Roberto Germán [00:00:01]:
Welcome to Our Classroom. In this space, we talk about education, which is inclusive of, but not limited to what happens in schools. Education is taking place whenever and wherever we are willing to learn. I am your host, Roberto Germán, and our classroom is officially in session. Welcome back to Our Classroom. Hey, special episode today, man, because I have a man with a master plan. Yes, yes, yall.
Jackson Garcia [00:00:37]:
All.
Roberto Germán [00:00:38]:
The dean of students at Renaissance Charter School at Coral Springs, where he champions equity driven leadership and culturally responsive teaching. With the focus on restorative discipline and inclusive school culture, Jackson Garcia supports both students and educators to build environments where every learner feels seen, heard and empowered. His passion for relationship centered practices has earned him recognition as a visionary leader in educational innovation. And we welcome Jackson Garcia to the space.
Jackson Garcia [00:01:13]:
Thank you, Roberto. That intro, amazing. You definitely have to write the intro to my book.
Roberto Germán [00:01:21]:
Listen, man, I'm here, I'm here, I'm taking royalties, you know what I'm saying? I got three kids to feed, so.
Jackson Garcia [00:01:29]:
That could be worked out.
Roberto Germán [00:01:30]:
Yeah, I'm sure we could come to.
Roberto Germán [00:01:31]:
Some type of agreement, man.
Roberto Germán [00:01:33]:
What's the pleasure to have you here, man? I appreciate you. I appreciate your investment in education in our young people and supporting them, building them up and loving them. I appreciate your journey, everything that you've experienced along the way that, that you've.
Roberto Germán [00:01:49]:
Learned from, grown from, implemented and shared with others, man.
Roberto Germán [00:01:53]:
So I, I know it pretty intimately, but I think it's important for you to share this with the public, man. So let's go ahead and start with your story. What brought you into education? What keeps you committed to the work? And, and now specifically as dean of.
Jackson Garcia [00:02:08]:
Students, I mean, the story I think goes back to when we were in high school. Had the pleasure of attending Central Catholic with you. And in 1999, I actually got offered a scholarship by UMass Amherst, a full scholarship if I became an education mate. Me in education? No, I wanted to be a poli sci major and I decided to go to Merrimack where we ended up being roommates.
Roberto Germán [00:02:38]:
Politics as usual.
Jackson Garcia [00:02:40]:
Politics as usual. And you know, at Merrimack, when, you know, you, you helped me get into certain avenues and get into, you know, this after school program. While working there, my, my passion was still in education, passion was still in politics. And then I got a smack out reality when I worked as a campaign manager for a local politician. I left a job became. And I just found politics at the time to be very dirty. I didn't understand the constant lies in the newspaper and locally. And I went back to the after school program.
Jackson Garcia [00:03:25]:
While there you had left and then you went on to Bread Loaf and then you should say, hey, Jackson, why don't you become a double major? I'm like a double major. Yeah, become a double major in English and get into Bread Loaf. Want to teach the poetry and writing. The summer camp and eventually led me into education and, and social work. So I've done education and social work for a long time. Started off with social work and transitioned later on to education.
Roberto Germán [00:03:57]:
Yeah, man. And appreciative for the way that you.
Roberto Germán [00:04:02]:
Have been receptive to making pivots. Right. Because in, in life often we have.
Roberto Germán [00:04:09]:
To be ready to pivot. We think we're going in a particular direction, but we end up being stared elsewhere. And so you've been ingrained now in.
Roberto Germán [00:04:19]:
In schools for a long time and.
Roberto Germán [00:04:22]:
Have experienced different roles and, and you're a leader.
Roberto Germán [00:04:25]:
You're a leader and I salute you for that.
Roberto Germán [00:04:28]:
But I want to learn, I want to hear from you in terms of how you are fostering the school culture.
Roberto Germán [00:04:34]:
Where every student feels seen, heard and supported. Because I know that's core to your work.
