Welcome to Equity Intersection!

   Talia Whyte is a freelance journalist who reports on issues related to race, social justice, and media.  Her work can be found in The Boston Globe, MSNBC, PBS, Al Jazeera English, The Grio, Houston Chronicle, and The Progressive, among many others.  She is also the founder and director of Global Wire Associates, a digital marketing firm, and the author of several books on the social politics of technology.  

 Pipier Smith-Mumford has been working in the field of education for over 40 years. She has been a teacher of adults seeking their high school equivalency diploma, a high school guidance counselor, and a pre k-9 principal.  During the first 30 years of her experiences in the schoolhouse, Smith-Mumford sought to always put the needs of students and families at the forefront of her work. She believes in the power of strong collegial relationships and is presently utilizing those to build partnerships that benefit students, families and educators. During her 19-year tenure as principal in Brookline, MA, she facilitated progressive, collaborative strategies, inclusive of the diverse voices of all who work with children and young people. This set the foundation of the work she continues as an independent consultant with school administrators from across the state on issues of equity and self-care, primarily through facilitating small groups and one to one coaching and mentoring. Her consultant work also provides an opportunity to lead area principals and their faculties in professional development with a laser focus on issues of diversity, equity and inclusion. Additionally, as a senior lecturer and field director at Boston University’s Wheelock College of Education and Human Development, Smith-Mumford strives to help prepare the next generation of aspiring school leaders.  Long ago, she embraced a leadership style framed in the belief that no student can begin to learn until they feel safe, cared for and connected to at least one adult in the school. Her mantra is “relationships matter!” Pipier Smith-Mumford received her Bachelor of Arts from Smith College, Northampton, MA; her Master of Education from Harvard University Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA and her Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Administration from Boston College, Lynch School of Education, Chestnut Hill, MA. She has been married to her husband Gregory Mumford for 37 years and they live in Milton, MA. 

 Sarah Orlov (she/her) has been a public school special educator for 40 years and is currently in her 14th year as a special education administrator focused on supporting inclusive environments for every student. Sarah has two adult children, one of whom has a developmental disability and she has a BA from Tufts University and an MA from Gallaudet College. Sarah lives and works in the Boston area.  

  Ed Levy is a Board Certified Pediatrician who practices at MIT Medical in Cambridge. For 23 years prior to that, he served as a pediatrician in underserved urban communities in Boston with a special focus on mental health issues in primary care. In 2010, he received a Special Project Award from the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers to develop a program to comprehensively advocate for and support kids and families whose needs were not being met by the Boston Public School system. He received his undergraduate degree at Yale, his M.D. at Washington University-St. Louis and a Master of Public Health at the Harvard School of Public Health. 

  Paul Auger is a Rhode Island resident who works as the Assistive Technology Specialist for the Public Schools of Brookline, in Massachusetts.  Paul holds a Masters of Arts in Agency Counseling from Rhode Island College and a second Masters from Fitchburg University in education.  He was admitted to Northeastern University’s doctoral program recently, where he will be looking at the intersection of technology and social-emotional education. In his spare time, Paul enjoys photography, digital art, and kite flying.   In addition to his graduate degrees, Paul is certified by the Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America, formerly the Rehabilitation Engineering Society of North America, RESNA as an Assistive Technology Professional, ATP. He is also licensed to teach Special Education in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Over the last 25 years, Paul has been a member of several committees and conferences related to assistive technology. He has provided assistive technology training to children and adults with a variety of special needs. Moreover, he has provided training to those who have worked with these students, set up assistive technology labs, and developed a curriculum to teach about assistive technology.