Democracy Convention

Democracy is coming... to the U.S.A.

Students are not products. Teachers are not tools. Education is not a factory.The Education United for Democracy Conference brings together students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members to strengthen the movement for democracy in all of education, from kindergarten through higher education. As the attack on public education continues to escalate, with thousands of schools closed, tens of thousands of teachers laid off, student and labor unions under attack, science and education demonized, and higher education evermore expensive and out of reach for working people, the need is immediate for an effective national and global coordinated movement to overcome corporatization and to fight for the democratic alternative. 

The 2017 Education for Democracy Conference will address the realities of this critical moment and work to develop actions for the coming year. It will also educate about the long term underlying problems in education today. And it will raise up examples of successful reforms and organizing at all levels of education. The conference will feature case studies, panel discussions, roundtable workshops, skillshares and strategy sessions about:

  • Understanding the corporatization and privatization of education
  • Resistance to public school closings
  • Student debt emancipation, tuition abolition, and full funding for public education
  • Community participation and control in education
  • Democratizing governance of education
  • Social and ecological responsibility in education
  • Academic freedom, the right to organize, and free speech in schools
  • Building a movement for democracy in education in 2017-18

Have questions or ideas for the Education United for Democracy Conference? Contact the conference conveners, and if you haven't already done so, be sure to register now!

 

Conference Sessions

Registration

When:
Where:
Willy Hall
229 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55454

Black History 101 Mobile Museum

When: Wednesday, August 2, 2017 - 12:00pm to Sunday, August 6, 2017 - 4:00pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 235 Blegen Hall
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

CONVENTION PLENARY: Opening Ceremonies and Keynotes

When: Wednesday, August 2, 2017 - 7:00pm to 9:30pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Willey Hall
229 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55454

OPENING CONFERENCE PLENARY: Flashpoints in the Year Ahead in Public Education

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 9:00am to 10:15am
Where:
University of Minnesota, 145 Blegen Hall
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

One Big Union, One Big Strike: Student, Labor and Education Unionism in the Struggle for Control of the Knowledge Economy

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 10:30am to 11:45am
Where:
University of Minnesota, 205 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

Who owns public education? Teaching teachers in the age of online education, school choice, and the audit culture

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 10:30am to 11:45am
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Blegen Hall
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

The Neighborhood Bridges Program: Theatre-Based Critical Literacy Strategies for the Classroom

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 10:30am to 11:45am
Where:
University of Minnesota, 145 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

Planning to Respond to School Closings in an Time of Austerity & Mayoral Control

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 1:00pm to 2:15pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

In the Crosshairs - How Corporations are Transforming Education and Work in America

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 1:00pm to 2:15pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 145 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

How Global Oligarchs and Kleptocrats Use the University

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 2:30pm to 3:45pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 205 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

Attacks on education: Where do they come from? What do we do?

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 2:30pm to 3:45pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Blegen Hall
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

Money, Schooling, and Educators: Creating a Critically-Informed Movement for Monetary Reform and EcoJustice

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 2:30pm to 3:45pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 140 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

CLOSING CONFERENCE PLENARY: Unity in Action - Making plans for collective action in the coming school year

When: Thursday, August 3, 2017 - 4:00pm to 5:15pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 145 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

CONVENTION PLENARY: Overcoming Oppression, Building Inclusion: Jen Epps-Addison, Keith Ellison, Jacqui Patterson, and Jill Stein

When: Friday, August 4, 2017 - 7:00pm to 9:30pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Willey Hall
229 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55454

CONVENTION PLENARY: Democracy's Struggle with Rep. Pocan

When: Saturday, August 5, 2017 - 9:00am to 10:15am
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Willey Hall
229 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55454

Peace Education

When: Saturday, August 5, 2017 - 2:30pm to 3:45pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 130 Blegen
269 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455

Concert: Emma's Revolution

When: Saturday, August 5, 2017 - 8:00pm to 9:00pm
Where:
Pipefitters Local 539
312 Central Ave SE Minneapolis, MN 55414

CONVENTION PLENARY: People's Movement Assembly (PMA)

When: Sunday, August 6, 2017 - 12:00pm to 4:00pm
Where:
University of Minnesota, 125 Willey Hall
229 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55454