Jackson Garcia [00:04:39]:
Well, yeah, it is, it is. It's very important. The biggest transition, I'll tell you this year is that I went from predominantly working with high school students to now working at a K through 8 and having that shift in dynamic of predominantly working with 15 to 19 year olds to now 5 year olds to 14 year olds. It's is a, it was a huge change. And also the diversity within the group. This is a very diverse community. Caribbean, Central Americans, some, some Europeans, even Eastern Europeans. And getting all these individuals in, in one community, it just has been very interesting.
Jackson Garcia [00:05:28]:
I've grown a lot. Part of it was I'm coming into a new space and I said I had to swallow my ego. Regardless of what I knew before in the past.
Roberto Germán [00:05:38]:
Right.
Jackson Garcia [00:05:39]:
I have to come in with an open mind.
Roberto Germán [00:05:40]:
Humility is a choice.
Jackson Garcia [00:05:42]:
Yeah. And coming in with an open mind is having an understanding that I don't have all the right answers all the time. That regardless of what my experience had been in, in my previous school before here or even in Lawrence, Massachusetts, that this is not Lawrence, this is South Florida, which is, I believe it's not part of the United States. Just very different. It's just a very.
Roberto Germán [00:06:08]:
Florida. In itself, Florida.
Jackson Garcia [00:06:10]:
In itself, Florida is very distinct, but South Florida just, it's just, it's very international. And I'll tell you, as an educator, it's the first time as an educator that I feel 100 comfortable being a Brown man in a building.
Roberto Germán [00:06:27]:
Interesting.
Jackson Garcia [00:06:28]:
You know, it's. Yeah, like moving down here and seeing predominantly leaders of color in all different areas. It surprised me. It surprised me, but it opened up my mind, like, hey, there's possibility of growth here. I don't have to continuously, you know, shapeshift throughout the environment. Now, fostering the relationships with the students is very important. Student parents, then faculty. I think the faculty have to trust you that you're going to do a good job.
Jackson Garcia [00:07:07]:
So you have to listen to the faculty. But once you're connected with the students, regardless of the age level, it's just as I'm gonna listen. Even when you don't want to, you just have to listen and begin to understand their. Their psychology. Like, why did they behave this way? Or, you know, why certain students can't participate in certain programs, because spiritually and also culturally. For example, some of my Haitian students wouldn't show up on one of the days where we had Halloween parties. So having that Halloween party, you have to understand that that community, this is not something that they celebrate in the culture. So navigating through the different cultures, being bilingual helps and.
Jackson Garcia [00:08:02]:
And also becoming interested. I've learned more about bohemian culture while here. More of the Haitian culture. Even though we grew up in Lawrence and around our Haitian friends here, you know, I became more intertwined with Jamaican, Haitian, Trinidadian, and then other aspects of Latin cultures from Central and South. So I think meeting them and even just saying, bonjour, madame, to certain parents, it goes a long way because I'm trying and I'm trying to understand the culture. So.
Roberto Germán [00:08:45]:
Yeah, for sure, man. And I hear you saying that it's.
Roberto Germán [00:08:47]:
Important to practice active listening.
Jackson Garcia [00:08:51]:
Yes.
Roberto Germán [00:08:52]:
And in addition to that, to learn in order to be informed.
Jackson Garcia [00:08:57]:
Yeah.
Roberto Germán [00:08:58]:
And making those cultural connections, even to the point where you try on certain expressions so that you could make connections, open up the doors, and.
Roberto Germán [00:09:08]:
And hopefully nurture those relationships.
Jackson Garcia [00:09:11]:
Absolutely.
Roberto Germán [00:09:12]:
And within what you said, you mentioned that you have this diverse population, you have this richness in your school community. So what does culturally responsive leadership look like in practice at your school? And why is it essential today?
Jackson Garcia [00:09:27]:
Wow. I believe my principal myself does a pretty good job hiring a diverse faculty.
Roberto Germán [00:09:38]:
Shout out to the principal. Shout out to the principal. Got to have her on the podcast.
