Courses
Flashback
Winter 2021:The Risk of Hope
Activated: Knowledge + Ideas + Action
Course Length: 9 Weeks (1x/week)
Class Length: 1hr 20min/week
Materials: Mixed media (articles, podcasts, film, tv, & educational videos)
Instructor: Chauneice Davis Yeagley
Activated is a course for anyone who wants to take action in our society, but isn't quite sure how to do it. Our formula is simple. By gaining knowledge + sharing ideas + making plans for action, we will transform into change agents ready to make a difference.
As a group, we will study the foundations of U.S. government and examine past & present social movements in order to strategize ways to make change in our own lives. Each student will identify a societal issue that matters to them (whether it's the cost of public school lunch or elimination of food deserts). Throughout the course, students will develop plans on how to make a difference in that area, whether on a local, state, national, or even global scale.
In this class, our focus is to study the past in order to reimagine what our future can look like, if we all get Activated.
About The Instructor
Chauneice Davis Yeagley is a lawyer, writer, and podcast producer who believes that each of us has the power to make a difference. After several years practicing as a corporate attorney in NYC, Chauneice turned to other industries to make an impact. She has worked in private practice, government, startups, and nonprofits.
In her first podcast production, American Origin Stories: Black History (Un)told, Chauneice consulted with experts (e.g., historians, architects, and geneticists) and drew from personal narratives (of Black Americans in the US, Caribbean, and Latin America), to untangle the complications inherent in Black American identity. Through this work, she discovered the power of everyday activism--people working at every level to make our society better.
Chauneice was inspired to develop the Activated course because she realized that too often we hold limiting beliefs about the impact we can make. We think we are too small, too loud, too other, too something to make a difference. But that's exactly what makes us perfect for the job. It is Chauneice's mission to activate that something in each of us that we can use to change the world.
Education
Duke Law, JD
Spelman College, BA (Psychology)
Fall 2020
We Are The River: Black Resistance in Context(s)
For seven weeks we discussed themes related to African American resistance efforts throughout U.S. History. We read, watched films, and listened to podcasts + music that allowed us to explore connections between those histories and our current moment. Intergenerational conversations we learned from each other and expanded our understandings of Black history. Highlights included guest speakers Sai Isoke, who lead our discussion of Moonlight & queer Black histories, and Darnell Lamont Walker who joined us for a chat about his film Seeking Asylum.
The Channel
THE CHANNEL:
WHERE THE RIVER MEETS THE WAVE
The channel is WATR’s home for the exploration of Black history through pop culture. Black people have been a defining force in culture and popularity ever since there was a culture to be popularized. Even though we’ve always fought for representation and the creation of our stories, we’ve always been and forever will be the wave. Through The Channel, WATR ventures into history through the screens and sounds that have captured us. Thank you for joining us this Spring for our first course in The Channel: A Different World.
WHY A DIFFERENT WORLD?
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A Different World was a seminal show that expressed the thoughts, questions, and desires of young Black people of that era. With Hillman, a fictional HBCU, as the show’s setting, viewers experienced the lives of the newly adult-identified Black teens and twenty-somethings of the late 80s and 90s. A Different World didn’t shy away from the historical elements present in that era and we’ve come to recognize why that is significant in its own right. In this class, we invite you to watch with us and discuss some of the most historically significant episodes of the show with both critical and celebratory analysis.
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The Channel: A Different World
Course Length: 6 Weeks (1x Week)
Class Length: 1.5 Hours
Materials: Internet + Access to Episodes
Instructor: Sai Isoke
About The Instructor
Sai Isoke is an educator, facilitator, and creative living in the Los Angeles, CA area. They received their B.A. in Sociology from California State University, Dominguez Hills, and their M.A. in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies from Ohio State University. They’ve taught courses on gender, sexuality, race, media, and pop culture. Additionally, they have facilitated discussions and trainings on inclusivity and equity. Currently, you can find them hosting virtual events for QT/BIPOC folx, steadily chipping away at the list of shows and movies they need to catch up on, and patiently waiting for the outside to safely open again.
We Are The River: Black Resistance in Context(s)- Independent Study
Go at your own pace! You’ll receive a 10-week syllabus and materials to study different aspects of the African American freedom struggle in the U.S.You’ll also have access to virtual office hours as well as all of our programming for the winter 2021 term.
Webinar Series
She Called in Her Soul
(Black Women's History)
Coming Soon
Effectively teaching and understanding Black history requires meaningful study of the intersections of gender, sexuality, class, nationality, and race (to name a few!). Accordingly, each of the three sessions in this series will highlight Black womxn’s experiences and contributions to the freedom struggle.