This chapter is about a restorative justice attempt and failure. It is about a family negotiating the disappointment of a school that failed their child. Helena, 13, experiences horrendous bullying on her school campus at the hands of older boys. Helena’s parents – professionals with rich, deep backgrounds in restorative justice – attempt to partner with the school and other families only to be met with disregard and silence. The school’s administration believes it is fully implementing restorative justice, but it is performative in nature and only ends up raining down more violence on Helena. How do parents negotiate the reality that their child is in an unsupportive environment? How do families and schools get to a place of renewal, reimagining what safety is while maintaining a strong partnership? Compelling elements of this chapter are the captured dialogue between parties, Helena’s extraordinary generosity in drafting letters to her peers who bullied her, and the family’s summarized tips to guide others in navigating the everyday crisis of bullying – especially when a school fails to maintain safety for all students.
Helena was again invited to speak to the educators of California Teachers Association at the leadership conference for CTA Region II in Reno. She spoke on the topics of disability rights and inclusion, intersectionality, anti-bullying, and youth empowerment. Helena shared the story of her traumatic birth and its enduring consequences — how it led to multiple non-apparent disabilities and the problems she faces as a disabled student in school. Helena also shared stories of those educators that championed her disabilities to provide her a fair and equal education.
Helena was honored with an invitation to speak to the educators of California Teachers Association at their leadership conference in San Jose. Her keynote centered on disability rights and inclusion, but also touched on the topics of intersectionality, anti-bullying, and youth empowerment. Helena shared her birth story, how her early medical trauma led to multiple non-apparent disabilities, the problems she faces as a disabled student in school, and told stories of those educators that championed her disabilities to provide her a fair and equal education.
“One of the major conferences we traveled to over the summer was in Princeton, New Jersey, where I was honored with the invitation to deliver a keynote for the amazing educators of the New Jersey Education Association. Thank you, New Jersey Education Association, for your warm reception, the standing ovation, countless loving affirmations, and most importantly for allowing me to share my stories and goal of making schooling more equitable for students with disabilities. You are all Champions!”
— Helena Donato-Sapp
#genz #youthactivism #disabilityjustice #poetry #changemakers #july4 #disabilityadvocacy #disabilityrights #disabilityinclusion #disabilityjustice @neatoday
Helena was invited to speak to the educators of New Jersey at a professional development conference. Her keynote was on disability rights and inclusion – a topic she is known for world-wide. Helena shared her birth story, how her early medical trauma led to multiple non-apparent disabilities, the problems she faces as a disabled student in school, and told stories of those educators that championed her disabilities to provide her a fair and equal education.
Excerpts from Helena’s keynote address at the National Education Association Leadership Summit in 2023 became part of a conversation on disability rights and inclusion in schools. The livestream by The Washington Post featured prominent figures in the movement — Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, NEA President Becky Pringle, the National Center for Learning Disabilities CEO Jacqueline Rodriguez, and Ford Foundation program officer for U.S. disability rights Rebecca Cokley. Like them, Helena believes that the Disability Rights movement is the civil rights movement of her generation, and she is grateful for the opportunities to contribute to the work!
Watch the full video in the Post here and on YouTube here.
Helena began publishing professionally when she was in third-grade and as a globally award-winning activist, educational leader, and scholar, adults sometimes doubt her capability to accomplish so much. This chapter is her response back to naysayers who don’t believe young people are capable of intelligent and rigorous scholarship. Helena first presented these ideas on October 8-9, 2021, at the Geographies of Black Girlhoods in Education Research Conference, which was a part of the Black Girlhoods in Education Research Collective out of CUNY. It is now a chapter in a book by Esther O. Ohita, Sherry L. Deckman, August G. Smith, and Lucía Mock Munoz de Luna and will be published by AERA Books.
Helena was honored to be named to Diversity in Action’s 2024 list of young innovators who are changing the world. Diversity in Action is a digital and print publication dedicated to supporting and promoting diversity in science, technology, engineering, the arts and math. This is Helena’s second national STE(A)M award. Read the Summer issue of Diversity in Action here.
