- [Narrator] Funding for this edition of One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been provided by NJ Best, New Jersey’s five-two-nine college savings plan.

RWJBarnabas Health.

Let’s be healthy together.

Kean University.

Where Cougars climb higher.

Wells Fargo.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

PSEG Foundation.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Working for a more a healthier, more equitable New Jersey.

NJM Insurance Group.

Serving New Jersey’s drivers, homeowners and business owners for more than 100 years.

And by The Russell Berrie Foundation.

Making a difference.

Promotional support provided by NJ.Com.

Keeping communities informed and connected.

And by ROI-NJ.

Informing and connecting businesses in New Jersey.

- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The way we change Presidents in this country is by voting.

- A quartet is already a jawn, it’s just The New Jawn.

- January 6th was not some sort of violent, crazy outlier.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I mean what other country sends comedians over to embedded military to make them feel better.

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

-_ It’s not all about memorizing and getting information, it’s what you do with that information.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) - Hey, everyone.

Steve Adubato with my colleague, Jacqui Tricarico.

Jacqui, we're in AC.

Why?

- Atlantic City, the NJEA Convention here again this year.

We're so lucky we get to come here every year to talk to such amazing people from all walks of life.

We have filmmakers, all part of this year's "Voices Unveiled" film festival here at the NJEA, brand new this year.

You got to talk to a couple of filmmakers- - Right.

- That are showing their films here this year.

Educators, it's a couple educators that you really stood out to you.

- Authors, writers.

Hey, by the way, Spike Lee, we didn't get to speak to Spike Lee, but we talked to Sean Spiller, the president of the New Jersey Education Association.

Let me disclose, NJEA, an underwriter of ours, as well as our partners in public broadcasting, but Sean Spiller interviewed Spike Lee.

The crowd was huge.

- Yep.

- Right, it's a big event, but there's so many other filmmakers, as Jacqui said, authors, educators, others, people who are making a difference in education.

This is a big convention.

- Yeah, almost 10,000 people rolling in here over the next two days here at the convention to learn a little bit more, get some more information to better themselves as educators and support professionals in our schools, in our public schools here in New Jersey.

Couple of really big themes that we've seen across the board is mental health.

- I was just gonna say mental health for educators.

- Of course, of our educators.

Big theme here this year, as well as giving back.

So many nonprofit organizations.

One in particular, MudGirls, is an organization here in Atlantic City that they're supporting this year.

Those people, the woman who's running that is really giving back to the women here in Atlantic City.

So just like we said, a variety of different people that we get to talk to.

- So Jacqui and I say this every year, for those of us who are parents of kids in schools, "Hey, you got those two days off, Teachers' Convention".

This is that convention.

The people that we talk to were powerful.

They're amazing.

This is a half hour that tells you just a little bit, a flavor of what goes on here in Atlantic City.

For Jacqui Tricarico and myself, our entire team, the NJEA Convention from right here in AC.

(upbeat music) - Hi, everyone, Steve Adubato at the New Jersey Education Association Convention in AC, Atlantic City.

We're with Byron Motley, who is a tremendous musician, photographer, filmmaker, and producer, and that's why he is here.

Filmmaker and producer of a great film called "The League."

Good to see you.

- Great to be here.

- Tell everyone what "The League" is.

- "The League" is a documentary about the old Negro Baseball Leagues, and it also tells a story about my father, who was the last living umpire from the Negro Leagues.

What's it gonna be like to have so many people not just watch the film, but be moved by it, for you?

- Well that means the world to me.

I mean the fact that people are gonna learn about this history.

And I always tell people don't stop watching the film.

There is so much more information we can learn.

Read a book.

Just do research, and learn more about this incredible history 'cause it's not only American history, not only Black history, but this to me is world history.

There's so many great stories, and people that created this league of really of nothingness.

Of a baseball game that became so important to our culture.

There's a film festival going on, but they're not indiscriminate films about any topics.

There are themes, talk about them.

- Yeah, we're talking really about celebrating our rich diversity, right?

