UW–Madison’s Kevin Lawrence Henry Jr., an assistant professor in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, was recently a guest on the PBS Wisconsin program, “Why Race Matters,” discussing the impact of race when it comes to COVID-19 and educational disparities.
Henry is a scholar and public education advocate whose research investigates the racialized lived realities of charter schools and school choice policy and practice; the persistence of anti-Blackness in education; and culturally relevant and restorative justice approaches in education.
In his conversation with “Why Race Matters” host Angela Fitzgerald, Henry talks about how COVID-19 illuminated racial disparities already “baked into our system.”
“Studies have shown that students who were engaged in longer periods of distance learning or virtual learning fared far worse than some of their counterparts,” he explains. “And that particularly hurt Black and brown students in the state of Wisconsin.”
To learn more from Henry as he share his experiences and recommendations on this critical issue, watch the full episode.