Be A Global Citizen!

Dr. Tonikiaa Orange serves as the Director for the Educational Leadership Program at UCLA Ed&IS and Director for the Culture and Equity Project (CEP) at UCLA Center X. Her commitment to education spans over 20 years, and she is an expert in culturally responsive pedagogy and is the co-developer of the Reciprocal Learning Partnerships for Equity Coaching Framework. Her work focuses on preparing the next generation of social justice leaders to transform and create equitable and culturally responsive educational spaces for all students. In our dialogue, we talk about cultivating spaces where everyone can feel supported and empowered to build community. Check out what Tonikiaa has to say about being a global citizen!

Vivi Wei is Brand Manager and Business Development Director at Brain Co. in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She is a recent graduate from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in Education Policy and Analysis. Her learning journey has taken her from Hubei, China, to Edinburgh, Scotland, to Boston, USA. She shares about her struggles to fit into and work with the Chinese educational system. Her perspective greatly expanded through literature and travel. Vivi has been led by her many interests in international affairs, educational policy, and technology. Her work at Brain Co pulls together her interests in making a change in the world through curriculum related to robotics and coding. Check out what Vivi has to say about being a global citizen!

Cathleen Kong is a computer science educator and former software engineer at Microsoft with experience teaching, designing technology-enhanced learning experiences, and building software. She is passionate about helping students develop technical skills through engaging, real-world projects in computer science and AI. In our conversation, she shares her interdisciplinary journey of becoming a software engineer and the connecting thread of wanting to build things that help other people. Her work as a teacher comes from a place of hope that new generations of leaders will be equipped with not only the right skills, but also a solid sense of moral values to inform their decisions. Enjoy what Cathleen has to say about being a global citizen.

Dr. Sarah Ann Wider is emerita professor of English and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies at Colgate University. A distinguished scholar of American literature, Wider spent nearly four decades teaching at Colgate University, where she developed a wide-ranging curriculum centered on Ralph Waldo Emerson, the Transcendentalist movement, feminist autobiographical writing, and Native American literature. As former president of the Ralph Waldo Emerson Society, she has made enduring contributions to the study of Emerson and the broader American Renaissance. In our dialogue, Sarah shares about the role of storytelling in healing past traumas, building greater community, and envisioning a more hopefilled world. She is a life long learner who exudes a passion for good conversation.

Dr. Sarah Ann Wider is emerita professor of English and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies at Colgate University. A distinguished scholar of American literature, Wider spent nearly four decades teaching at Colgate University, where she developed a wide-ranging curriculum centered on Ralph Waldo Emerson, the Transcendentalist movement, feminist autobiographical writing, and Native American literature. As former president of the Ralph Waldo Emerson Society, she has made enduring contributions to the study of Emerson and the broader American Renaissance. In our dialogue, Sarah shares about the role of storytelling in healing past traumas, building greater community, and envisioning a more hopefilled world. She is a life long learner who exudes a passion for good conversation.