Panelists

Luanna Peterson grew up in Waipahu, at a time where positive reflections of herself, her family, and the community she belonged to were hard to come by.  This void inspired her to seek out and support social, educational, and economic models that are transformative for both the individual and the unique place to which he or she resides. Luanna holds a dual BA degree in International Studies and Communications. She also holds a MA in Humanities and Leadership with an emphasis in Culture, Ecology, and Sustainable Community and a focus on Ecological  Agriculture.  Her studies focused on a regional and international analysis of systemic problems and viable solutions grounded in social justice and self-determination. Her professional career has focused on the same. With extensive experience creating, managing, and delivering place and culture-based cross-disciplinary programs, she has helped to equip her community for success using core values. Her hero is her Great-Grandmother, Frances Berry-Coston, who was a fierce and unrelenting advocate for diverse representation in all sectors of society.

Kevin Maurice Sledge (he/him/his) earned a B.A. in Spanish from UNC Pembroke and an M.A. in Spanish from UNC Wilmington.  After two years of teaching in his hometown and being accepted into the Teach For America program, he relocated to Hawai’i where he has been teaching primarily Spanish for six years at Waipahu High School.  Kevin was the dedicated advisor to the graduating class of 2019 and continues to be a leader among his colleagues as a part of the Hawai’i Department of Education’s World Language Leadership Cohort.  Last year, he and a group of students created the school’s first ever Black Cultural Club in order to promote Black cultural awareness, appreciation, and sharing in the school community.  Kevin enjoys pondering and exploring questions of race/ethnicity/nationality; particularly what it means to be black in the United States, Hawai’i/Pacific, and all over the world.

Dr. Keith Cross is a veteran Hip-Hop artist, singer-songwriter, educator and scholar. Dr. Cross has a Ph.D. from Stanford University Graduate School of Education, specializing in Race, Inequality and Language in Education, and he is currently Assistant Professor of Multilingual and Multicultural Education at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. As a scholar, he investigates the role of song in the cognition and learning of those who compose/perform song lyrics and those who engage with song lyrics as audience.

Piper Lovemore is mother to seven keiki, in a multigenerational, home-learning family. Together with her partner, she curates their decolonized education -  envisioning a learning/living environment centered around amplifying their inherent and unique gifts, rather than conforming to curriculum. In the Lovemore family, unschooling evolved naturally as the fruit of intentional engagement, critical analysis and conscientious objection to standard institutions. Freebirth, for them, was a powerfully persuasive precursor. Those lovingly cultivated spaces have set the tone for questioning the popular narrative, experimenting with alternatives, and investing faith and optimism in the rising generation.