Hi Reader, On Saturday, August 5th, a group of educators, leaders, and professionals in the field of early childhood gathered at Little Sun People to spend the day learning, connecting, and planning how to center Black joy and eradicate anti-Black racism in early childhood. It was a transformative experience for participants, facilitators, and for me, as the creator of the groundbreaking and award-winning Journey to Nia curriculum. There is no professional development experience like this...
over 2 years ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, This is a moment of tremendous pride and deep reflection for me. My second-born son is about to graduate from high school and will begin his college journey in just a few short months. To say this is a surreal time for me is an understatement. When my first son was stillborn at 37 weeks of pregnancy, it was my prayerful and wildest dream that I would be able to raise a child into adulthood. And so it is… It feels like it was only a few short years ago when I was visiting...
over 2 years ago • 4 min read
Hi friends of Anahsa Consulting, We are very excited to announce that registration is now open for the Journey to Nia 2023 Summer Retreat. This retreat is designed for early childhood educators and leaders who understand the urgency of dismantling anti-Blackness in preschool environments, which is the very force that fuels the preschool-to-prison pipeline targeting Black children. Without a clear understanding of the ways anti-Black racism shows up in the classroom, in our interactions, in...
over 2 years ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader, It has been an incredibly busy and exciting month for me and Team Anahsa! In this newsletter, I want to share a few snippets of the incredible work I’ve been doing so far in 2023. Before I share, though, I want to let you know that I couldn’t do any of the work I do without the incredible support of Crystal and Jazné, who are the pillars of Team Anahsa. I have a chronic illness, which is both invisible and extremely painful at times. For the past few weeks, I have been in a lot of...
almost 3 years ago • 6 min read
Dear Reader, Happy end of Black History Month! Let us remember that Black history is American History, and it happens all year long, even as we spotlight it in the month of February. Also, on January 22, many folks celebrated the Chinese Lunar New Year, bringing in the year of the rabbit, which is seen as a year of hope. Here at Anahsa, LLC, hope is one of our guiding lights. Let us have hope for ourselves, our communities and for the children who will benefit from the work we are doing to...
almost 3 years ago • 2 min read
Dear Reader, Welcome to the New Year! It feels like 2022 ended on a big note for me, with all the excitement around the work we are doing at Anahsa, and our reflections on such an impactful year. I took 7 days completely “off” from work. As a CEO and entrepreneur, it is difficult to ever take one day fully “off” because my brain is always thinking, planning, and reflecting. If I’m being honest, I was anxious about closing my laptop and walking away from it, and putting an out of office...
almost 3 years ago • 5 min read
December 21, 2022 Dear Reader, Welcome to the end of 2022. It has been a supremely challenging, intense and deeply rewarding year for me, and so many of us. We have so many challenges we are all navigating in our personal lives, as well as our professional lives. So often when I coach folks, and do speaking engagements, people share how overwhelmed they are by the thought of how much work there is to do to make this society more equitable so that people of all identities can truly thrive....
about 3 years ago • 2 min read
December 7, 2022 Dear Reader, It’s hard to truly remember life before covid and its endless disruptions to every aspect of our work and home lives. I would love to wake up and not hear anyone utter the words: “tested positive” or “quarantining” for a full 7 days. At the same time, I don’t remember 2019 and the years before it as being particularly easy. For leaders, educators and caregivers, there has always been this dance of: not enough time, not enough resources, and not enough space to...
about 3 years ago • 2 min read
Zuni, NM. Dowa Yalanne translated as corn mountain, from Zuni to English. Picture by Zowie Banteah. Dear Reader, This week, as this nation celebrates the Thanksgiving holiday, I’m going to share a few short reflections for this newsletter. Back in the early 1990’s, when I was a sophomore in college, I read A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn, and that first chapter “Columbus, The Indians, and Human Progress” represents the first time I was pushed to consider history from...
about 3 years ago • 5 min read