Ahead of the 2024 National Elections, preeminent Artist Kim Cosier of Art Build Workers honored Helena with the invitation to use her image on a 40-foot parachute banner for The National Education Association’s Get Out the VOTE campaign at their annual Representative Assembly. Helena and her fathers joined ABW artists Kim Cosier, Jeanette Arellano, Joe Brusky, Paul Kjelland, Nicolas Lampert, Claudio Martinez, and Josie Osborne, along with countless volunteers in the collective effort. The artists’ booth also featured the production of two other political banners as well as the creative coloring of miniature cloth flags which included the same image of Helena in a green knit vest forming the symbolic heart gesture with her hands. Timelapse video below courtesy of Art Build Workers.
In this gallery:
NEA Disability Rights and Inclusion Campaign Philadelphia Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA July 1-6, 2024
NEA Conference on Racial and Social Justice Panel Philadelphia Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA June 30 - July 2, 2024
#genz #youthactivism #disabilityjustice #poetry #changemakers #july4 #disabilityadvocacy #disabilityrights #disabilityinclusion #disabilityjustice @neatoday
Helena often speaks of the educators in her life who understand and accommodate her multiple – and invisible – learning disabilities as her “Champions.” Becky Pringle, the President of the NEA, was so taken with Helena’s concept of champions that the NEA has partnered with Helena to do a national campaign with her to reach the NEA’s 3 million educators with important information about disability rights and inclusion.
Helena was invited to do the Sunday morning talk for Disability Awareness Month and share with this local congregation on the topic of disability justice. She also shared two new poems in her new role as Youth Poet Laureate of the city of Long Beach. One poem was titled “Neurodivergent Activist Poet” and spoke on the topic what it is like to be neurodivergent in the poetry community. The second poem, titled “I Don’t Know This God of Yours” was her critical look at evangelicalism as an activist and atheist.
Long Beach Leaders Are Readers is a monthly series by the Long Beach Public Library Foundation and the Long Beach Public Library that spotlights a favorite book by a leader in the city. Helena was given the honor in July 2024 in her role as Long Beach Youth Poet Laureate for 2024-2025, and she shared “Figure It Out, Henri Weldon” by Tanita S. Davis to highlight Disability Awareness Month. It’s a true honor for a lover of books! Community leaders previously featured include the legendary Billie Jean King, Congressman Robert Garcia, and Mayor Rex Richardson. Read the full article here.
4GIRLS inspires and empowers middle school girls to identify themselves as authentic, confident, and resilient, preparing them for real-life success. Helena was asked to keynote to 100 middle school girls on the theme of girls being limitless.
May the 4th be with Youth. Happening now. I’ve been given the honor of kicking off Youth Day Long Beach 2024 with a poem. Thank you to the office of @rexrichardsonlb for the honor! Go Long Beach! More power to our youth!
#youthdayinthelbc #youthdayinthelbc2024 #youthpoet
The Westerly Way Award is a culminating award given at graduation to the one Westerly School student who most exemplifies and demonstrates the mission and core values of Westerly School. This student is exemplary across all potential dimensions of personal development, including academic, athletic, and artistic achievement, as well as advancing and living the core values of Westerly School. Being seen and awarded in her own community is, indeed, the greatest award of all.
In the stories that she shares as an Educator working for Disability Justice, Helena talks about the champions in her life — her own educators who understand and accommodate her multiple non-apparent learning disabilities, who recognize her assets and support her to succeed, and who stand by her side in the fight for the just and fair education every student deserves. Her clarion call for champions and her powerful framework around their work of disability justice has resulted in a partnership with the National Education Association on a campaign called “Become a Champion for Disability Rights and Inclusion” (2023). This is a gallery of the champions in Helena’s K-8 schooling. (A few others are not pictured.)
Helena is featured in a topic series for the Discovery Education platform. The series features the stories of three different students, and Producer Allison Andrews believed Helena represents the character quality of empathy. Discovery Education is the worldwide EdTech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. Through its award-winning multimedia content, instructional supports, and innovative classroom tools, Discovery Education helps educators deliver equitable learning experiences engaging all students and supporting higher academic achievement on a global scale. Discovery Education serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 100 countries and territories.