Jackson Garcia [00:09:43]:
Yes. Yes. Our faculty is very diverse. It's the first time I worked with bohemian Trinidadian Jamaican teachers, you know, seeing how they run the classrooms. I mean, and we have. I think most of every cultural group is represented within our school, which is. I've Never seen. I'm talking about Puerto Rican teachers, Dominican teachers, Haitian teachers, just people from all different walks of life, even individuals who are.
Jackson Garcia [00:10:19]:
Because what's unique about South Florida is that most people are not from here. You know, we're implants. Like, I've been in South Florida now for five years. But even the individuals who are from these communities, they are represented. These are local folks, local teachers that also have grown in the area. So. And then this year, we have actually international faculty coming in, Asian faculty coming in. And that's something that I don't know if she does directly, but it's definitely reflected within the school.
Roberto Germán [00:10:58]:
I love it. I love it. And at some point, I would love to speak with her about her hiring.
Roberto Germán [00:11:04]:
Approach and also how she's fostering that culture amongst the faculty and staff. Because we embrace the differences. And, you know, differences sometimes bring some. Some rub also.
Jackson Garcia [00:11:16]:
Yeah.
Roberto Germán [00:11:17]:
You know, when it comes to. I'm thinking about the nature of your work, right.
Roberto Germán [00:11:20]:
As a dean, and we know how.
Roberto Germán [00:11:24]:
It goes when it comes to dean of students.
Roberto Germán [00:11:25]:
You know, you're dealing with discipline, a lot of discipline. You're dealing with supporting the students, helping them to navigate the behaviors, their emotions, so on and so forth. And discipline is often where equity gets tested.
Jackson Garcia [00:11:39]:
Right.
Roberto Germán [00:11:39]:
We're being honest.
Roberto Germán [00:11:41]:
How have you approached student discipline in.
Roberto Germán [00:11:43]:
Ways that are both restorative and effective?
Jackson Garcia [00:11:50]:
The first thing, I go back and I reflect on my own personal experience, my high school experience, my college experience, and see how has that shaped. And also, what I've been lucky is that as a dean, I was a dean at Lawrence High for five years. I was a dean at Notre Dame Cristo Rey for two years. So Catholic school, public school environments, going from 200 students to 3,000. So, yeah. And then coming. Transitioning to South Florida, Adams, start back from the beginning. So I actually went back into the classroom.
Jackson Garcia [00:12:32]:
So having the experience of going back into the classroom and teaching in the classroom gives me a mindset of a teacher now to practice, like, restorative discipline. This goes back to early on. Rob, when we were in high school, was educating the whole person. Like, okay, how can this situation, this particular situation. You know, I'll tell you a funny story. I had three boys who are friends. They're messing around in the classroom, and we know how it goes. Like, stop, don't mess around.
Jackson Garcia [00:13:14]:
Especially play fighting. That play fighting. Play fighting and joking ended up leading into a real fight. Now, by the time they got to my office, they regretted it. And the way that I work with their. The restorative aspect. Okay. How can I have them reflect in a different way? Instead of massive amount suspension now, they did get certain amount of suspensions, not while it was required.
Jackson Garcia [00:13:47]:
But then I spoke to the parents. I'm like, hey, during spring break, I'm here on campus. Bring them over, have them volunteer at the school. And what I saw that the boys worked together. They even worked with some of the younger children who we had on campus, and they helped out. How was that restorative? Because they were giving back to their community within the school. They were helping out the IT individual. They were helping out the younger students and with academic work.
Jackson Garcia [00:14:17]:
And they also built a different relationship with me because I'm seeing them in a different life. It's a more relaxed environment because we're here during spring break. But now you're giving back into the community. But the parents had to buy in. I couldn't get this one of the parents buying it. And the parents trust me. So the parents have to trust you that you're doing it for the best intention. I think part of it, like, for example, one of the parents.
Jackson Garcia [00:14:46]:
I think all the parents were island. One of the parents happened to be Dominican, so it was easy to communicate. And then the other two were. They understood, like, what was the purpose? You know, let's not give them huge punitive punishment. Let's give them a punishment and at the same time restore their. The significance of the classroom space. I shouldn't behave this way because not only they. They felt disappointed, that they disappointed me, but I'm like, no, you disappointed your teacher, you disappointed your peers, and you disappointed your parents.
