My School Moms

(Paperback)

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Description

Children of color have performed disproportionately lower than any other race since the 1954 passage of Brown v. Board of Education which eradicated 38,000 Black teachers and administrators from the profession. Othermothering is critical to Black teaching and consists of the following:

1) A Pedagogical Commitment/Commitment to Learning
2) A Financial commitment to the Student
3) Care and Concern
4) Advocacy
5) Relatedness

At Just Like a Mom, "Dr. W." as the students refer to her, has focused her work on three of these pillars:

1) Care and Concern
2) Advocacy
3) Relatedness

Like most students in America, throughout Dr. Stovall's academic journey, she had primarily white teachers where perhaps unbeknownst to them, she experienced othermothering from them as well. Dr. Stovall believes this special touch to teaching, giving teachers "permission to love" as one teacher research participant put it is necessary, particularly for Black students who have been placed in a school system that was not designed with them in mind.

This book calendars Dr. Stovall's personal experience with othermothering at school from preschool through the completion of her first college degree. Though Dr. Stovall had a wonderful relationship with her mom, while at school, these women cared for her as a mother would and made the difference.

Author Bio

Dr. Wicondra Stovall is the Founder/CEO of Just Like a Mom, a cultural brokering agency designed to combat the Black student achievement gap and Black teacher deficit gap through a framework referred to as "othermothering." Wicondra was raised in a mother-led household with a mother that did not play about her and her sister's education. This experience influenced Wicondra's interest in parental engagement and Black students, which ultimately led her to her current profession and personal ministry.

Wicondra is a former corporate trainer and K-12 principal and possesses a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Sacramento State University, a Master's degree in Learning Technologies from Pepperdine University, a Bachelor's degree in Human Development with a concentration in Adult Development and Gerontology from California State University, East Bay and an Associate's degree in Liberal Studies from Contra Costa College. Wicondra has also published work in the International Journal of Psychological Studies and wrote, My School Moms to calendar her own experiences with othermothering from preschool through her first college degree.

Wicondra has been married to rock and husband Rodney for nearly 17 years, and of their union, they have three children: Ashari (14), Rodney (11) and Ashyah (5). In her spare time, Wicondra enjoys reading and research, spa treatments, exercising with her 4FS Training family and solo trips to breakfast and shopping. Fun fact: Every time Wicondra got pregnant, she went back to school. Her children are truly her inspiration!