On today’s episode: Nonprofit founder Lakayana Drury

Drury is the founder and executive director of Word is Bond, a nonprofit based in Portland, Oregon, and inspired by the obstacles he overcame to discover his life path. He’s an educator, social entrepreneur, community organizer, and storyteller who uses art, poetry and photography to uplift hidden stories to inspire others to collective action.

Topics:

 * 02:15 Drury’s journey and finding mentorship
 * 07:46 Unpacking the school-to-prison pipeline
 * 11:15 Feeling “Black enough” and navigating racial identites
 * 15:43 Word as Bond and empowering young Black men
 * 22:50 Backlash and “Whitelash” and new Black leaders

For more information on Drury’s nonprofit work, visit mywordisbond.org [https://www.mywordisbond.org/]. If you want to reach out directly to Drury visit lakayanadrury.com [https://www.lakayanadrury.com/].

Word is Bond with Lakayana Drury

The Journalistic Learning Podcast explores the question: What if we infused journalist strategies into English Language Arts courses to teach students media literacy, critical thinking, and effective communication skills? 

Join hosts Ed Madison and Bo Brusco as they chat with ELA teachers who are leading or have led journalistic learning projects in their classrooms. Hear their stories of trial and triumph, as well as their tips and advice. Along the way, Bo will keep you up-to-date on relevant education news, and Ed will share quarterly Journalistic Learning Initiative updates. 

Ed is a professor and researcher at the University of Oregon and serves as Executive Director of the Journalistic Learning Initiative (JLI), a non-profit organization that pioneers and promotes journalistic learning as a way of empowering students to discover their voice, improve academic outcomes, and engage in self-directed learning through project-based storytelling. 

Bo is the Communications Manager of JLI, a former high school ELA teacher, and an award-winning multimedia journalist. 

Many of the teachers you'll hear from have taken part in JLI's Effective Communicators Program, a 10-week, standards-aligned instructional plan that guides students through a journalistic learning project.

If you'd like to learn more about JLI, journalistic learning, or our Effective Communicators Program, visit journalisticlearning.org [https://journalisticlearning.org/]!