Description
An unprecedented, no-holds-barred set of dialogues about race and education from two of the country’s best-known educators
In this powerful and deeply personal volume, two luminary educators, generations apart but united by a shared commitment to transformative education, compare notes for the first time. An early recipient of a MacArthur “genius” Award, Lisa Delpit gave us the classic Other People’s Children and has been called “a visionary scholar and reformer” by the Harvard Education School, which awarded her an outstanding alumni award. Christopher Emdin is an award-winning educator whose book For White People Who Teach in the Hood . . . and the Rest of Y’all Too was a national bestseller. He is the creator of the HipHopEd social media movement and has been named one of Root’s 100 Most Influential African Americans and one of twenty-seven people bridging divides in the U.S. by Time magazine.
Readers are treated to candid exchanges on topics including the role of art in education, students and politics, how educators of color can navigate the academy, specific approaches to pedagogy, the role of rap in education, and how spirituality informs these two education eminences’ work. With honesty, humor, and hard-won wisdom, they reflect on their own journeys into education, the challenges they’ve faced, and the strategies they’ve developed to uphold equity and justice in a system too often resistant to both. These conversations are not only intellectually rich but emotionally resonant, offering a model of mentorship, mutual respect, and the power of dialogue across difference.
A gift to teachers, scholars, and anyone passionate about reimagining public education, this book is a lasting contribution to the field—one that will inspire readers for generations to come.
Author Bio
MacArthur Award winner Lisa Delpit is the retired Felton G. Clark Professor of Education at Southern University. The author of the bestselling Other People’s Children and “Multiplication Is for White People,” co-editor (with Joanne Kilgour Dowdy) of The Skin That We Speak, co-editor (with Theresa Perry) of The Real Ebonics Debate, editor of Teaching When the World Is on Fire, and co-author (with Christopher Emdin) of The Sacred Art of Teaching (all published by The New Press), she lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Christopher Emdin is the Maxine Greene Chair for Distinguished Contributions to Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is the author of numerous award-winning works, including The New York Times bestseller For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood . . . And the Rest of Y’all Too, and Ratchetdemic: Reimagining Academic Success. He lives in New York City.
Praise
Praise for The Sacred Art of Teaching:
“Teaching truly is a sacred profession, though it is not recognized as such, particularly in the U.S. where the profession is not treated with the respect it deserves. Delpit and Emdin, two masters of the craft, remind us that teaching can also be an art, one that can draw from the depths of our experience and tap into our boldest dreams to make the world better through the students we serve.”
—Pedro A. Noguera, dean of USC Rossier School of Education, and author of A Search for Common Ground
“This book is a blessing. In this landmark text, Delpit and Emdin pay homage to the sacred art of teaching, blending critical analysis, rich storytelling, and honest confession. Two of our nation’s most important educators remind us of the power, promise, and possibility of education. Read this book and be inspired, challenged, and forever changed.”
—Marc Lamont Hill, presidential professor, CUNY Graduate Center, and author of Seen and Unseen
“At the end of the Civil War, the first institutions the newly freed African Americans created were their own independent schools, deeply understanding the essential relationships between children, families, and communities. Lisa Delpit and Chris Emdin stand as descendants of those who set the collective aspirations of education for our collective social good—W.E.B DuBois, Mary McLeod Bethune, Asa Hilliard, Barbara A. Sizemore. Their conversations are rooted in their lived experiences, reflecting a profound understanding of deep-seated Pan-African values that have sustained communities of African descent over the generations: The Maatian belief in human perfectability, respect for elders and ancestors understanding we do not take these life journeys alone, commitment to working to achieve collective good. They understand and through their own professional and personal practices have embodied the commitment that teaching is a sacred enterprise dedicated to the wholistic development of students, and not simply a technocratic enterprise. These conversations are inspiring and offer concrete exemplars of teaching as a sacred art. ”
—Carol D. Lee, professor emerita of education, Northwestern University, and president of the National Academy of Education
