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Creating Brave Spaces With Staff and Students
October 12, 2022 @ 10:00 am – 11:00 am PDT
Presented by: Elise Kuykendall
Whether we’re working with staff or students, we often shy away from difficult topics to avoid discomfort or conflict. Yet when we sidestep these challenging conversations, we risk creating confusion, resentment, and a breakdown of trust. We also miss valuable opportunities to foster deeper connection and mutual understanding.
This workshop focuses on building brave spaces—environments where honest, respectful dialogue is encouraged—even when conversations get uncomfortable. Together, we’ll explore how to structure and facilitate these discussions with intention and care. How can we prepare for hard conversations? And how can we channel the “heat” of disagreement into constructive dialogue and shared solutions?
In this workshop we will explore:
- How to create brave spaces for honest, respectful dialogue with school community.
- Practical strategies for planning and navigating challenging discussions constructively.
- How brave spaces support learning through discomfort and challenge.
By participating, you will be ready to:
- Approach conflict with greater confidence, clarity, and emotional awareness.
- Use discomfort as a catalyst for growth, collaboration, and mutual understanding.
- Foster a school culture rooted in transparency, trust, and inclusive leadership.
Resources
Sometimes being a principal feels like having one hard conversation after another. Principals share their tips for how to manage emotions.
One of the hardest things to do as a leader is to have a courageous conversation with a staff member. These conversations are awkward, uncomfortable, and typically against our nature as leaders. However, these conversations are needed to move the school forward, to strengthen school culture, and to raise the level of teaching and learning in your school. Challenging the status quo, asking tough questions, and digging into unhealthy attitudes and behaviors for the betterment of students is an important skill set for all leaders.
Two decades ago, Beverly Daniel Tatum published a bestselling book on the psychology of racism. Now, with the release of the book’s second edition, she reflects on its relevance to schools today.
Aiko Bethea is a friend, colleague, and diversity, equity, and inclusion expert. We discuss empathy, accountability, and the power of listening and believing (including a very real role play). We also dissect the differences between transactional leadership and transformational leadership and why courage is a prerequisite to lasting, meaningful change.
About the Presenters
Elise serves the Inflexion team as Director of Partnership Development. A strategic connector with over a decade of experience teaching, leading, and designing within the K-12 education system, she develops intentional partnerships to serve as both advocate and co-conspirator for administrators who want to transform their systems from the inside out so more students succeed. Before joining Inflexion, Elise spent 7 years as a high school English teacher in Orange County, California, after earning her MA in Education from Pepperdine University.
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