Exploring social conversations, talking about cultural intersection points, talking about how we engage in important conversations in our classrooms in an appropriate way.

Talk about how these things are all connected.

And what's happening here at convention is there's a number of films.

Oftentimes, we've got the producers or others who are part of it.

- We've interviewed several of them here.

- Who are affiliated with, who then can speak to the audience afterwards.

So we're having our own little film festival, if you will.

But really it's an opportunity to talk about how are we engaging in the work in our classrooms with our students, but talking about important conversations in a way that oftentimes, I don't want to say relaxes people, but it's a way to talk about something, sometimes it's a little easier through film or through art that it's a little different in conversation.

- Who's the inventor?

- The inventor is Garrett Augustus Morgan.

He was a very sort of famous black entrepreneur who lived at the early, sort of early 1900's.

He invented the traffic light, the three signal traffic light.

- The traffic light, - Yep, yep.

The the one that, you know, everyone uses when they walk.

- And why don't we know him?

- He's under unpublicized.

He's under publicized.

So he unfortunately had to hire a series of, you know, white actors and white attorneys and patent lawyers to stand in for him in order to gain the credibility that he needed to, you know, have his inventions take root.

So a lot of people dunno about him, but we're hoping that we can, you know, publicize his life a little bit more through this film.

- You are making a difference as a writer.

And this is the book.

We actually just interviewed the filmmaker about Garrett Morgan.

Tell us about this book, "Saving the Day, Garrett Morgan's Life-Changing Invention of the Traffic Signal."

- Yes.

- Tell us about Garrett Morgan and the book.

- Well, this book is one of the stories by Sweet Blackberry, which is my non-profit organization.

- Say it again, Sweet?

- Sweet Blackberry.

- Website's up now.

- Yeah, thank you.

And our mission at Sweet Blackberry is to bring little-known stories of African American achievement to kids.

'Cause there are so many stories out there that are being lost completely that we're not hearing about.

Garrett Morgan is one of those stories that was brought to me.

You know, I think I learned about a handful of stories about Black history in school, great stories, great people, but there are so many more, and so many more that are really important.

Important for us to know about, important for children to understand there are a lot of Black inventors, like Lewis Latimer, Garrett Morgan, who have contributed so much to our society that we take for granted, and we don't know about.

I can't imagine how many more there were who didn't get credit for their work, didn't get credit for their inventions.

'Cause if you think about the times, and I'm sure it was very easy for other people to make those patents, instead of the Black people that did.

- There are so many elements to this convention.

And a couple big themes that we've seen across the board are diversity, equity, inclusion, which is so important for the NJEA, mental health of our educators.

What are some of the areas on the convention floor that you're seeing that happen, and that, that message being sent to the educators here?

- Yeah, absolutely.

So we have a huge commitment to making sure we're having inclusive spaces for all of our members.

And not just including, but belonging.

This year, we've got our consortium space, which is a very large space at the head of Main Street.

- And that's where really close to where we are.

And right now in that space, is drag queens reading stories.

That's a, that's a fun component of this convention.

- Yeah.

So we have a drag queen story time where they're reading commonly banned books that we're using to encourage inclusivity and belonging.

- Talk about first, tell us why you wanted to get involved in this, to read these banned books to the educators and the families.

So many different types of people coming through this convention over the last two days.

- These books are very important, because as, as you said, they are banned.

And them being banned, it's very baffling to us, because as we read them, all they do is teach of, especially with this particular book, teaches inclusivity, and it also, it teaches like diversity as well.

So it's such a beautiful message.

And with this book, it's all about the history of Stonewall.

We were saying that this book deserves to be in a history book, a regular history book.

- Yeah.

Like this isn't just a story book, this is a true story.

This is actual history.

This should be in history books that kids are learning.

But right now this book is banned as a storybook.

- Well, what do you say to those parents?

There's been a, especially here in New Jersey, we've heard a lot from parents about these banned books, why we don't want these books in, in our children's classroom.

We don't want the exposure.

And then specifically about drag queens reading to our kids, what is that gonna do to our children if they're exposed to this?

What is gonna be in their mind?

