Training and Consulting
I provide training and consultation in transformative social justice education, antiracism, and fostering empathy, equity, and solidarity. My work supports education, mental health, and other non-profit community organizations to create more inclusive and supportive environments for all individuals.
Faculty Development and Transformative Education:
Workshops and training packages to advance effective teaching and pedagogy of diversity courses, integrate diversity across the curriculum, create effective community and communication for advancing learning in social justice courses. For faculty, high school, and community educators.
Offerings:
- Transformative Education Foundations: Emotional and Relational Processes for Effective Social Justice Teaching
- Creating Community: Strategies for Promoting Transformative Education throughout the Semester
- Promoting Productive Conflict and Conversations across Differences
- Relational and Emotional Strategies for Addressing Resistance in Teaching Race and Oppression
- Early Strategies for Promoting Authentic Community to Advance Transformative Education
“I learned specific skills to deal with student resistance, how to effectively structure my syllabus to maximize student engagement at various stages of the course, to see the course and student learning from a wider more developmental perspective, and to approach student learning from the perspective of emotional process rather than getting too caught up in content. Grace and Karen used modeling and “meta – moments” not only to teach us this content, but to show us how to apply it effectively. I highly recommend this workshop! ”
(Participant in Transformative Education Workshop Workshop)
Promoting Asian American Well-Being and Justice:
Trainings, workshops, support groups , and consultations to address anti-Asian bias and hate, organizational bias against Asian Americans, Asian American stereotypes. For university services (e.g. counseling, advising); community and professional organizations; students/student groups; community dialogues.
Offerings:
- The nature and effects of anti-Asian racism: Not just COVID-19
- Costs of “invisible” racism for Asian American students: Racialization as the forever alien model minority
“Dr. Suyemoto spoke with our staff about understanding the needs and concerns of Asian American students. Her presentation was very thoughtful and helpful for us – comprehensive, clear, engaging, and full of immediacy all at the same time, which is not easy.”
( College Counseling Center Director)
Promoting and Developing Anti-Racist Community:
Trainings, workshops, support groups, and consultations to support the wellbeing and success of people of color and the development of allies and accomplices. For educators and academic units (e.g. advising, counseling); students; community organizations and community discussions.
Provide individual consultation for supporting, coaching, and problem solving for administrators and unit leaders as well as faculty, students, and staff of color and allies/accomplices seeking to advance anti-racism and social justice.
Offerings:
- Responding to micro (and not so micro) aggressions
- Strategic responses to racism in the academy
- Becoming and fostering allies and accomplices
- Developing foundations for authentic conversations across differences
- Understanding power, privilege, and oppresion
- Negotiating a Racist World: Racial Identity and Liberation
- Building Liberatory Collaboratives for Values and Relationally Based Scholarship and Practice
“Thank you for establishing an environment that allowed participants to be vulnerable while exploring really challenging and emotional topics, issues, and questions. Personally, I felt like I was safely on my learning edge for a good deal of the workshop while being challenged to shift my understanding and assumptions.”
(Participant in workshop for educators to advance JEDI goals)
Promoting Organizational Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion:
Tailored consultation packages aimed at increasing diversity, inclusion, and social justice responsiveness in organizations, programs, and departments. Focuses on interpersonal and climate assessment, relational process, and action planning to shift practices, accountability, and relationships to advance JEDI goals and/or address identified conflicts and process issues.
“Based on many comments that previous discussions on the topic didn’t go well, I’d like to say that I found the [consult and retreat ] to be very positive. Karen was excellent – her knowledge and patience with the group will certainly help us make strides in the right direction.”
(Participant in community organizational JEDI consultation)
Prior Engagements
- Boston University
- Cambridge School of Weston
- Clark University
- Kennesaw State University
- Lexington Public Schools
- Massachusetts Coalition for Suicide Prevention
- New York University
- Northshore Community College
- Tufts University
- Union for Concerned Scientists
- University of California Riverside
- University of Vermont