08/07/2025
When you think of a “disengaged student,” who comes to mind?
The disruptive one? The one skipping class? The one asleep in the back of the room?
What if I challenged you to also think about the honor roll student struggling with undiagnosed learning challenges? The student carrying family or friendship stress that makes it hard to focus? Or the one working late shifts just to help keep the lights on?
Here’s what most of us miss:
The students who act out are actually crying for help. The students who retreat are hoping that someone will see them. And the students who find themselves somewhere in the middle? Well, they slip through the cracks the most. I know, because I was one of them.
I’ve just landed in Pittsburgh and I’m excited to share more about this in my upcoming session at the . Tomorrow, I’ll be unpacking a new way to see disengagement; not as defiance, but as disconnection.
Because disengagement isn’t always a choice amongst our Black and Brown students; it’s a response to systems that were never built for us.
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🔗 Can’t make it to the session? DM me if you want a preview of the framework I’m sharing!