Opening Classrooms to the World

2024 K-12 Global Education Symposium

Schedule

7:45a.m.		Registration and Continental Breakfast
8:30a.m.		Welcome Charlé LaMonica, Director, World View, UNC-Chapel Hill Ambassador Barbara J. Stephenson, Vice Provost, Office of the Vice Provost for Global Affairs, UNC-Chapel Hill
8:45a.m.		Plenary I North Carolina's Shifting Demographics: What It Means for the Future Nathan Dollar, Director, Carolina Demography, UNC-Chapel Hill
9:40a.m.		Break
10:00a.m.		Plenary II From Tears to Triumph: Building Belonging & Peace in the Classroom Mary Maker, Goodwill Ambassador, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
10:55a.m.		Introduction of Speaker
11:00a.m.		Plenary III: Advancing Global Competence in a Changing World Heather Singmaster, Director, Global Cities Education Network and CTE, Digital Promise Global
12:00p.m.		Lunch (Provided)
1:15p.m.		Concurrent Sessions I
2:10p.m.		Break
2:30p.m.		Concurrent Sessions II
3:25p.m.		Transition to Grumman Auditorium
3:30p.m.		Richardson Lecture: Game Changer: A Sports Envoy’s Work in the World Stephen Howard, Sports Envoy, Sports Diplomacy Division, U.S. Department of State
4:25p.m.		Closing Remarks Charlé LaMonica, Director, World View, UNC-Chapel Hill
4:30p.m.		Program Adjourned

Welcome Address Speakers

Charlé LaMonica has held service to the state front and center in her work. Since 2013, LaMonica has expanded UNC World View’s support of educators and increased partnerships in both rural and urban settings. LaMonica and the World View team have led more than 21 global study visits, taking K-12 and community college educators around the world to learn about educational systems, classroom experiences, history, business and culture. Since the founding of UNC World View in 1998, more than 25,000 teachers have participated in UNC World View programs from every county in North Carolina.

 

Ambassador Barbara J. Stephenson, vice provost for global affairs and chief global officer, joined the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2019. She advances Carolina’s global reach, impact and reputation. Previously, she was president of the American Foreign Service Association. During her distinguished 34-year career in the Foreign Service, she was US ambassador to Panama, the first woman chargé d’affaires and deputy ambassador at the US Embassy in London, and dean of the Leadership and Management School at the Foreign Service Institute. She earned her PhD, MA, and BA in English literature from the University of Florida.

 

Plenary Speakers

Dr. Nathan Dollar, a Wilson native, is the Director of Carolina Demography. His work helps leaders across North Carolina make sense of population-level changes throughout the state. Dr. Dollar is a population health demographer by training and has decades of experience in research and program implementation across North Carolina and abroad. Most recently Dollar served as a research scientist and Project Director for the Dynamics of Extreme Events, People, and Places (DEEPP) survey at the Carolina Population Center. There, he worked with an interdisciplinary team of researchers investigating the factors that shape how people and communities in eastern North Carolina, prepare for, are affected by, and recover from extreme weather events. He currently serves on the Governing Board for the NC Farmworker Health Program within the NC Office of Rural Health. Previously he served in the U.S. Peace Corps in El Salvador and as Executive Director of Vecinos, Inc. Farmworker Health Program in western NC. Dollar has gained a deep understanding of our state institutions and the complex issues shaping population changes in North Carolina. Dollar received his BA in Sociology and Spanish from Western Carolina University, his MA in Sociology from Colorado State University and his PhD in Sociology from UNC-Chapel Hill. 

 

Stephen Howard is a former NBA player, leadership expert, ESPN & FOX Sports college basketball analyst, and Collegiate All-American. Stephen coaches leaders, organizations, and executives an astonishing game-changing plan for breakthrough success. If you’re ready to take your team to the next level you’ll want to hear the extraordinary story of how Stephen discovered the three steps that position sports teams and business organizations to become the leading edge, champions in their field even in times of dynamic change. Stephen received accolades early in his career and made it to the top in academics, athletics, and as a leadership expert. At DePaul University, he was the first and last member of the men’s basketball team to be named First Team Academic All-American and as a senior earned the prestigious Anson Mount Scholar-Athlete Award which is given annually to the nation’s premier scholar-athlete. Stephen played four years in the NBA for the Seattle Supersonics, San Antonio Spurs, and the Utah Jazz, including the 1996-1997 Jazz team that went to the NBA Finals against Michael Jordan and the Bulls.

