Diversity education is fundamental to a pluralistic, democratic society. As a result, the best public teachers and administrators are those who work for the greater good, not only accountable for instruction, efficiency and cost effectiveness, but also teaching and modeling values such as equity and fairness.

The Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at The University of Texas at Austin and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) are partnering to offer a week-long series of trainings and workshops for Central Texas educators on topics related to social justice. The ADL's Summer Educators' Institute aims to build skills and provide best practices to help students learn to accept and appreciate differences and to foster a sense of inclusion among increasingly diverse student populations.

Prejudice is learned the same way other attitudes and values are learned, through association, reinforcement and modeling. As early as infancy, people begin to distinguish between the familiar and the strange, who looks like me and who does not. As children grow older they tend to join groups with other children who are "like" them and learn to draw boundaries. By adolescence, group identity becomes a significant factor contributing to social dynamics.

In many cases teachers are the primary role models in young people's lives second only to their parents. They play a critical role in impacting how young people perceive the world around them. Because one of the first steps in reducing prejudice is for people to become aware of their own unconscious stereotyping, a day-long anti-bias training called A World of Difference™ will be offered. The training leads participants through a series of exercises to identify their own biases and to arm educators with tools and curriculum to effectively address bias and prejudice and promote intergroup harmony among students.

Research has shown that anti-bias efforts are most beneficial when the efforts are in-depth, long-term and infused into the overall curriculum;students are introduced to multicultural activities at a young age; and teachers have the attitudes, training, materials and support needed to deliver the activities and lessons.

We all can play a role in combating bias and stereotypes. Children carefully observe how the adults in their lives intervene when someone is the target of hurtful or discriminatory behavior. Silence in the face of injustice implies that adults condone this behavior or consider it not worthy of attention. Teachers and administrators have a special responsibility to nurture a campus culture that feels welcoming to students of every faith, culture and walk of life and to model respectful behavior.

The goal of the conference is to provide tools and best practices so these educators can help prevent the development of prejudice in the hundreds of young lives they impact every year.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.