Jackson Garcia [00:15:21]:
And this is how we're going to fix this.
Roberto Germán [00:15:24]:
Yeah. Now it's important, man. It's important that we're all working together. Right? That we all have the interest of the children at heart, but that the lines of communication are open and that we are developing a team. Right. That we're getting to know each other.
Roberto Germán [00:15:41]:
And how we work as a team and what.
Roberto Germán [00:15:43]:
What are our different roles and functions and how can we execute so that we're getting the maximized outcome of student potential? And so thanks for sharing that, man.
Roberto Germán [00:15:56]:
When it comes to professional development or support, what. What has helped you, your staff, grow.
Roberto Germán [00:16:04]:
In serving this diverse student body?
Roberto Germán [00:16:07]:
And what would you like to see.
Jackson Garcia [00:16:09]:
More of one thing? And it goes back to, like I said, swallowing your ego. They requested, halfway through the year, a discipline committee. At first I was saying to myself, wow, it's going to be extra work. But after the first meeting, you know, now I get to see their perspective, and they got to see my perspective. And that led to a few more meetings and then led to a professional development that I, I administered and I gave them kind of like a dean for a day experience and get different scenarios and they sat down and they worked together. Because what happens is from the faculty perspective, they only see whether or not the child got punished or not. You know, and there's so many other nuances. Like we have to follow Broward County's behavioral matrix.
Jackson Garcia [00:17:10]:
We are chartered, however, we worked with Broward county under the Broward county rule. And also we're K through 8. So sometimes our middle school teachers wouldn't understand the elementary or vice versa. Or why does a second grader doesn't receive the same consequence as a seventh grader? You know, and running those PDs with them on a cultural aspect, they all come from different backgrounds, so it kind of makes, makes, made it easier. The aspect of understanding, like the daily nuances that either myself or the other admin deal with help them understand more. Okay, this is what Mr. Garcia deals, you know, and it's myself. I do have a, a, a partner, Mr.
Jackson Garcia [00:18:10]:
Bostic, and, and I do receive a system from other administrators, but I'm one for 1500. So I think. Yeah. So having those relationships with the teachers, communicating with the teachers, you know, and they're not always going to be happy with you, you know, but I think one of the things that you always have to go back to is communicating, going back to the teacher, hey, this is what happened. This is what came out of that consequence. And whether or not they like what the consequence was, that they at least trust you, that you're going to make the best decision, not only for them, also the learning environment. I think sometimes we have to make. Okay, listen, like this child is also affecting the learning environment and other students have to learn.
Jackson Garcia [00:19:01]:
So how can we work together to make sure that everyone is still accomplishing the goal, which is, you know, not only meeting the standards, but going above and beyond.
Roberto Germán [00:19:11]:
Absolutely clear and timely communication is critical and, and nurturing these relationships so that you're building trust. Right?
Jackson Garcia [00:19:21]:
Yeah.
Roberto Germán [00:19:22]:
The second part I'm still wondering about though, which is what would you like.
Roberto Germán [00:19:26]:
To see more of as it relates to professional development in sport?
Jackson Garcia [00:19:33]:
More of most likely just in the aspect of just understanding probably more cultural backgrounds of the student and understanding then also how the economy is affecting a lot of families now. Sometimes we feel like a family is not meaning their commitment. Sometimes there are things going on at home that, that we're not aware of. And the advantage that I have, and I'm, you know, I'm saying this honestly, is that, you know, we come from the environment that we did like, you know, and Lawrence is being one of the poor community. I recognize certain signs that sometimes other faculty members don't recognize right away. Hey, wait a minute. This is what might be going on. And how do we dig deeper into that and understand it? Because it's such a diverse community.
