We offer a variety of projects and resources, workshops and consulting services, and scholarship grounded in equity and social justice in schools and communities. For more about our philosophies and ideas, visit our Philosophy page.

Our Bios

[ Paul C. Gorski | Jennifer Hickman | Julie Landsman | Seema Pothini | Robert W. Simmons III

[click name to send email]
Founder, EdChange and the Multicultural Pavilion
Assistant Professor, Integrative Studies
George Mason University
Fairfax, Virginia
Paul's Personal Web site

is an assistant professor of Integrative Studies in George Mason University's New Century College, where he teaches classes on class and poverty, educational equity, animal rights, and environmental justice. He also is an adjunct instructor for the Humane Society University. He recentedly designed the new Social Justice undergraduate program there as well. He has been an active consultant, presenter, and trainer for fifteen years, conducting workshops and providing guidance to schools and community organizations committed to equity and diversity. He created and continues to maintain the Multicultural Pavilion, a national award winning Web site focused on critical multicultural education. Paul is serving is second term on the board of directors of the International Association for Intercultural Education (IAIE). He has published four books and more than 40 articles in publications such as Educational Leadership, Equity and Excellence in Education, Rethinking Schools, Teaching and Teacher Education, Teachers College Record, and Teaching Tolerance. Prior to his current position Paul taught for the University of Virginia, the University of Maryland, and Hamline University. He continues to publish and present in education-focused forums on topics including white privilege and racism, anti-poverty education and economic justice, and multicultural organizational transformation. He lives in Washington, DC, with his partner, Jennifer, and their cats, Poo-Poo, Meepy, Unity, and Buster.

Areas of specialty:

• Poverty, class, and anti-poverty education and activism
• The connection between self-transformation and institutional transformation
• Organizational reform for the elimination of racism, sexism, heterosexism, and other inequities
• The digital divide digital equity
• Multicultural curriculum transformation
• Leadership development and the training of trainers for equity and diversity

Robert W. Simmons III [click name to send email]
Assistant Professor, School of Education
Loyola University
Baltimore, Maryland

Robert W. Simmons III is an assistant professor in the School of Education at Loyola University in Baltimore. Robert’s doctoral dissertation explored the experiences of African American teachers. His current research agenda is focused on exploring the experiences of African American teachers and urban education. Robert taught middle school science in Detroit, MI, in the Detroit Public Schools, as well as 2nd grade and 4th grade in the Dominican Republic and Minnesota. In addition to teaching in K-12, Robert has explored international education issues through work in the Dominican Republic, Japan, and Costa Rica. Robert's experience as an award winning science teacher, nominated twice as the national teacher of the year, adds to his expertise and understanding of what it takes to be a successful teacher in urban schools and working with African American students. Robert is a contributing author to White Teachers in Diverse Classrooms: Creating Community, Combating Racism (2006).

Areas of specialty:

• Urban education
• Education of African American children
• Multicultural curriculum development
• Eliminating the achievement gap
• School-community partnerships
• African American teachers

Seema G. Pothini [click name to send email]
Educational Equity and Diversity Consultant and Author
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Seema G. Pothini's passion for creating equitable classrooms and schools drives her commitment as an advocate for underserved youth. Her extensive experience improving student success in historically underperforming schools began by teaching elementary school in Houston, TX. She was elected Teacher of the Year in her region and was appointed to the superintendent's advisory committee, which addressed the achievement gap in Houston's schools. Seema also has trained new teachers to work in underserved communities, providing a foundation of teaching skills and self-awareness regarding how their biases can impact equity in the classroom. In addition to classroom teaching, she has worked as a K-12 cultural integration specialist. She improved student outcomes by creating family, school, and community partnerships, by providing staff development, and by facilitating student groups. Seema is a qualified administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory and serves on boards for the Minnesota chapter of the National Association for Multicultural Education and Avenues for Homeless Youth, a shelter in Minneapolis.

Areas of specialty:

• Parent/guardian and community involvement in schools
• Assessing intercultural competence using the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)
• Student success through high expectations and interest
• Strategic planning to move from "celebrating diversity" to ensuring equity
• Conflict resolution amongst students, families, and staff from diverse backgrounds

Jennifer Hickman [click name to send email]
The Humane Society of the United States
Washington, D.C.

Jennifer Hickman has thirteen years of professional experience dedicated to conservation, environmental justice, and animal welfare work. She currently works for the Humane Society University and has worked for the Galapagos Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, and Esquinas Rainforest Lodge in Costa Rica and has volunteered for Feline Rescue, Alley Cat Allies, the Sierra Club, and the Humane Society. She has a strong and passionate history as an animal welfare activist, particularly related to the elimination of factory farming, circus animal abuse, animal testing, and community education related to these issues.

Areas of specialty:

• The relationship between animal rights and human rights education
• Curriculum development related to animal welfare and environmental justice
• Animal cruelty related to factory farming
• Rainforest and rainforest wildlife sustainability
• Companion animal welfare and holistic health

Julie Landsman [click name to send email]
Educational Equity and Diversity Consultant and Author
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Julie Landsman taught in the Minneapolis public schools for 28 years. She has recently taught at Carleton College and has been an adjunct professor at Hamline University and St. Thomas in St. Paul. She has just published the book, Growing Up White: A Veteran Teacher Reflects on Racism with Rowman and Littlefield. Her books, Basic Needs: A Year With Street Kids in a City School and A White Teacher Talks About Race, are memoirs about her days in Minneapolis Public Schools. She co-edited White Teachers in Diverse Classrooms: Creating Community, Combating Racism with Chance Lewis, released in April 2006. She and Chance are completing a DVD and workbook to accompany their text. She has edited two books for young people: From Darkness to Light and Welcome to Your Life with David Haynes. She's also published Diversity Days, a book of activities to help teachers create a community of voices in their classrooms and Tips for Creating a Manageable Classroom. Julie recently won a Loft Literary Center Career Grant, which she used to give talks in various schools and literary centers in New York. Her poem, "Laos on the Radio" appeared in the February, 2004 issue of Paj Ntaub, a magazine centering on Hmong experience and culture. Her short story "Suspension" recently won the New Letters Award in Fiction. Landsman has been a featured speaker on White Privilege in many venues. She is a frequent contributor to Educational Leadership magazine.

Areas of specialty:

• Building inclusive schools, classrooms, communities
• Anti-racism activism: how do we do it?
• Creating community in the classroom
• White privilege: how it plays out in our lives
• Fighting the racism of low expectations
• Creating classrooms of hope