Students seated at desk facing each other work together.

Community Event

We Are Facing History: Bridging The Divide in Today’s Classrooms

Facing History & Ourselves’ Northern California Advisory Board invites you to our annual spring fundraiser on Saturday, April 27.

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April 27, 2024 | 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm PDT

Palo Alto, CA

Cost: Free

History and facts are often being denied, hate speech and hate crimes are on the rise, and misinformation and polarization continue to proliferate across our media landscape. Where do we find hope? We find it in our schools. Democracy runs through our classrooms and Facing History & Ourselves is an expert at modeling civics in action for students

Please join us for an important conversation with Fernando Reimers, Director of the Global Education Innovation Initiative at Harvard University, and Desmond K. Blackburn, PhD, President and CEO of Facing History & Ourselves, moderated by Ki Sung, Managing Editor of Digital News at KQED. Together we’ll discuss how we prepare the coming generation to bridge divides and shape a better future.

Event Co-Chairs
Edda Collins Coleman, Susie Richardson, Alberto Villaluna

There is no charge to attend this event. If you are inspired to support our work, you can make a gift now.

For more information or to make a gift to the Leadership Circle, please contact Hadiya McCullough at hadiya_mccullough [at] facinghistory.org (hadiya_mccullough[at]facinghistory[dot]org).

When & Where

Saturday, April 27, 2024
2:00-3:30 pm

Woman's Club of Palo Alto
475 Homer Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301

Light refreshments will be served. Street parking is available in the surrounding neighborhoods.

Fernando M. Reimers

Ford Foundation Professor of the Practice in International Education and Director of the Global Education Innovation Initiative at Harvard University

Fernando M. Reimers is interested in advancing understanding of the ways schools can empower students to participate civically and economically, and to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Fernando is a member of the Facing History & Ourselves Board of Scholars and Board of Directors. He is an elected member of the United States National Academy of Education and of the International Academy of Education, as well as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He served on UNESCOs Commission on the Futures of Education which authored the report “Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education.”

Desmond K. Blackburn, PhD

President and Chief Executive Officer

See Bio

President and CEO of Facing History & Ourselves

Ki Sung

Managing Editor of Digital News at KQED

Ki Sung is managing editor of digital news at KQED, the NPR/PBS member station in San Francisco, overseeing news on all digital platforms, such as web, app, email newsletter, social media and visuals. She recently co-led the publication of the KQED Voter Guide and election results for the primary and midterm elections. She also oversees MindShift, the education vertical about the future of learning that serves a core audience of K-12 educators and parents. She continues to co-host the MindShift podcast during its off-season.

We would like to thank the following sponsors for supporting this content:

^Emeritus; *Board of Directors; **Leadership Council

Edda Collins Coleman, Chair*

Gloria Brown^

Debra Engel*

Sandy Feldman

Diane Frankle

Nina Gilson

Judy Goldman**

Barbara Harriman

Judy Heyboer^**

Gary Hill

Karen Kronick^

Hal Luft^

Deborah Mueller

Laura Murawczyk

Nammy Patel

Sarah Pearson

Joni Podolsky

Barbara Reiss Snyder

Joyce Jaffe Reynolds

Susie Richardson*

Allen Samelson

Mansi Shah

Connie Shapiro**

Barbara Sonneborn

Sharman Spector-Angel

Alberto Villaluna

Zack Wasserman

Jane Zinner^

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Insight

by Julie Halterman

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The January 6 insurrection remains important to understand and discuss, as well as the larger questions it raises about the state of US democracy. A recent poll found that 52% of young people between 18 and 29 believe that either US democracy is "in trouble" or "failed," while only 7% agree that it is "healthy," further highlighting the need to teach students about democratic institutions.

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Insight

by Karen Murphy

Jan 28, 2022

After 25 years of distinguished service to our organization, Dr. Karen Murphy, Facing History’s Director of International Strategy, will join our partner organization High Resolves as CEO of an initiative called The Human Responsibility Accelerator. In this article, we invited Karen to share a bit of what she has learned in more than two decades at Facing History.

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We Are Facing History: Bridging The Divide in Today’s Classrooms

When & Where

Featured Speakers

Fernando M. Reimers

Desmond K. Blackburn, PhD

Ki Sung

Northern California Advisory Board

^Emeritus; *Board of Directors; **Leadership Council

Edda Collins Coleman, Chair*

Gloria Brown^

Debra Engel*

Sandy Feldman

Diane Frankle

Nina Gilson

Judy Goldman**

Barbara Harriman

Judy Heyboer^**

Gary Hill

Karen Kronick^

Hal Luft^

Deborah Mueller

Laura Murawczyk

Nammy Patel

Sarah Pearson

Joni Podolsky

Barbara Reiss Snyder

Joyce Jaffe Reynolds

Susie Richardson*

Allen Samelson

Mansi Shah

Connie Shapiro**

Barbara Sonneborn

Sharman Spector-Angel

Alberto Villaluna

Zack Wasserman

Jane Zinner^

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