After the NBA, Stephen lived in 12 different countries including France, Spain, China, and Israel immersing himself in the unique cultures of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. He then joined ESPN and FOX Sports as a college basketball analyst, earned a Master of Organizational Leadership, and travels the world empowering individuals and organizations. Stephen works as a Sports Envoy to the Sports Diplomacy Division of the U.S. Department of State.

 

South Sudanese refugee Mary Maker is a refugee education activist, renowned speaker, and philanthropist, currently serving as a Goodwill Ambassador with the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees). Some of Mary’s speaking accomplishments include two TED talks, speaking at the United Nations’ General Assembly (UNGA), the UN High Political Forum, World Bank Fragility Forum, The Sustainable Development Goal on Education, as well as regular keynote addresses at the We Rise Together Award Ceremony organized by Duolingo. Mary graduated from St. Olaf College with a bachelors of arts in theater, international relations, and race and ethnic studies. As a creative, Mary is an actor, fashion lover and writer. In 2021 Mary co-founded Elimisha Kakuma, a 501(c)(3) non profit providing access to higher education opportunities for high school graduates living in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya and has successfully placed 30+ students to universities on full financial in the US, Canada, and the UK. After fleeing her war-torn country as a child, she found security and hope in attending school in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya. She has since become a teacher of young refugees in her community and sees education as an essential tool for rebuilding lives and empowering a generation of girls who are too often denied entrance into the classroom. Mary has said: “For the child of war, an education can turn their tears of loss into a passion for peace.” 

 

Heather Singmaster is Director of the Global Cities Education Network (GCEN) and CTE at Digital Promise Global. Her work focuses on integrating global competence into Career Technical Education (CTE or vocational education) programs at the secondary and postsecondary levels. Heather also leads the Global Cities Education Network (GCEN), a network of international cities focused on best practice sharing in education. She speaks and writes regularly on global education, including as the former host of Education Week’s Global Learning blog. She previously worked at the Center for Global Education at Asia Society, Council on Foreign Relations, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Office of the United States Trade Representative. Heather holds a masters degree focused in anthropology from New York University and a bachelors degree in international affairs from George Washington University.

Concurrent Session Speakers

Yusupha Auber is a Math teacher at East Cary Magnet Middle School in Wake County. In 1998, Yusupha graduated from Salisbury State University in Maryland with a degree in History and a minor in political science. After several successful years in Sales and Management, he enrolled at Rhode Island College as a second-degree candidate, attaining a degree-equivalent in Secondary Education Mathematics. He has worked in diverse urban and suburban districts in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and now in North Carolina. His most memorable experience is leading 10^th and 9^th grade classes, respectively studying Geometry and Algebra I, to significant growth in their mathematics learning. He participated in UNC World View Fellows program, The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for a Better World to learn more about how to incorporate the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals into his 7^th grade lessons so that learning is more fun for his students while opening their minds to the wider world community. Since the 2022-2023 program, he has been incorporating the SDGs into his lessons.

 

Kristen Cox is a science teacher at Herbert Akins Road Middle School in Wake County. Kristen has a BS in biological sciences from Virginia Tech. Although she did not begin her career in teaching, she has found her true passion in being a science teacher. She loves to give her students real-world experiences through global studies. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, she strives to be an instructional leader at her school to help other teachers incorporate engaging, global lessons. She currently serves on her school’s School Improvement Team. Kristen participated in the 2022-2023 UNC World View Fellows program focused on the UN Sustainable Development Goals. When she is not teaching, she enjoys hiking, traveling, and reading books!

