recognition of the 1960 Sharpville Masacre in South Africa. The aim is to mobilize people world-wide in the efforts to eliminate racism. The Canadian Heritage annual March 21 Campaign has been in place since 1989. The video competion has been an important piece since 1996. For additional information on how to be involved in the Racism. Stop It! National Video Competition ask your classroom teacher or visit the following site at http://www.march21.gc.ca.

Tim Wise, Excellent AVID Series Presenter November 2009! Posted on Mon Jan 18 @ 10:10:26 AM by Kaye Johnson On Thursday, 12 November 2009, Tim Wise was the presenter for the AVID Series. It was an excellent session, that complemented perfectly the sessions on White Privilege he gave for the RCH School Advisors in-service on Thusday afternoon, and the Administrators meeting on Friday morning. The feedback from attendees has been very positive. Comments ranged from "This has been one of the best in-services we've ever had" to "Please bring him back!" Here is the info on his AVID Series presentation... Speech Topic: Between Barack and a Hard Place: Challenging Racism, Privilege, and Denial in the Age of Obamal in the Age of Obama In this timely speech, Tim Wise explores how Barack Obama's emergence as a political force is taking the race debate to new levels. According to Wise, for many whites, Obama's rise signifies the end of racism as a pervasive social force; they point to Obama as a validation of the ideology that anyone can make it if they work hard, and an example of how institutional barriers against people of color have all but vanished. But is this true? And does a reinforced white belief in color-blind meritocracy potentially make it harder to address ongoing institutional racism? Is black success making it harder for whites to see the problem of racism, thereby further straining race relations, or will it challenge anti-black stereotypes to such an extent that racism will diminish and race relations improve? Will blacks in power continue to be seen as an "exception" in white eyes? Is Obama "acceptable" because he seems "different than most blacks"? All of these possibilities and more are explored… Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S. He has provided training to teachers, as well as government, corporate, media, entertainment, military and law enforcement officials on methods for dismantling racism in their institutions. Tim Wise is a gripping and compelling presenter, whether speaking on racism, white privilege, social class/labour issues, alliance building, multiculturalism, youth issues, or other social justice matters. Wise’s most recent book is Between Barack and a Hard Place: Racism and White Denial in the Age of Obama. He is also the author of other books, including White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son, and a collection of his essays, Speaking Treason Fluently: Anti-Racist Reflections from an Angry White Male. For more info on Tim Wise, visit Speak Out Now at www.speakoutnow.org Or visit his site at http://www.timwise.org For more info, e-mail rch@avrsb.ca *********************************************************************** AVID is an acronym for Annapolis Valley Initiatives in Diversity. It is a series of guest lectures/presentations on Race Relations, Cross Cultural Understanding, and Human Rights (RCH) related issues. The Purpose of the AVID Series is to provide people within the Annapolis Valley Regional School Board (AVRSB), and its surrounding communities, opportunities to engage further with diversity issues in a meaningful and challenging way, from which the information and inspiration will be tools for reflection and action…

Minnijean Brown Trickey's AVID Series Presentation a Great Success!!! Posted on Tue Nov 18 @ 1:30:47 PM by Kaye Johnson Well over 400 people packed the hall to hear Minnijean Brown Trickey, our AVID Series speaker on the evening of 6 November 2008. It was an excellent and thoroughly engaging presentation, as she took us on a journey back to Little Rock. Minnijean was one of the infamous Little Rock Nine, who in September of 1957, along with eight other students, braved hostile mobs and the Arkansas National Guard to attend an all-white school, as part of the movement to desegregate schools in the United States. She was just 16 years old. There was plenty of opportunity for Q&A, followed by an informal reception. This gave people a chance to meet the presenter (as well as take numerous photos!). For many people, young and old, this was a memorable experience. As one high school student put it, "This is something I'll tell my kids about when I grow up!" Minnijean facilitated a thought-provoking full-day in-service for the RCH School Advisors on the Friday following the AVID Series talk. The accolades for her presentation (as well as for the preceding evening's event) continue to come in. For more info on Minnijean, click http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=720 for The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture direct link. *********************************************************************** AVID is an acronym for Annapolis Valley Initiatives in Diversity. It is a series of guest lectures/presentations on Race Relations, Cross Cultural Understanding, and Human Rights (RCH) related issues. The Purpose of the AVID Series is to provide people within the Annapolis Valley Regional School Board (AVRSB), and its surrounding communities, opportunities to engage further with diversity issues in a meaningful and challenging way, from which the information and inspiration will be tools for reflection and action…

