SAN JUAN, P.R. — The issues and challenges that impact urban education aren’t particular to the United States, says Dr. Chance W. Lewis, the Carol Grotnes Belk Distinguished Professor of Urban Education at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
At the three-day international conference that has brought more than 400 scholars and practitioners to this island from corners around the globe, Lewis is cautioning participants to not merely dwell on the problems that beset urban schools, but to focus instead on finding creative solutions and outcomes for the future.
“One thing I learned from going to conferences is that we are trained to ask questions about the problems and not to talk about solutions,” says Lewis, who has organized the bi-annual International Conference on Urban Education, bringing together a diverse group of educators, faith-based leaders and community-based activists from across the world to strategize around how best to educate young people.
Although “urban” education is often seen as a code word for African American, Lewis says that when one examines large metropolitan spaces around the globe — whether it be in Washington, D.C., London or San Juan — striking similarities quickly emerge.
This week participants will find the “space that allows them the freedom to really dive into the issues, particularly around students of color,” says Lewis, who is also the director of the Urban Education Collaborative at UNC-Charlotte. The Collaborative raised funds to bring 14 boxes of school supplies and books to three different schools across the island.
Six countries, 43 states and 175 universities are represented at the gathering, where a range of topics from school discipline to the experiences of Black males is being discussed. Undergraduate and high school students are also presenting their research.
The genesis for the conference came to Lewis about seven years ago after he realized that the plight of students — particularly students of color in urban areas — was not the source of serious inquiry at other conferences that he had attended.
