Episode # 8: On growing roses in concrete, student well-being and a different vision for education

In this episode we are talking to Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Ph.D., a Professor of Latina/o Studies and Race and Resistance Studies at San Francisco State University. He is also a founder of the Roses in Concrete Community School, a community responsive lab school in East Oakland (rosesinconcrete.org) and the Community Responsive Education Group (communityresponsive.org). As a classroom teacher and school leader in East Oakland (CA) for the past 28 years, his pedagogy has been widely studied and acclaimed for producing uncommon levels of social and academic success for students. Duncan-Andrade lectures around the world and has authored numerous journal articles and book chapters on effective practices in schools.  He has written two books and his third book with Harvard University Press is due for publication in spring 2022. In 2016, Duncan-Andrade was part of the great educators invited to the White House on National Teacher Appreciation Day by President Obama, and in 2019 he was chosen as the Laureate for the prestigious Brock International Prize in Education. In 2021, he was selected to join the Board of Prevent Child Abuse America. Duncan-Andrade has also been ranked as one of the nation’s most influential scholars by EdWeek’s Public Influence Rankings.

Key points we talked about: 

• Hear about how he’s navigating COVID as a father, professor and educational leader. 
• The childhood experiences that built him into the person he is today and field the things he cares. 
• The way unearned suffering cuts across so many groups. People are situated on the margins of society. 
• Consistent pursuit to keep his thumb of the heartbeat of research and narratives around educational reform and building a different type of educational experience. One that would eventually put well-being at the center of that educational experience.
• Mention his school Roses in Concrete a different kind of school
• Mention their definition of well-being for their students: ‘Youth Wellness’
• The act of giving one’s child over to a school or teacher every morning
• We’re measuring the wrong stuff
• Keeping both individual and collective wellness in mind: ‘community-responsive youth wellness’
• Tips from our expert as a part of the flourishing question