 

Laura Cox is a PhD candidate in African History and the outreach manager for the UNC African Studies Center. She has conducted archival research in Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Alice, South Africa. She currently leads professional development workshops, K-12 curriculum design, and local activities to encourage engagement with the African continent in educational and community spaces.   

 

 

 

Matthew Daniels was raised by a single mother in the section of Spanish Harlem with the highest rate of violent crime in New York City. When Dr. Daniels was eight years old, his mother was the victim of a serious violent crime that left her partially disabled. She went on welfare for the remainder of her life. After attending inner-city public schools in New York City, Daniels received a full scholarship to Dartmouth College. He later received a Public Interest Law Scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where he obtained both his law degree and a Master’s in Public Administration. He was subsequently awarded a doctoral fellowship in American politics at Brandeis University. 

Dr. Daniels founded Good of All, an international public education movement dedicated to promoting universal human rights in the digital age. After starting in South Korea and London, Good of All has expanded to three continents and has reached over 50 million people online in English, Spanish, and Arabic, using a pioneering “edutainment” methodology of student-created content developed in partnership with the founder of Disney Interactive. Dr. Daniels is also the creator and producer of a YouTube channel dedicated to promoting universal rights through entertainment content created by Good of All students. An interdisciplinary research study by the University of Nottingham affirmed the effectiveness of Dr. Daniels’ approach, which has subsequently been endorsed by a number of national security experts, including two former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs, the former Commander of NATO, the Attorney General of Great Britain & Wales, and the CEO of the Association of the Chiefs of Police of the Great Britain and Wales. 

Dr. Daniels is the author of Human Liberty 2.0 which showcases the inspiring stories of teens and adults channeling the power of digital social media to advance the cause of human dignity and universal rights. Dr. Daniels’s pioneering work on the application of Dr. King’s universal rights principles have led to the creation of K-12 curricula published by McGraw Hill Education. 

 

Dr. Devin L. DeLaughter is an Assistant Professor in Belmont University’s College of Education.  Dr. DeLaughter received his B.S. from The University of the South (Sewanee) in Mathematics, his M.Ed. from Covenant College in Educational Leadership, and his Ed.D. from Dallas Baptist University. Dr. DeLaughter has served as an educational leader in multiple capacities within the K-12 setting including Assistant Principal, Director of Athletics, and Headmaster over the course of his career.  Prior to moving into administration on a full-time basis, Dr. DeLaughter served as a math and science teacher at the elementary, middle and secondary levels. Within the higher education sphere, Dr. DeLaughter centers his academic research and community service at the intersection of operationalized transformational leadership theory; the academic experience of African American Boys in k-12 educational institutions; Social Justice through the lens of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; and interscholastic athletics.

 

 

 

 

Kimberly Jones is an English and Humanities teacher for Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools and the 2023 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year. She has been a teacher in Chapel Hill/Carrboro since 2006. Kimberly earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English and a Master’s Degree in Education from Wake Forest University. Kim has spent the majority of her career teaching high school English with a focus World Literature courses and has a special dedication to Holocaust and Human Rights education. She also serves as a Regional Site Director for TOLI, a National Holocaust and Human Rights education nonprofit, and also works as an education consultant for PBS on the state and national level. These positions allow Kim to lead and support fellow educators throughout the state and country in building lessons that help students better understand literary, cultural, and historical events, with a focus on cultural relevance for diverse learners. She guides students to use their learning to build positive, productive, and empowered futures for themselves and their communities. Kim has won numerous awards in her teaching career including recognition by Governor Roy Cooper and the NC African American Heritage Commission for contributions to public education across North Carolina and the NC Attorney General’s Dogwood Award for public service in the field of education. Kim values every opportunity to talk about the life-changing power of public education and the lifelong impacts of dedicated educators!

 

 

Dr. Kevin Marinelli studies the ways in which humans create meaning together. As a rhetorical theorist and critic, he studies how publics negotiate those shared meanings to deliberate about contested issues in the face of uncertainty. He is especially interested in the form of argumentative reasoning. What does it mean to persuade or be persuaded? How does public argument shape our shared reality? Building on such fundamental questions, his work at UNC assumes many forms.

