THE JOINT COMMITTEE FOR TRUTH, RACIAL HEALING AND TRANSFORMATION (TRHT)
As a local grassroots non-profit organization, SJM is committed to active inquiry into matters of race in our society and to working toward an equitable community. As a resource for community concerns and meaningful efforts to disrupt systemic racism SJM seeks to address the heightened political climate and rising rates of socio-economic inequality in the United States. One effort developed by SJM is the Joint Committee for Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT).
The TRHT is an outgrowth of the community’s response to racial epithets drawn on the walls of the SPF High School in the Fall of 2018. The Township of Scotch Plains, Borough of Fanwood, and the Scotch Plains-Fanwood School District expressed their desire to institutionalize their support for efforts to promote racial healing, education and community engagement against racism.
They recognized Social Justice Matters, Inc. as a community-based 501(c)3 corporation that serves as a resource for community concerns, facilitates truthful and meaningful engagement in racial healing endeavors and whose members are committed to active inquiry into matters of race in our society and to working towards an equitable community. In 2010, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation launched the America Healing initiative “to support communities in healing from the effects of racism and working to transform the systems and structures that limit opportunity for children and families.” They then developed the Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT) model as “a multi-year, national and community-based effort to engage communities, organizations and individuals from multiples sectors across the United States in racial healing and addressing present-day inequities linked to historic and contemporary beliefs in a hierarchy of human value.”
A part of that initiative was Kellogg awarding a grant to the American Association of Colleges & Universities to create TRHT centers around the country. Rutgers University-Newark (RU-N) was designated as one of ten original TRHT centers. RU-N agreed to partner with SJM to support, facilitate, provide training and to technical assistance to the Joint Committee. The mission of the Kellogg Foundation is to provide support children, families and communities in strengthening and creating opportunities for children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society. Embedded in all that they do is “a commitment to racial equity, to developing leaders, and to engaging communities in solving their own problems.
A cornerstone of the TRHT Initiative are Racial Healing Circles – an experience that reaffirms our common humanity, acknowledges that unconscious bias resides in all of us, acknowledges (by listening) the harms of the past through people’s stories and opens our hearts to the spiritual work of loving and affirming ourselves. The work of TRHT initiatives is much more than conversations. It is engaging in the hard work of uniting people for the common cause of unearthing inequity, and systemic racism wherever it exists. In turn, the Joint Committee Resolved, among other things, to do the following:(a) To promote the goals and objectives of the W.K. Kellogg TRHT initiative including convening public discussions, and a discussions series via the multi-media resources of the three pillars of the committee; (b) To develop community-engaged education programs and community youth projects that promotes inter-ethnic, inter-generational civic engagement; (c) To explore funding to support joint TRHT programmatic initiatives and community-engaged education projects. The members of the Joint Committee are all volunteers and include the Mayors of both communities, the Superintendent of Schools, representatives of SJM, the Ministerium, the Board of education and the community at large.
Read about TRHT’s support of SPF School District’s Anti-Bias Training for Educators…
The Scotch Plains Fanwood Joint Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Committee (TRHT) firmly supports our school district’s upcoming anti-bias training program for administrators and educators. TRHT is made up of officials from Scotch Plains, Fanwood, the Board of Education, Scotch Plains-Fanwood Ministerium and Social Justice Matters Inc., as well as the SPF Schools Superintendent, TRHT Center at Rutgers University Newark and members of the public. Following the Listening Tour from summer 2020, TRHT supports the community’s call for this type of program.
The initiative will be led by the distinguished Dr. Khyati Y. Joshi, a professor of education at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She has expertly guided school districts, independent schools, the judiciary, non-profit organizations, faith communities, and businesses, including Fortune 500 companies, in fostering equity and inclusion for more than 20 years. She also is co-founder of the Institute for Teaching Diversity and Social Justice, which trains educators and administrators. Dr. Joshi is also familiar with Fanwood and Scotch Plains, having led several programs in partnership with Social Justice Matters during the past several years.
As the Board of Education so aptly describes the program, our educational professionals “will come to understand the institutional and societal barriers that impact the education experience of many students due to the presence of racial, religious, class, gender, and sexual orientation/gender identity biases.” The training is only one step in the process of achieving the school district’s goal of an inclusive, cohesive education community that is
better equipped to address issues of bias. This is particularly important at this time in our community and nation.
Joel Abraham, Rabbi, Temple Sholom, Scotch Plains/Fanwood Ministerium
Erin McElroy Barker, Councilwoman, Borough of Fanwood
Jill Jackson-Jones, Board Member, Social Justice Matters
Josh Losardo, Mayor, Township of Scotch Plains
Colleen Mahr, Mayor, Borough of Fanwood
Joan Mast, Superintendent, Scotch Plains Fanwood Schools
Leland McGee, Vice-President, Social Justice Matters
Joan Peters, President, Social Justice Matters
Sharon Stroye, Director TRHT Center, Rutgers University-Newark
Stephanie Suriani, SPF Board of Education Member, Scotch Plains
Shawn Wallace, Pastor, St. John’s Baptist Church, Scotch Plains/Fanwood Ministerium Roshan White, Councilman, Township of Scotch Plains
Amy Winkler, SPF Board of Education Member, Fanwood
