On behalf of the NASW-USC Unit and the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work Alumni Association, in collaboration with Blaze: An Office of the Provost Initiative, Learn4Life, USC Immigrants and Global Initiative, USC's Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE), Student Org, and NASW- CA, Region I, please join us for a daylong interdisciplinary symposium entitled:

OUR Story Matters: The Gendered Dimensions of the School to Prison Pipeline and Mass Incarceration

Our Story Matters will examine the factors contributing to the increasing number of females impacted by the School to Prison Pipeline and Mass Incarceration, and discuss ways in which formerly incarcerated individuals and their allies can work together to disrupt and dismantle these oppressive systems.

The multi-disciplinary symposium will make use of panel discussions, personal narratives, group activities, storytelling, and dialogue, to support participant learning and develop tools for action in our collective efforts toward systemic change. Panelists include those impacted by mass incarceration and educational push-out as well as allies working across systems to address these issues.

Below are some of the topics that will be explored during the day-long symposium

Laws, policies and practices that contribute to the push-out of girls of color from school systems into the juvenile justice system and a multi-systemic discussion on what is and/or what can be done to push back

Voices from formerly incarcerated activist scholars/college students about how they are reversing the trend from School to Prison to Prison to School and what allies can do through agencies and academic institutions to support these efforts.

Strategies and tools being used by social justice activists with lived experience to dismantle oppression and create community-focused solutions to address mass incarceration and the role of allies in these movements

The power of storytelling as a tool for social impact and systemic reform

Who should attend: Social Workers, lawyers, those working in film and media, students, community activists, and anyone committed to social justice.

Registration

Admission includes breakfast (assorted whole fruit, bagels, muffins, oatmeal, juice, coffee, tea and spa water), a fiesta taco bar for lunch (tacos served on corn and flour tortillas (chicken, shredded beef and plant-based proteins), rice, beans, fresh tortilla chips & salsa, fresh fruit, assorted cookies & brownies). There will be two parking lots open with plenty of space available; parking is free at the site at 155 N. Occidental Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026.
**Licensed social workers, marriage and family therapists and professional clinical counselors attending in-person can earn 6.5 CEUs.**

Program Details:

8:30am - 9:00am: Continental Breakfast and Check-in

9:00am-9:15am: Welcome and Introduction to the Day

9:15am-10:05am: Keynote Presentation

Carissa Phelps, JD, MBA, Esq. A formerly incarcerated youth, who is now an Attorney, Author, and Advocate.
Oree Freeman, CSEC Advocate at Saving Innocence

10:05am-10:15am: Spoken Word Performance

Brooke Axtell, Human Rights Activist, Speaker, Performer. Director of She is Rising. Author of Reclaiming My Worth After Trafficking and Sexual Abuse.

10:15am-11:25am: Disrupted Education: Educational Pushout and Its Impact on Girls of Color

Panelists will discuss the laws, policies, systems and practices that contribute to push-out of girls of color from educational systems into the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems, share personal and client stories as to how the pipeline plays out and share with participants strategies they are using to push back.

Moderator, Shantel Vachani, JD, MSW, Clinical Assistant Professor, Suzanne Dworak- Peck School of Social Work
Salina Gray, PhD, Middle School Teacher, Inglewood Unified School District
Mora G. High School Student, Inglewood Unified School District
Taylor Lytle, Organizer, California Coalition for Women Prisoners, Peer 2 Peer Fellow
Carolee Matias, LCSW, Psychiatric Social Worker, LA County Alternate Public Defender’s Office
Zoe Rawson, JD, MSW, Policy Director, Arts for Incarcerated Youth

11:25am-11:35am: Resource Tables

Amity
ARC
TILA
IPR ARTZ
NASW-CA
Learn4Life

11:35am-12:15pm: Networking Lunch and Art Intermission - Social Pathways: Justice through the Arts

IPR ARTZ
Hugo Gonzalez, Homeboy Industries
Resource tables: Amity Foundation, Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC), National Association of Social Workers (NASW) - California Chapter, Trauma Informed LA

12:15pm-12:25pm: Reentry and Resilience

Steve Kim and Mary Vu, Project Kinship

12:25pm-1:25pm: Unchained Scholars: Changing the Narrative from School to Prison Pipeline to Prison to School Pipeline

Panelists, all current or recent graduates from a graduate school program, will discuss how they have been able to reverse the pipeline from School to Prison to Prison to School. Panelists will share with participants some of the challenges they have faced as well as opportunities they have been presented with both while incarcerated as well as post-release in their journey to graduate school and beyond.

