Cultural Competency Workshop

Inspired by a highly received Spring 2026 collaboration “Empowering Educators” with Philippine Center of MN (PCM) and Filipinx for Immigrant Rights & Racial Justice in MN (FIRM), Elevate Teaching once again helped to organize a Cultural Competency all-day Training.

PELSB- certified trainers Seema Pothini and Mel Andersen (AmazeWorks) presented alongside Dr. Marci Levy-Maguire. 

A special legal session with Attorney Jeffrey Heidkamp (Davis Immigration Lawyers) was featured through support from Filipinx for Immigrant Rights and Racial Justice in MN (FIRM), who also provided additional funding.

Twenty-eight teachers, educators and paraprofessionals from twelve school districts attended and received their PELSB CEU Certificates. 

One participant has this to say about teaching and cultural competency: 

“We teachers/education staff are blessed to have the opportunity to touch the lives of our students everyday. True cultural competency requires actively creating an inclusive environment where every student’s background is valued. It requires educators to constantly examine their own biases, adapt to changing student demographics, and commit to lifelong learning. As the world and our students change, our teaching methods must evolve with them.”

We are grateful to the PCM board and volunteers for all the work they put in with food, transportation, community communications.

Special thanks to our generous partner Kids In Need Foundation and Colleen Gray (VP, Mission Impact) for gifting all attendees with valuable school and art supplies.

If you are interested in having a Cultural Competency Training in your school or organization or inquiring about PELSB-certified trainings, please contact marlina.gonzalez@elevateteaching.us