In this episode, we interview Dr. April Ebbinger, a Nationally Certified School Psychologist who is the Director of Psychological and Behavioral Services for the Tennessee Department of Education. We discussed recruitment and retention of mental health providers in rural Tennessee. One of the challenges smaller and remote school districts experience is that many healthcare providers are not attracted to these regions. To address these challenges, Dr Ebbinger is the principal investigator on a federal grant called Project RAISE. Further, we discussed how contract agencies impact these services, including the funding approaches and how those resources are used. Dr. Ebbinger would like to see more mental health providers stay in these communities. We discussed how these resources can positively impact student learning and communities.

As literacy researchers and educators, we want to make a difference. We believe that our scholarship can promote greater social justice and address an educational inequity” (Azano, 2015). Place-conscious pedagogy supports the lived experiences of students and supports the development of rural literacies (Eppley, 2011). Therefore, in our commitment to promoting Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, how do we support teachers in their pursuit of adopting place-conscious pedagogy? How do we promote literature that honors and reflects a person’s place? How can rural teachers develop curricula that embrace the complexity of local histories and illuminate rural narratives to provide a space where place matters? Join the JEDI committee webinar series as we unpack these questions and many more with scholars, leaders who do this work daily.

The AI Education Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that creates equitable learning experiences that excite and empower students everywhere with AI literacy. We believe that everyone—especially those who are likely to be disproportionately impacted by AI systems—should have access to the conceptual knowledge and skills they need to thrive as workers, creators, consumers, and citizens.

The AI Education Project is launching a research initiative aimed to better understand thoughts/perceptions around AI in education-- aiEDU Pulse!

 

This is a survey that’s designed for administrators and educators to take part in. If you can, we’d like to ask close partners of ours to share this survey among their network to help us build data-informed practices and initiatives as aiEDU continues to grow the work we do!