A Conference to Celebrate & Elevate the Power of Hip Hop (in) Education
Held at the Harvard Graduate School of Education
CREATING COMMUNITY, CELEBRATING CULTURE
Meet this year's keynote panelists and learn how they are preserving and spreading the beauty of Hip Hop culture
Saturday, May 7
10 - 11:15 AM EST
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PINQY RING
MC, Speaker, Oganizer
Pinqy Ring is a Puerto Rican rapper, author, speaker and Hip Hop educator born and bred in Chicago. She is a proud U.S. Hip Hop Cultural Ambassador, traveling overseas to manage and facilitate Hip Hop diplomacy programming. Outside of music, Pinqy hosts workshops and talks with youth and Universities nationwide. She became an author in 2020, penning her story for the second volume of Today’s Inspired Young Latina, and plays Rosina in The Rosina Project - a Hip Hop iteration of the famed opera The Barber of Seville. She is the recipient of several awards and accolades, but Pinqy's most important prize is the legacy she is leaving for all the historically excluded communities of the world. A Latina artist on the rise, Pinqy Ring shines bright with the determination to share her story while encouraging others to find their truth, live in it unapologetically, and tell it authentically.
BRANDON FOSTER
Educator
The paradox of education is precisely this- that as one begins to become conscious, one begins to examine the society in which he is being educated.” (Baldwin) This quote exemplifies what pushes Brandon to fight for equity and access for all students, especially those from communities that have been historically marginalized. Growing up, Brandon loved music and cultivated that love into a sense of purpose which led him into the classroom.
MADALYN LUCIER
10K Movement
10K Movement provides first-hand access to the cultural and kinesthetic knowledge of Street Dance forms, and opportunities for young artists to showcase their craft. Through education, performance, events, and consulting, 10K is a platform serving Cleveland, Ohio and beyond, leveraging different community partnerships in service of our long-term vision to implement a more equitable Street Dance infrastructure.
DYALEKT
MC, Educator, Director of Pockets Change
Brian "Dyalekt" Kushner has been a hip-hop MC, theater maker, and educator for nearly 20 years. He’s the director of pedagogy at Pockets Change, where he uses hip-hop pedagogy to demystify personal finance and help students take control of their relationship with money. Dyalekt & PC are the recipients of Jump$tart’s Innovation in Financial Literacy award in 2022. He’s rocked (performed/taught/keynoted) everywhere from conferences like AFCPE and Prosperity Now, to stages like SXSW and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, to classrooms that range from Yale to your cousin’s living room. He also co-hosts the Brunch & Budget podcast, which discusses personal finance and racial economic inclusion. Dyalekt is proud to be the poetry writer for NYC DOE’s WORD UP program, where he converted phonics lessons into relatable rhymes. His latest jam is the Museum of Dead Words, an album/play/research presentation about words that turn conversations into fights.