What do you say to those parents that feel that way?

- Well, do their children have a cell phone?

Because I promise you they're exposed to a lot more there.

That's for sure.

Why, why do you feel that way?

Who do you want your kid to be when they're older?

Do you want them to aid society and be a great person, or do you want them to be judgmental?

I'm not a parent, so I can't decide that.

But as a parent, that's your decision.

- And it also could be within themselves as well.

Maybe they see something that they like, maybe they are insecure with themselves, that they can't bring their kids around us.

But as I said earlier, we have no harm to any children, and we know when to be very appropriate.

You know, we, we are very, we've been doing drag for a very long time now.

- Professionals.

- We're very, we are professionals, but we also know when, like where the line begins, and where the line ends.

Especially when it comes to children.

We're very respectful.

- You've been fighting the good fight for a very long time now with your activism, really looking at social rights, feminist icon, like I said, but delving into a lot of different issues that so many are facing and using your platform and your songs, your songwriting to address so much of that.

How did that transition into then thinking about writing this children's book?

The writing of this book was actually really hard for me.

Like I suddenly noticed that my songwriting has a lot to do, it's very adult in the sense that I'm often playing with stereotypes or conventions.

That's not the world of children.

- Yeah.

- Thankfully.

- Thankfully, they're not open to that yet.

That's something that comes later, unfortunately.

- Right.

It's not all been inputted.

- The influence, yes.

- And I do a lot of double entendre and, - Metaphors.

- I turn cliches on their head.

I use all these devices regularly.

Apparently, didn't realize it until this project in my writing that just have no bearing on the world of children.

I had to express myself in a totally different way.

- I do love the meaning behind this book.

Describe that in your own words of what the meaning is, behind the knowing.

- Yeah well, I guess I wanted to make sort of a yes and book about identity.

- A theme that's been in your life for a long time.

- Identity politics can be a very liberating force.

It can help you to discover yourself and where you're from and what you're made of and who your community is.

And it's very important to become that and know it, especially if you are not the dominant culture or community.

And so, you know, inclusion can't happen without identity and knowing it and giving voice to it first, right?

So we are building slowly, painfully, a more inclusive society and it's predicated on knowing and coming to terms with the diversity of identity.

- While there are a whole range of areas, Nick, that you focus on as an educator, the rights of the LGBTQ community, a very significant area for you.

Talk about not only what it is, but why it is.

- It's interesting because I'm not a part of that community, but my students are, my family is.

- Same here.

- Yeah.

And so I feel it's our obligation to be outside the community, to be allies for that community and having students, it's tough enough to be a teenager.

And then I can't imagine being a teenager and not being able to be your authentic self or be able to express yourself or be able to let people know your true self.

Because you're afraid how society, your family, your colleagues, your teachers, your classmates are gonna see it.

And it's just, it's still insane to me that we live in a world where people have to come out.

And I have so many students who struggle with a lot of things and it breaks my heart that that's one of them when it shouldn't be.

It shouldn't be brave to be you.

You shouldn't have to be brave to be a kid.

- Honoring women in education.

We have seen a shift over the many years.

First it was a very male dominated profession, now female dominated.

However, we are seeing that some of those higher up positions like superintendent's still male dominated.

What can we still do to get women into those other positions in education that we're lacking?

- So currently right now in NJEA we do, we have what's called a "Celebration of Women."

And all through the month of March, we have an empowerment series for our women, to sort of teach them and encourage them actually, how to become a leader, how to see yourself in those leadership roles, and what are some pathways to success.

And we celebrate women who have done it, because we believe that sometimes you have to see it to be it.

So we celebrate women who have done it, so that other people have an opportunity to see that.

We also have a variety of professional development workshops that we offer through our affinity groups as well, to make sure that women get to see themselves in these roles, and recognize that they also deserve to be there.

And it is something that we are constantly, me, especially, pushing, pushing and proving to women that you belong in every single space in which you work.

- A lot of people hear that and they're like, "What is an ESP?"

Educational Support Professional.

Describe that role.

