Free Tendaji

This is the wisdom that influenced me since my days growing up in the Gullah Sea Islands of South Carolina. My name is Reginald Tendaji Bailey. Upon first moving to New York, I was a 7th and 8th grade Special Education Math Teacher at a charter school in Brownsville, Brooklyn. I was responsible for whole and small group math instruction and lead cultural events. As an educator, I have extensive experience with developing detailed student-oriented lesson plans as well as culturally responsive workshops for adolescents. I have served as an instructor of African dance, improvisational acting, and other performance arts. My work as an educator has utilized the concept of STEAM—Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics but ultimately the current high-stakes test environment is edging culture, arts, and history out of the classroom. While teaching for two years was enriching, I explored a different route for empowering young people.

My next venture to serve the community was through KAVI (Kings Against Violence Initiative) as their Community Intervention Coordinator. I was afforded the opportunity to create and develop an after school program that provided space for youth to discuss and process how violence impacts their lives and provide tools to help heal and manage daily stressors. I was also able to develop an arts education program called Young Exhibition Makers. Teen throughout the five boroughs of New York City were brought together to create and curate an art exhibit that explored topics the resonated with them: teenhood, black identity, mindfulness, family matters, violence, and gender equality.