“Dear Helena,…you reminded us ‘to help educate those who hinder us’ by helping to right the systems that diminish those with disabilities, working to end ableism, and by supporting those with disabilities who are leading the way for disability rights.
On behalf of 3 million NEA members across this nation, I thank you for sharing your wisdom and superpowers with the very people who are poised to make a difference in every child’s life.
In solidarity,
Becky Pringle
President, National Education Association”
Helena often speaks of the educators in her life who understand and accommodate her multiple – and invisible – learning disabilities as her “Champions.” Becky Pringle, the President of the NEA, was so taken with Helena’s concept of champions that the NEA has partnered with Helena to do a national campaign with her to reach the NEA’s 3 million educators with important information about disability rights and inclusion. Find out more about the campaign here.
Continuing to build upon her work with the NEA, Helena was invited to address the 9,000 delegates of the NEA Representative Assembly and speak to them about disability rights and inclusion. Listen to her keynote here.
In this gallery:
NEA Leadership Summit 2023 Moscone Center, San Francisco, CA March 10-12, 2023
NEA Representative Assembly 2023 Orange County Convention Center,
Orlando, FL July 1-6, 2023
#genz #youthactivism #disabilityjustice #poetry #changemakers #july4 #keynotespeaker #keynote #keynoteaddress #disabilityadvocacy #disabilityrights #disabilityinclusion #disabilityjustice @neatoday
Mission Magazine is a global fashion magazine with a purpose-driven mission to raise awareness around global social causes such as human rights, peace and security, climate justice, STEM, gender, and youth issues. Mission Magazine is not only about giving back, it also aims to engage socially conscious people and companies through the lens of fashion to help those in need. Helena was featured in this global fashion magazine by invitation and is a part of their series on young global changemakers. She is the youngest changemaker featured in the issue. Click here to see Helena’s feature.
President Chris Gilmer honored Helena with an invitation to keynote for the Community Colleges of Appalachia Fall Conference at WVU Potomac State College in Keyser, WV. President Gilmer was the first to give Helena, at the age of 10 in 2019, her first big national platform when he named her Designated Poet of the National Institutes for Historically-Underserved Students. The conference theme was on “Exploring Inclusion and Belonging in Community Colleges” and Helena spoke about intersectionality, anti-bullying, Black girlhood, Disability Justice, and the joys and challenges of being a neurodivergent student in K-8 and High School. She concluded her talk with a poem she originally wrote in 2019 for the Institutes titled “Future Me Thanks You.”
The Global Youth Awards is a celebration of youth around the world with nominations from nearly 70 countries. Helena found out she was a finalist in the Educational Leadership category and traveled to London, UK for the awards ceremony on November 18, 2023, and was one of only 12 winners world-wide, the youngest awardee, and the only awardee from the United States.
Diversability is an international community of people with disabilities on a mission to elevate disability pride. Now in its third year, the D-30 Disability Impact List recognizes the unique accomplishments of its most impactful community members globally through a nomination and selection process. Out of almost 250 nominations from around the world, Helena has been named as one of 30 Honorees for 2022. Helena also has the distinction of being the youngest in her cohort and the youngest recipient of the honor to date. Congratulations to the D-30 Disability Impact List Honorees of 2022!! #d30dislist #Diversability
Read more… About Diversability. About D-30. About Helena’s Impact.
Helena Donato-Sapp of Long Beach, California, received the 2024 Yes I Can Award for Academics from the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC). Helena will be honored this March along with other Yes I Can recipients at the CEC Convention and Expo in San Antonio, Texas.
The Yes I Can Awards celebrate and honor the achievements of children and youth with exceptionalities while increasing public awareness of the abilities and aspirations of students with disabilities.
The Generations Award, presented annually by the National Institutes for Historically-Underserved Students, recognizes multiple generations of the same family for their brave and selfless commitment to social justice, equity, and inclusion for all people. Watch Helena accept the award on her family’s behalf here.
Named after Judy Heumann and Elijah Armstrong, the Heumann-Armstrong Education Award is awarded annually to six students with disabilities who demonstrate leadership in education. This is the third year of the Heumann-Armstrong Awards and the first award since Judy’s passing. It is awarded to students around the nation who show exceptional dedication to advancing the rights of disabled students in education and the award honors students who are carrying on the legacy of Judy Heumann.