And you have talked about ESPs as the unsung heroes in our classroom.

- Yes, yes, yes.

- Describe it for us.

We are the unsung hero, and there are many titles that fall under ESP.

I'm a paraprofessional.

I work paraprofessional.

People are more familiar with the term teacher's assistant, but we are paraprofessionals.

We also have secretaries, bus drivers, lunch aides, bus aides, maintenance, custodial.

All of those fall under ESP, and we are the glue that holds everything together.

What have you been doing over the last year to advocate even more than you already do for the ESPs?

- Well, it's mainly advocating.

Some counties they might ask me to come and talk to their members.

Just member engagement, just encouraging them, and knowing that we are worthy, the education system can't survive without ESPs, you know?

So, I just go around whenever invited to speak to different ESPs and just encourage them, and I just represent for New Jersey.

- One theme that I've definitely been seeing throughout these past few days is mental health, and the mental health of our educators and how important that is, with the different types of things set up here, and some therapy dogs, just talking and making mental health, a conversation.

How important do you feel, Denise, that is this year, especially more than ever, to make sure that our educators, and support staff professionals are, are being supported in that way?

I think it's critical.

And I think when you see our goat yoga, and the therapy dogs, really our educators are, they're tired.

And it's been a rough couple years.

And to have resources available to them.

We have a variety of resources through our research department, through everything that we touch at this point, which demonstrates we need you mentally healthy to be in the classroom.

Our kids need you.

It's critical this year.

- Yeah.

And what about for you, Kevin, seeing that that theme play out here in different ways?

- It, it's, it's not just the educators, it's the, it's the children in the classroom.

We, we've all just come out of the pandemic.

So it's also bringing it back to the classroom, and bringing the support back for the, for the children in the classroom.

'Cause this really is all about the children, right?

- Right.

- But the mental health has to be there for the educator, in order to be able to give the mental health to the, to the child.

So it's, it's a, it's really a two-prong approach.

- I've been in education for a long time, almost 20 years I was in education, but I'm also a licensed therapist.

So I got to see both sides of the table, not only for young people, but for our adults.

And this has been going on.

It's been a long time that our students' and our teachers' mental health has been challenged.

And quite honestly, for a long time, people didn't wanna talk about it.

They said, like, "We can't talk about this in education.

It's not the place for it."

And I think in this moment right now, we're saying that we can't not talk about it.

You know, the things that teachers are being faced with and the challenges- - Name them.

Sorry for interrupting.

Name the most challenging, difficult aspects of being an educator.

Listen, people choose to be educators.

The educators we talked to here love what they do, - [Alisha] Yeah.

- But that doesn't mean there aren't real pressures that are challenging on so many levels.

Talk about them.

- Yeah, there's so many challenges right now.

I think, like, to name that the system is quite broken.

That there's a sense that teachers don't have the freedom and the agency to really, like, take the kids, and what kids need in this moment, and really address that, because everyone has a voice, everyone has an opinion, everyone's pointing a finger.

So it really stifles that creativity, the relationships that teachers can have and build, which is some of the most trusting relationships that kids have in their lives, is like, that first, you know, relationship with someone who really sees them and gets them and, you know, values them.

Not that that's not coming from home, but like, teachers are the next best place where that's coming from.

And for what's happening right now to stifle that ability for teachers to show up fully for students, I think is, you know, something that we have to really be aware of.

- Talk about some of the organizations that are being represented here too, bringing in organizations, even just right here from Atlantic City, and shining a light on the work that they're doing in this community.

- Yeah.

So the social impact work is huge for us.

We really make sure that we're tapping into the community, and benefiting the community when we're here.

Our convention has over a seven million economic impact on the city of Atlantic City.

- Wow.

- Every year, which is fantastic.

So we brought in the leadership studio.

They're a social impact group in the city who are do, they do yoga classes.

So they're doing yoga on the floor in our wellness area.

We have some other community groups.

We have, there is an African American History Museum based in Atlantic City, that we have them out here with a mobile exhibit to make sure that our members are able to go through, and able to increase their understanding of diverse histories.

