It didn’t turn out to be the kind of year rookie principal Davina Stringer thought it would be. While many educators are still processing the “what just happened?” of the spring semester and planning for the fall, the Winkley principal is doing that. And, then some.
Winkley is hosting a community-wide Juneteenth webinar Friday – an event that is happening in light of the recent killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, yet has been several months in the making.
“We started these conversations at the beginning of the year, but then COVID hit,” Stringer said. “Additionally, our Winkley admin team has engaged in ongoing self-reflection about the needs for diversity and inclusion programs to meet the needs of more of our families.”
Winkley families had a say on what would happen during the webinar through an input form Stringer and the Winkley PTA Diversity Inclusion team created. The rundown of events include a history lesson on the Juneteenth flag, a couple of age-appropriate read alouds and a panel discussion including Winkley’s Diversity Inclusion chair Eric Zeno, Leander police chief Greg Minton, Special Education teacher Chelsea Murphy and a former Winkley student Bri Branscomb.
“We are in a real vulnerable time right now, and this is when we should do a self-check and ask, ‘What can we do for the greatest good for the greatest number?’” Stringer said.
While the event was originally intended for Winkley students and families, growing interest has led to making it available to anyone interested. If you would like to attend, you can sign up for the webinar here.
Juneteenth is a Texas state holiday that commemorates the reading of the proclamation on June 19,1865, freeing all Texas slaves.