Abolitionist Education is a teaching approach that centers on abolishing oppressive educational systems, while loving, protecting, remembering, and healing children of color and their communities.
(AbolitionistTeachingNetwork.org)
(2023-2024). Helena Lourdes Donato-Sapp is humbled to have been awarded a grant for a second year from the Abolitionist Teaching Network in recognition of her relentless, bold, and courageous work along with others across the nation as an Educator for Disability Justice. ATN also highlights Helena as a Featured Grantee on their website.
Read more… About the Abolitionist Teaching Network. About ATN Grants for Educators.
Helena was a Finalist for the 11th Los Angeles Youth Poet Laureate (the first LA YPL was poet Amanda Gorman). She was one of fifteen youth Finalists and she read an original poem titled “Neurodiverse Activist Poet” and was awarded the title of Los Angeles Youth Poet Ambassador. The LA YPL program is sponsored by Urban Word of New York City.
Following a successful year in her role as inaugural Youth Poet Ambassador, Helena was awarded the title of Youth Poet Laureate of Long Beach for 2024-2025. The Youth Poet Laureate Program is administered through the Long Beach Public Library, with support from the Arts Council for Long Beach, guidance from Urban Word, and funding by the city. As Youth Poet Ambassador, she was invited to share her original poetry to local audiences at various events and venues throughout the year, such as the Long Beach City Council meeting, the historic launch of the Long Beach Commission for Women and Girls, the city’s Black History Month celebration, and its very first Youth Day in the LBC. Helena also continued to learn from local Southern California poets and artists who led Saturday workshops, at the same time lead her own workshops for teens. The YPL Ceremony was held at the distinguished Edison Theatre in downtown on May 9, 2024. Helena was one of ten finalists selected to read for the ceremony where the new Youth Poet Laureate was announced along with four Youth Poet Ambassadors. The event was covered by the Long Beach Press Telegram.
Helena participated in a year-long Youth Poet Laureate Program through the Long Beach Public Library, the Arts Council for Long Beach, and Urban Word. She attended Saturday workshops led by local Southern California poets and artists, shared original poetry at various events, and has led a poetry workshop for the city’s teenagers during Black History Month at the library. Ten finalists were selected for the inaugural Youth Poet Laureate and Poet Ambassadors. Spectrum News highlighted Helena as an activist poet in a feature on the Youth Poet Laureate Program. See it here. Helena was honored to be selected as one of the inaugural Youth Poet Ambassadors of the City of Long Beach.
From The 74: “After an extensive and comprehensive selection process, we’re thrilled to introduce this year’s class of 16 Under 16 in STEM. The honorees range in age from 12 to 16 and have shown extraordinary achievement in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
The honorees specialize in fields from medicine to agriculture to invention. We hope that these incredible youngsters can inspire others — and offer hope that our future can be in pretty good hands.”
Read more… About The 74. About “16 Under 16.” About Helena’s award.
Donato-Sapp, H., Donato, E., and Sapp, J. (2021). New Moon Girls Magazine 2021 Beautiful Girls Awards recipient.
Helena was recognized as one of the “21 Beautiful Girls” for the magazine. This issue celebrates preteen girls who are making a difference in the world.
In celebration of June as Pride month, Senator Lena A. Gonzalez – representing Senate District 33 – asked for nominations to celebrate the wonderful accomplishments and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community in Senate District 33. Helena was awarded as an Honoree for her pride in lifting up queer families and was honored at the August 5th Brunch Celebration, which was hosted by Senator Gonzalez, Congressman Robert Garcia, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, and Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal.
In celebration of 2023 Women’s History Month, Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal of the 69th District recognized women who have gone above and beyond to serve the assembly district 69 community. Helena won the award in the category of Education and was the youngest recipient of this prestigious honor. March 30, 2023. View a clip of the award ceremony here.
Helena’s music teacher, Mrs. Geiser, invited Helena to be the Concertmaster at the Knotts Berry Farm Music Festival competition. The concertmaster is the lead violinist. As the violinist with the highest “rank”, she sits in the first chair, next to the conductor’s podium. The concertmaster leads the orchestra in its tuning prior to the concert, and customarily lays all of the violin solos within pieces. The ensemble won a trophy in the “Excellent” category, the festival’s highest honor.
