Teaching Excellence Grant

“We seek a way forward that honors peoples’ dignity and capacity to recover, to heal, to reclaim themselves, and possibly to return to each other in new relationships. We release the binary of right and wrong and instead pay attention to the complexity of the situation in front of us.”

The 1968 Kerner Commission’s report concluded 54 years ago that, “the nation was moving toward two societies, one black, one white—separate and unequal.” The report went on to explain that poverty and institutional racism were driving inner-city violence. And yet, this deepening of racial division was not inevitable; choice was still possible. But how?

Separation and superiority have been historically and culturally infused into modern culture. People of color are still disproportionately impacted by racialization, poverty, and lack of access to basic human rights. This is a social disease. Many of us call for systemic and structural change. We talk about big ideas but are often not clear about the multitude of paradoxical challenges embedded in them. Are we willing to acknowledge how, in spite of the mountains of data we have gathered, we are still shackled to old ideas and approaches that perpetuate inequity. Where are we going and how do we heal?

We think we can find intellectual answers and yet, as Adrienne Maree Brown stated, ”even as advocates, we don’t have a ton of lived experience of what it feels like to be inside of accountable relationships or structures.” Can we cultivate and utilize practices that will allow us to explore and reconnect to ourselves, to one another and to the earth? If so, perhaps we might also allow ourselves to stumble toward repair, through private and public journeys into accountability and healing.

STRATEGIC QUESTIONING is the skill of asking the questions that will make a difference. It is a powerful tool for personal and social change. It is a tool for giving service to any issue… as it helps people discover their own strategies and ideas for change.

STRATEGIC QUESTIONING involves a special type of question and a special type of listening. We can use strategic questioning to help friends, co-workers, political allies and adversaries to create their own solutions to any problem.

STRATEGIC QUESTIONING is a process that usually changes the listener as well as the person being questioned. A strategic question opens both of us to another point of view. It invites our ideas to shift and take into account of new information and new possibilities. And it invokes that special creativity that can forge fresh strategies for resolving challenges.