And then from beyond Atlantic City, some other groups that we've brought in.

We have No Limits Cafe.

No Limits Cafe is, they have the food truck, that you might be able to see over my shoulder.

- Yes.

Yeah.

The food truck that's been here stationed over there since yesterday.

- Yep.

So we brought them in.

And they have a really special mission.

They employ all folks who live with differing abilities.

And so we've got some folks who really amplifying the work that they do, and the contributions that they make.

And then all of the members, and folks that are here that are purchasing from, from their work are really helping to fuel that, that work, and keep it going.

- MudGirls is the charity this year that's being represented here at the convention.

First, describe to us what MudGirls is.

- MudGirls is a nonprofit clay studio that empowers women by bringing them, creating community, and teaching them how to create ceramicware.

In doing so, they learn basic life skills, and also, they earn an hourly wage, so it's a workforce training program.

- It's employment, really, for some women, and most of the women in your program, 10, now, that are employed by you, are at risk in some way or another.

- Yes.

- Describe that, and how you're - Yes.

- Finding these women and bringing them into what you're doing - Right.

- In your organization.

That's right here in Atlantic City where we are today.

- Yes, yes, yes.

MudGirls started with the idea that we all have a creative spirit, and many people are not given the opportunity to tap into that creative spirit, so we went out into the community, and we embraced women at risk, that is, women in poverty, so, many of them have mental illness, coming out of homelessness, many of them have addiction, perhaps they had been involved with criminal justice system, so those are the people who we're giving second chances to.

We're bringing them into the studio, we're giving them jobs, we're giving them wraparound services, social services, perhaps helping them with housing, perhaps helping them with childcare, and food security, so it's so much more than just a clay studio.

We make beautiful pottery, but we also build lives.

- New Jersey Education Association 2023-2024 New Jersey State Teacher of the Year.

Congratulations, my friend.

- Thank you so much, Steve.

Appreciate you having me on.

- How and when does it trigger for you that this is your mission to teach, to help students understand and appreciate the significance of the Holocaust?

- It really, and this is something that I try to give to my students as well, really changed when I started to have interactions with survivors.

I had always been interested in the Holocaust.

And when I got into teaching, I got an opportunity to attend a workshop with Facing History & Ourselves.

That really changed my view about what was possible in my classroom.

They teach a method about choosing to participate, about, you know, getting involved, civic responsibility and things of that nature.

And I used some connections through them to get a chance to meet with some Holocaust survivors.

And really, hearing their stories just touched me so much.

And I really felt a personal responsibility to wanna try to pass on what I had learned from them within the classroom.

I got a great opportunity to teach a satellite classroom at Kean University.

So my kids are seniors, they take it as an elective, but they get college credits from Kean University.

And I've really infused all that sort of the philosophy that I have about personal relationships and really bringing them on a journey from just interacting with this highly emotional, highly traumatic, you know, history.

- Right.

- And trying to convince them that, you know, all throughout that, you know, and this is one of the slogans that Facing History & Ourselves uses, is that, you know, "People make choices, and choices make history."

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Celebrating 30 years in public broadcasting.

Funding has been provided by NJ Best, New Jersey’s five-two-nine college savings plan.

RWJBarnabas Health.

Let’s be healthy together.

Kean University.

Wells Fargo.

New Jersey Sharing Network.

PSEG Foundation.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

NJM Insurance Group.

And by The Russell Berrie Foundation.

Promotional support provided by NJ.Com.

And by ROI-NJ.

- I’m very grateful that I’m still here.

- That’s me and my daughter when we went to celebrate our first anniversary.

- With a new kidney I have strength.

- They gave me a new lease on life.

- I’m still going everywhere and exploring new places.

- Nobody thought I was going to be here, nobody.

- I look forward to getting older with my wife, that’s possible now.

- [Narrator] We’re transforming lives through innovative kidney treatments, living donor programs, and world renowned care at two of New Jersey’s premiere hospitals.

- They gave me my normal life back.

It’s a blessing.

- [Narrator] RWJBarnabas Health.

Let’s be healthy together.