Moderator: Lily Gonzalez, Homeboy Industries alumna and Revolutionary Scholars Co-Founder, Graduate Student at CSUN in Chicano Studies
Heidi De Leon, MSW '18
Ashley Goldon, USC Student Interest Group (Unchained Scholars President)
Fabiola Quijano, USC Student Interest Group (Unchained Scholars Vice President)
Genevieve Rimer, MSW, DSW student

1:25pm-1:35pm: Creating Change from Within and Dismantling Patriarchy

Richie Reseda, co-founder of Initiate Justice and Success Stories

1:35pm-2:45pm: Dismantling Oppression and Creating Community Solutions: Social Justice Activists with Lived Experience on the Front Lines of Advocacy

Panelists, who were directly impacted by the criminal justice system and are now actively involved in social justice movements designed to dismantle mass incarceration, will speak about the activism that they are involved in and their path toward this work, as well as discuss ways in which participants can serve as allies in the movement(s).

Stacy Rojas, Sister Warriors Freedom Coalition
Norma Cumpian, Anti-Recidivism Coalition
Alyssa Gallo, Anti-Recidivism Coalition
Taina Vargas-Edmond, Initiate Justice

2:45pm-3:00pm: Break

3:00pm-3:10pm: Breaking the Intergenerational Cycle of Incarceration

LaNaisha Edwards, Gang Intervention Case Manager

3:10pm-4:25pm: Storytelling Workshop and Tools for Intervention

Alexus Rhone, MA, writer, producer, artistic theologian and "revolutionary artist"

Rhone will discuss with participants the power of storytelling for social impact and provide a framework and tools for using our stories and/or those of whom we work with for a meaningful social change

4:25pm Closing Remarks

***Participants must attend the presentations from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. to receive 6.5 CEUs.

Care Packages

We would like to invite individuals and/or organizations to donate care packages for female and gender non-conforming members of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition who are returning home from incarceration with minimal resources. Items needed are gift cards to grocery stores, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, soap etc. There will be a table reserved to place the care package on the day of the symposium.

The mission of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC) is to change lives and create safe, healthy communities by providing a support and advocacy network for and by formerly incarcerated men and women. To accomplish this mission, ARC advocates for fair policies in the juvenile and criminal justice systems and provides a supportive network and reentry services to formerly incarcerated individuals. To date, ARC has served more than 1,200 formerly incarcerated men and women across California.

Storytellers:

Brooke Axtell, Founder and Director of She is Rising, a healing community for women and girls overcoming rape, abuse and sex-trafficking. Through her mentorship programs, retreats and workshops, Brooke helps survivors become leaders. (Read full bio)

Norma Cumpian, Women and Non Binary Program Coordinator, joined the Anti-Recidivism Coalition in March 2016 after nearly five years working in the nonprofit/justice reform sector. (Read full bio)

Heidi De Leon, MSW '18, CADC-II, currently works for Watts Healthcare Corporation's residential drug treatment facility, the House of Uhuru, as a compliance analyst and social worker. (Read full bio)

LaNaisha Edwards works as a Gang Intervention Case Manager with Volunteers of America/GRYD program where she co-created Sista Circle empowerment groups for young women (Read full bio)

Oree Freeman, 21, is an advocate for the children and young adults in our communities that are victims of sexual trafficking. She is a survivor who, at the age of 11, was trafficked for over four years. (Read full bio)

Mora G. high school student, Inglewood Unified School District, a 17 year old youth leader with the Arts for Incarcerated Youth network. She currently attends a continuation school in Inglewood, finishing the 11th grade (Read full bio)

Alyssa Gallo, ARC participant, joined the Anti-Recidivism Coalition in August 2018 with a diverse background as a self-made entrepreneur in the music industry and with the lived experience of reentry and homelessness. (Read full bio)

Ashley Goldon, USC Student Interest Group (Unchained Scholars President) was formerly incarcerated for three years in the Michigan Department of Corrections, is a closet convict turned youth advocate and narrative changer, whose mission is to use her adverse experiences as a catalyst for positive change in the youth, families, communities and agencies she serves. (Read full bio)