Jackson Garcia [00:20:37]:
But we're also in a community. We're in Coral Springs. While we take students from all different communities, Coral Springs is not Miami Gardens or Coral Springs is. Is not, you know, north Lauderdale. There is a little bit more money in this community. However, it's not a complete reflection of our students. You know, we have students of color that come from steadier homes or more financially safe homes, but not all of them, you know, and understanding that. So.
Jackson Garcia [00:21:16]:
So I think in regards to the professional development, more social awareness in the essence of black communities and the financial restraints that families might have. And that's very unique. It's not like something that you could pick up and, you know, go through a catalog. All these are the professional developments available within the district. This is. We want this person to come in like. Like, you know, part of being the dean. I'm also in charge of something.
Jackson Garcia [00:21:54]:
I would. I was never responsible. Rob up north School safety and the school safe safety aspect of it is, you know, it's huge, especially in south Florida. Stoneham Douglas is less than 15 minutes from me.
Roberto Germán [00:22:13]:
Wow.
Jackson Garcia [00:22:14]:
So a lot of safety rules, a lot of laws that I am responsible. So it's something that I didn't experience up north that actually heightens my sense of responsibility here within the school. And at times, like right now, I'm setting up professional development with the police department, with the fire department before I started a school year, you know, things that we didn't have to experience as students. Rob. Like act active shooter drills.
Roberto Germán [00:22:44]:
Right, right.
Jackson Garcia [00:22:44]:
You don't stop the bleed drills. Things that now as educators, we got to think of that before we didn't have to think of.
Roberto Germán [00:22:51]:
Yeah. It's an unfortunate time in which we live in which this has to be a priority.
Jackson Garcia [00:22:57]:
Yeah.
Roberto Germán [00:22:58]:
But we got to confront these realities.
Jackson Garcia [00:23:00]:
Yeah.
Roberto Germán [00:23:00]:
So. So what advice would you give to.
Roberto Germán [00:23:02]:
Fellow educators who are trying to build inclusive, relationship centered learning environments?
Jackson Garcia [00:23:13]:
First, the. The administration has to be on board. If the administration is not on board with it. And you know, when you go into any institution and you're going through the interview process, you know, you could Tell after you've been through so many different experiences and the interview process here, first it was virtual, then it was in person, and then again it was with a diverse group of individuals. And at this point in my life, my very sincere and honest of who I am and what I bring to the table. So I saw that during the interview process, you know, and. And when they offered me the position, I welcomed it. I think what we need to do as admin and as leaders is to see, okay, what does our population look like or doesn't look like, and how can we have them experience not only the reading material, but also the person.
Jackson Garcia [00:24:24]:
So let's think about this, right? For many of these individuals, I might be the first time that they experience a professional that's Dominican. And all my kids know that I'm Dominican. I don't hide it. But. Okay, when they become adults, they might be, let's say, Russian. I have Russian students. I had a Dominican dean. He was amazing.
Jackson Garcia [00:24:48]:
I was able to go to him. I was able to talk. So those experiences that the. The students will receive, it goes back to your hiring process. Who do you hire and put in. Put in the classroom because diversity is not only of the mind, but it was also the different backgrounds that represent the community. So making sure that the students see one of our strongest math teachers in the building, the women of color students, to see that important for them to experience. That is important, whether it's a Puerto Rican math teacher or Jamaican math teachers, for them to see it and experience it, say, hey, I could do this if they could, and they could see it.
Jackson Garcia [00:25:39]:
So that's also being inclusive. I don't know if I answered it.
Roberto Germán [00:25:46]:
Yeah, yeah, no, thanks for sharing. I mean, it's all about creating an environment, being strategic, amplifying the voices, stories, and work of. Of folks that are bringing all that richness into the environment, being intentional about working on relationships and. And showing up, showing up in the fullness of who you are, including bringing your culture with you and sharing that culture so that everybody could learn from one another. And thankfully, you're also in an environment in which there. There's so much rich, diverse culture that it lends itself for more learning opportunities.