As Executive Director of the Program for Public Discourse, Dr. Marinelli and his colleagues strive to foster a culture of robust public discourse in the classroom, across campus, and throughout the community. He regularly leads faculty and student workshops on topics related to public deliberation and deliberative pedagogy, as well as advises the Agora Fellows, a cohort of students dedicated to the study and practice of public discourse in contemporary life.

As a teacher, Dr. Marinelli prepares students to participate in public life and communicate at the highest levels of human inquiry. In the classroom, they engage a combination of practical, theoretical, critical, and ethical questions of rhetorical inquiry. Students examine the ethical obligations of communication and the rhetorical dimensions of public culture, all while exploring what it means to be a responsible citizen.

 

Jennifer Nichols is a licensed English, Spanish, and ESL teacher with 20 years of high school teaching experience, who has recently transitioned to teaching at an IB middle school. She is an avid fan of global education and has participated in UNC World View offerings since 2017 – most recently as a UNC World View 2022-2023 SDG Fellow. Jennifer is currently serving as a member of the Teachers Collaborating Across Borders 2024-2025 cohort with the Duke-UNC Consortium for Middle East Studies. She believes that globally focused teaching is essential in answering a common student question of ‘when am I ever going to use this?’ Her ultimate goal as an educator is to encourage her students to be active participants in their learning journey, teaching them how to become critical thinkers and to find value in their education.

 

 

Karen Proctor is an accomplished elementary teacher with 25 years of K-5 classroom experience.  Currently she is the STEM specialist at Dillard Drive Magnet Elementary School,  Center for Global Studies and Spanish Immersion in Raleigh, NC. Karen is passionate about merging core content and global learning into her STEM lessons.  Through innovative technology integration and real-world examples, Karen equips her students for success in an ever-changing world.  She has a BA from Meredith College, is certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, and has a master’s degree in Digital Instruction from NC State.

 

 

Phylisha Sanders began her career in education as a Head Start lead teacher and later transitioned to teaching middle school social studies in a rural district. During her twelve-year teaching experience, she took on leadership roles in her school and district, including serving as the chair of the district’s Middle School Social Studies Council and Standards Implementation Leader for Middle School Social Studies. These roles provided her with a rich opportunity to facilitate professional development for social studies teachers in the district and co-write the pacing guide and curriculum guide for eighth-grade social studies. After earning a Master’s in School Administration, Phylisha joined the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) as one of the K-12 Social Studies Education Consultants. In this role, she contributes to writing, revising, and implementing the K-12 Social Standards and provides state-level support to districts and schools across North Carolina. Additionally, as a member of the Global Education Steering Committee, Phylisha helps to support and guide global education in North Carolina’s public schools.

 

Kelly Schultz entered the field of education in the Spring of 2008 as a secondary English Language Arts teacher.  She has since progressed in the field serving as a curriculum coach, MTSS District Coordinator, and NCDPI Education Consultant. Kelly has taught in both Illinois and North Carolina. Prior to her work experience, she studied at Central Michigan University, where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in English, Creative Writing in 2005; Kelly then completed her Master of Education degree in Secondary English Education at DePaul University in 2008. She is working toward her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from Liberty University.

 

 

Heather Singmaster, Director of the Global Cities Education Network (GCEN) and CTE at Digital Promise Global. (See above.)

 

 

 

 

 

Sean Wheat is a global studies teacher at Oberlin Magnet Middle School in Wake County. He is finishing his seventh year teaching his wonderful students at Oberlin Magnet Middle School. Oberlin has a school-wide theme around the Sustainable Development Goals, and Sean is hoping to expand his knowledge and continue to help other faculty members. Sean is a graduate of Louisiana Tech University with a BA and MAT. In addition to teaching, he is developing a History Club at his school and has led Model UN, having taken students on several occasions to Appalachian State University for their Model UN convention. Sean and his wife moved to North Carolina in 2017 from Louisiana after careers in the military. Sean enjoys many outdoor activities such as kayaking, bike riding, running, and diving.

 

Concurrent Sessions I

 

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