Hugo Gonzalez, Government Relations Coordinator, Homeboy Industries. At 17 years of age, Hugo Gonzalez was sentenced to 32 years in an adult prison. Hugo served 18.5 years and was commuted under Governor Jerry Brown. Hugo is an artist who currently works with gang intervention, rehabilitation, and reentry at Homeboy Industries. He previously worked as an Initiate Justice Inside Organizer and a facilitator for the Success Stories program in Soledad State Prison. He is a dedicated community advocate who raises awareness of voting disenfranchisement. (Read full bio)

Lily Gonzalez, Revolutionary Scholars Co-Founder, is a Homeboy Industries alumna, Revolutionary Scholars Co-Founder, 2017 Leading with Conviction JLUSA fellow and a 2018 Newman Civic Fellow. (Read full bio)

Salina Gray, PhD, 7th & 8th Grade Middle School Teacher in Inglewood Unified School District, has spent 22 years teaching in traditional public and charter schools. In 2014, she received her doctorate from Stanford University in Curriculum and Instruction in Science Education. (Read full bio)

Steve Kim, MSW '06, Co-Founder of Project Kinship, serves individuals impacted by gangs and incarceration, with the aim to successfully re-integrate them back into the workforce, schools and community. (Read full bio)

Taylor Lytle, an organizer with the California Coalition for Women Prisoners and a national Peer 2 Peer Fellow. Taylor is a former foster care youth and formerly incarcerated. (Read full bio)

Carolee Matias, LCSW, Psychiatric Social Worker at Los Angeles County Alternate Public Defender, is currently a Psychiatric Social Worker for the Los Angeles County Alternate Public Defender’s Office where she works closely with the children, their families, and their attorneys to prepare bio-psychosocial evaluations, coordinate community-based services, and identify and advocate for potential Regional Center consumers as well as Special Education students. (Read full bio)

Carissa Phelps, JD, MBA, Esq. A formerly incarcerated youth, who is now an Attorney, Author, and Advocate. Carissa works to raise awareness and improve systems. (Read full bio)

Fabiola Quijano, USC Student Interest Group (Unchained Scholars Vice President), graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Cal State University Fullerton and majored in Human Services with an emphasis in substance abuse and mental health in 2015. (Read full bio)

Zoe Rawson, JD, MSW, currently works with the Arts for Incarcerated Youth Network supporting their policy advocacy and youth reentry and leadership initiatives. (Read full bio)

Richie Reseda, Success Stories, co-founded Success Stories, and co-founded Initiate Justice with his wife, Taina Vargas-Edmond, in 2016 while serving 10 years in California state prison. (Read full bio)

Genevieve Rimer, MSW, DSW student, worked as a manager for a state organization where she designed, implemented and managed a social service day reporting center that provides education, support and resources to individuals currently on state supervision (Read full bio)

Alexus Rhone, MA, is a writer, producer, artistic theologian and "revolutionary artist" devoted to candidly exploring the power of story through fiction, story-slams and page-to-stage productions. (Read full bio)

Stacy Rojas, is a gender nonconforming, formerly imprisoned, a survivor of violence. They organized against gender discrimination while serving a 15-year sentence at CCWF in California. (Read full bio)

Taina Vargas-Edmond, Initiate Justice, founded Initiate Justice in September 2016 with the intention of activating the political power of people directly impacted by mass incarceration. (Read full bio)

Mary Vu, MSW '05, LCSW, as Co-Founder of Project Kinship and an advocate for reform, Mary believes in systemically improving the opportunities of those individuals reentering communities by fostering individual transformation, hope and resilience. (Read full bio)

CEU Provider language:

The University of Southern California (USC) School of Social Work, an accredited school of social work as defined in Business and Professions Code section 4991.2, meets the requirements set forth in section 4996.22(d)(1). The School is recognized by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences as a continuing education provider pursuant to Section 1887.4.3

CEU Learning Objective

Attendees will identify strategies to ensure more women and girls who are incarcerated have access to an education.
Attendees will articulate and amplify a feminist vision to end educational pushout.
Attendees will convene and support a local network of women and organizations to share and advance strategy and resources

Image by Jose Ramirez; ramirezart.com