Jackson Garcia [00:26:29]:
Yeah. And it's celebrated here. Something. Something that not only we have a celebration on International Day, but when I was really proud of, to be part of, was a celebration of, you know, the African American experience during February here. And it was a huge presentation. I'm Talking about probably 500, 600 parents showed up, and there's students put on different exhibitions, different performances throughout the school. So it was celebrated and it was accepted here. And it was beautiful.
Jackson Garcia [00:27:11]:
Especially in today's climate. In today's climate and seeing the faces in the hallway and seeing students learn, regardless of their background, about the different African Americans who contributed to this society and continuing to contribute to the society. It was beautiful. It was beautiful.
Roberto Germán [00:27:30]:
That's awesome, man.
Roberto Germán [00:27:32]:
So as we wrap up here, man.
Roberto Germán [00:27:34]:
For those who want to learn more about your work, connect with you, pick your brain, where can they follow you?
Jackson Garcia [00:27:40]:
I think the right environment will be LinkedIn. You know, you look me up on LinkedIn, you know, Jackson Garcia, there's not that many Jackson Garcia's in this world. Jackson Leroy Garcia, that you are one of one. I am one of one. So I think that's the best way to reach me or you know, if they want to connect also with you, you know, you could refer them to me. But there's one thing I did want to touch upon, Rob that and we don't that sometimes, especially admin forget. One of the biggest learning lessons I've had, I've been in administration close to 15 years, is setting also a car off point on your day. Because we all have families and sometimes we want to bring the work home with us.
Jackson Garcia [00:28:32]:
And I've learned the hard way sometimes after a certain time of the day, you gotta leave it out. Yeah, I mean, leave it in boundaries.
Roberto Germán [00:28:40]:
I mean boundaries, bro.
Jackson Garcia [00:28:42]:
Yeah, leave it at home, leave it in the office. Once you go home, you gotta turn off the switch. You're no longer principal, dean AP, your dad, your coach, you know, and also finding time for yourself. Something that helps me a lot, you know, I'm in the weight room at least three to four times a week. I'm jogging once a week. And Roberto, you know, the invitation's still there for the one on one whenever you want it.
Roberto Germán [00:29:11]:
You don't want the smoke, bro.
Jackson Garcia [00:29:13]:
You, you don't want it.
Roberto Germán [00:29:15]:
You know, I want you to be.
Jackson Garcia [00:29:17]:
Able to, I want you to be.
Roberto Germán [00:29:18]:
Able to show up to your school and do the good work that you're doing with these kids. And if I go down there and get on the basketball court with you, it might disrupt the, the good work that you're doing with these kids. I'm suck the confidence out of you, man.
Jackson Garcia [00:29:30]:
Nah man. No, never that. Never that. And also one other thing as you know, something I didn't bring up. I'm also a professor, so four nights a week, I'm teaching at night, in person and virtually so in person I'm in the classroom, so it still connects me to the classroom. Even though I'm working with adults, I still have to teach. And when I model lessons in the classroom, I'm using some of the lessons that I have at night and I restructure and I illustrate to the teachers, hey, if I can do this with your students and with college students, you can also do.
Roberto Germán [00:30:06]:
Absolutely, absolutely. And that's great, man. And it'd be great to have more conversations between those that teach in the K through 12 world and those that there are teaching adults. Right. Teaching college, university level, man. Well, I appreciate your time, appreciate your insight. Yeah, certainly. Always welcome on the platform.
Roberto Germán [00:30:26]:
Looking forward to learning more about the work that's being done at Renaissance Charter School at Coral Springs and the network in general. And so amen.
Roberto Germán [00:30:38]:
Salute to you. Wishing you a great rest of the summer.
Roberto Germán [00:30:42]:
I'm wishing you a great 20, 25, 26 school year.
Jackson Garcia [00:30:46]:
Thank you, bro. Appreciate you as always.
Roberto Germán [00:30:50]:
Your engagement in our classroom is greatly appreciated. Be sure to subscribe, rate the show and write a review. Finally, for resources to help you understand the intersection of race, bias, education and society, go to multiculturalclassroom.com Peace and love from from your host, Roberto Herman.