Tom Jackson was at AVRSB for AVID Series November 2007!! Posted on Wed Jan 9 @ 5:00:25 PM by Kaye Johnson Mr. Tom Jackson (yes, that’s right, the Tom Jackson!) was at our Board for an AVID Series presentation on Thursday, November 22, 2007. It was an excellent night, filled with inspirational talk and then some song. Mr Jackson then joined the audience for a mini reception, where he chatted informally with students and adults. The respect and attention he showed the youth, as he sat down and spoke with a small group, as well as when speaking with individual students, was impressive. Thank you, again, Mr Jackson, for your generousity of spirit, your humour, and your excellent presentation and performance. AVID is an acronym for Annapolis Valley Initiatives in Diversity. It is a series of guest lectures/presentations on Race Relations, Cross Cultural Understanding, and Human Rights (RCH) related issues. The Purpose of the AVID Series is to provide people within the Annapolis Valley Regional School Board (AVRSB), and its surrounding communities, opportunities to engage further with diversity issues in a meaningful and challenging way, from which the information and inspiration will be tools for reflection and action… Stay Tuned for a future announcement about our next AVID Series presentation!

Beyond Diversity & Courageous Conversations about Race workshops Posted on Mon Jun 11 @ 10:34:34 AM by Kaye Johnson Glenn Singleton (founder of the California based organization Pacific Education Group, or PEG) delivered an outstanding three days of in-servicing for AVRSB. The two-day workshop, Beyond Diversity, took place November 7 & 8, with participants from various employee groups and backgrounds. The one-day workshop, Courageous Conversations about Race, took place on November 9, and was primarily for the RCH School Advisors. Typically described as a powerful and personally transforming two-day workshop, it did not disappoint! The sessions are designed to help teachers, parents, and administrators consider the implications of racism, exclusion, and prejudice on student learning, and explore how it manifests today in our culture and in our schools. Some comments from the Beyond Diversity Workshop were: • This has been the best in-service I have attended. Thank you for this experience • As absolutely thought provoking presentation • A lot of info to “digest” and help me improve my work as a school administrator with minority groups. Thank you! Feedback comments from the 1-day Courageous Conversations about Race Workshop included: • Thank you for an excellent experience. Made us feel stronger for change. Offered a clear picture of needs • What a wonderful day! Glenn Singleton is a wonderful presenter with so much to say! I was totally engaged from start to finish. He’s given me much to think about -- then comes action… • This was a fantastic session – a great facilitator and a very important subject for AVRSB Hopefully Glenn or someone else from PEG will be back to do some future work in our board. For info on the organization, visit Pacific Educational Group.

Foundation for the Advancement of Aboriginal Youth (FAAY) Scholarships & Bursaries Posted on Tue Nov 18 @ 1:50:19 PM by Kaye Johnson The FAAYscholarships and bursaries are available each year, with a deadline of October 15. All Canadian Aboriginal students (status, non-status, Métis and Inuit) who are studying full time in a high school, college, university, or technical institute in Canada (no age restrictions) can apply for a scholarship or bursary from FAAY. The Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business typically awards bursaries of $750 to students pursuing a high school diploma. The scholarship program provides a minimum amount of $2,500 and is available to students pursuing a post-secondary education in any discipline. Applications are available on line at http://www.ccab.com. Any further questions? Call 1-866-566-FAAY (3229) or email faayinfo@ccab.com. The deadline for submission is October 15 . If you submit by mail/courier your application must be postmarked on or before the deadline date.