Seena Skelton – Director, Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center; Director of Operations, Great Lakes Equity Center
Terah Venzant Chambers – Professor of Educational Administration and Associate Dean in the Graduate School, Michigan State University
The Donato-Sapp family – Helena Donato-Sapp, Jeff Sapp, and Sino Donato
Peter Piazza – Director of School Quality Measures, Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Education Assessment
Different understandings and terms are used to describe similar longings. Terms such as inclusion and integration, and inclusive education are used depending on individuals’ social struggles and what kind of social group they may be discussing. In episode one, we hear from our interviewees as to how they define integration and inclusion, and how their experiences and identities impact these definitions.
In episode two, we examine even more important questions than those posed in episode one: Should we continue to strive for inclusion, school integration, or inclusive education? Is it an all or nothing approach or should we be thinking about it differently depending on the context? Is it always worth it? What are the benefits and challenges?
In episode 3, we focus on the practical aspects of integration and inclusion, focusing specifically on how to go about achieving integration and inclusion in school communities. We learn about the importance of funding, community buy-in, and the need to change mindsets if we are to experience integration. We also learn about a specific framework for integration developed by youth organizers that focuses on race and enrollment, resources, relationships, restorative justice, and representation. And perhaps most importantly, we hear about the importance of listening to students and involving them in school decisions and solutions, as well as developing relationships and caring for one another.
In episode 4, the final episode of the series, we bring together all of the individuals from episodes 1, 2, and 3 for a group discussion to collectively explore areas of conversions across social struggles. We discuss the commonalities and differences across social movements and struggles toward inclusion, whether it's disability, race, or gender, and how these are playing out across the United States. We also discuss the areas of convergence across movements that can serve as catalysts for collaboration. Most importantly, we learn about what we need to focus on in our inclusion and integration efforts, specifically, the importance of belonging, accessibility, humanity, engagement, and centering student voice.
Invited Talk and Publication. Helena was invited to a "kitchen-table talk" by the education journal Equity & Excellence in Education (EEE). The roundtable conversation on Disability Justice entitled A Kitchen-Table Talk Against Ableism: Disability Justice for Collective Liberation was published on March 9, 2022, in an issue of EEE journal. (Recorded Virtual Conversation. January, 2022). Access the article here.
Helena was invited to be a part of this local Southern California calendar that celebrates Black women and their natural hair. This is cited here because it is congruent with Helena’s scholarly work in Black girlhood. It is of particular note that she has written about the politics of Black hair before, in New Moon Girls Magazine in 2021 when she interviewed Tamekia Swint, the founder of Styles4Kids, a non-profit that provides textured hair education, services, and resources that serve kids and families in the biracial, transracial adoptive, and foster care communities.
“Strong Black Girls is reminiscent of our foremother, Anna Julia Cooper, who declared that only the Black woman can say ‘when and where I enter,’ and of Queen Latifah, who declared, ‘Ladies first.’ Much of our scholarship has been focused on the (legitimate) plight of Black boys. However, this does not mean that our girls are not worthy of attention and care. This volume underscores that they are simultaneously strong and vulnerable—and that is something we need to consider as they navigate society and its institutions..”
— Gloria Ladson-Billings, professor emerita, University of Wisconsin
“Danielle Apugo, Lynnette Mawhinney, and Afiya Mbilishaka have gathered together the voices of several powerful Black women—and one strong Black girl—to lead the conversation about their lives in schools, and to imagine what an education that celebrated and nurtured their magic might look like. The stories collected in Strong Black Girls are unflinchingly remembered and richly narrated, spanning generational and geographic distance to bring readers to an understanding of Black girls’ experience in the classroom.”
— Isabel Nuñez, professor and director of the School of Education, College of Professional Studies, Purdue University Fort Wayne
Helena presented her chapter for the book Teens on Screens in the Twenty-First Century. In the chapter, she explains how the archetype of the outsider in film and TV saved her and helped her understand and negotiate the isolation she experienced as a pre-teen in middle school.
OK
Deny
