These articles informed a recent talk on the topic of whiteness for sign language interpreters. “White people [must move] from an individual understanding of racism—i.e. only some people are racist and those people are bad—to a structural understanding [of white privilege].” ~ Dr Robin DiAngelo ~ White People: Stop Microvalidating Each Other, Stephanie Jo Kent […]
Read MoreGuide to Earning #KRKTR Points
by Steph • May 29th, 2014
#KRKTR is an open game for everyone interested in developing individual character and social resilience. Points are earned for promoting and continuing communication, especially across different topics and among different groups. The idea is that both character and resilience are built at the intersections. Rules Every Tweet must include the hashtag #KRKTR Conference-based players should also include the conference […]
Read MoreThe Deaf World is Watching. Will we respond?
by Steph • December 12th, 2013
Click here for a related vlog (in American Sign Language) The second day after Mandela’s Memorial we were greeted the news that the so-called fake interpreter Thamsanqa Dyantyi/Jyantie is schizophrenic. (His claim and apology is being met with a mixture of belief and doubt.) Whatever sympathy he gleans should be suitable to his illness. This does not […]
Read MoreEmergency Management Interpreter Training in Massachusetts
by Steph • June 8th, 2013
Use google to search for #demx and use Twitter to participate in spreading information about the professionalization of a new subfield in emergency management interpreting. Introduction to the Incident Command System and Interpreter Strike Teams Discussion during this introductory module demonstrated the importance of interpreters taking four of the FEMA courses offered free online before […]
Read MoreEnglish Transcript for “Holding Time: The Significance of Deaf Interpreters”
by Steph • June 4th, 2013
What’s the real difference between CDIs (Certified Deaf Interpreters) and ‘regular’ hearing interpreters? It’s not only language and internalized culture….Something else that could be described simply and taught to interpreters to help them realize one thing to do differently.
Read MoreYou know it’s bad when you can’t find your own website.
by Steph • October 10th, 2012
I have a lot to write today: a brief description of the MEDIEM/UMass Dashboard tool for online social deliberation, some notes on accommodation concerns, and a public report on the findings of the action learning research that I did in a workshop at RID Region II. The conversation threads with each associated interlocutor-group are simultaneous-they […]
Read MoreA Temporal Turn?
by Steph • May 16th, 2012
“What is the purpose of dialogue?” Are Dialogue Under Occupation conference participants in the process of producing a work of critical art? Or are these conferences solely labor – the repetition of rituals that must be performed in order to satisfy and maintain professional credentials? Could we somehow manage to do both? Examples include the film Rabat, asking questions about symbolism entailed in labels such as the Green Line, and exploring Dr Makram Ouaiss’ point that non-violence is understudied, proven effective, and morally legitimate.
Read MoreOccupying the Crisis of Whiteness
by Steph • November 1st, 2011
The distinctions between being a white American and the institutional structures of whiteness are important. First, the structures of whiteness are ‘in’ Americans of all ethnicities to some degree, even if only by necessity in order to survive (let alone do well) in today’s hyperdrive commercial/consumer-based society. Second: to understand the difference between the genetic-social fact of being white and the institutional structures of whiteness is to realize that the issues raised by the Occupy Wall Street movement are not about white Americans trying to get over or above anybody else. Instead, this could be the historical moment when middle-class white Americans begin to demonstrate a widespread cultural awareness that whiteness – both the personal sense of superiority, and as institutionalized in ‘the rules’ – is not fair to anyone.
Read MoreDeveloping Leaders: Dynamics and Dilemmas
by Steph • August 6th, 2011
A Taste of College:
Youth Leadership Development Retreat
Amherst MA
Whenever I work in teams, I always mention the significance of following. It is rare, however, to be able to carry that conversation forward. I hope this time is different. Following is something all good leaders do: they understand when to follow someone else’s idea […]
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