| Forwarded this newsletter? Subscribe here. | Good morning and happy Friday! Fun fact: my career started in 2014, when I left my full-time job to build a national nonprofit bringing yoga and mindfulness to schools. We sunsetted during the start of the pandemic, but during that time, we worked alongside educators integrating mindfulness into SEL (social-emotional learning) curriculum, and creating calmer spaces to learn and grow. You can find our meditations on our YouTube, and the curriculum we used reflected in my children’s book. | It’s why I go so hard for teachers, and love the work of DonorsChoose. Right now, teaching SEL in schools is a political act, one that’s at the forefront of the anti-empathy movement growing in conservative circles. Today’s newsletter highlights how this approach ultimately fails all movements, regardless of what’s governing them, and why we can all benefit from cultivating more empathetic skills. Let me know what you think. | When we support educators, we stand in solidarity with the children they nurture and the social issues they’re navigating. Today is the last day of Teacher Appreciation Week, and you can help us with our goal of funding ten more classroom projects! Use this link to see schools in need, curated for this group fo readers: donorschoose.org/reimagined | All donations today are matched – so your impact goes twice as far. | This newsletter is powered by the people – people just like you. Here's how you can help us stay sustainable. Thank you to everyone who’s a part of this community! | Make a one-time or monthly donation on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@reimaginednews). You can always manage your subscription here. Sponsor an upcoming issue
| In solidarity,
Nicole
Follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram for more | ps – looking for the audio version of this newsletter? Click to read the web version, and you’ll find the audio recording at the top of the page. This is a service provided by Beehiiv, our email publishing platform, and AI-generated. |
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| | | | Help us support ten more classrooms this week with DonorsChoose in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week! Use this link to find classrooms selected for our community to care for. Many donations are being matched today, so look for the 2x icon to find projects where your gift is doubled! | Remember, 100% of your donation goes directly to obtaining the supplies the teacher listed. You donate, and once the campaign is complete, all those resources are shipped to the classroom. It’s that easy. | Here are a few classrooms that need $50 or less to finish their projects: | Mrs. Ilona Jones-Saffold in Sallis, MS needs $28 to give her students a magnetic drawing board, Play-Doh, mechanical pencils, and other essential classroom supplies, student incentives, and organizational tools to help create a focused, engaging, and well-managed learning environment. Support > Ms. Ornelas in Gardena, CA needs $26 to get her kindergarteners a color printer to personalize their writing and add a creative touch to their stem projects. Support > Mrs. Pearson in Memphis, TN has just $24 left to create storage charging station for her classroom’s tablets. Support > Mrs. Edwards-Smith’s classroom in Durham, NC needs $16 more to get tactile learning tools to help build their skills in math, reading, science, and social studies. Support >
| | | |  | A photograph of a child’s hands drawing simple illustrations of people with different identities, with crayons scattered across the paper. Photo Source: Unsplash |
| Make America Care Again | The importance of empathy – from solidarity to schooling | Teachers across America have quietly led a revolution in how we understand education, championing empathy as essential to learning rather than merely a "nice to have" soft skill. Long before policymakers and administrators began advocating for SEL, classroom teachers see firsthand how students struggling with emotional regulation couldn't focus on academics, how social conflicts derailed learning, and how disconnected students disengaged from school entirely. These educators use innovative approaches—community circles, emotional check-ins, perspective-taking exercises—often without formal support or resources. | And these same teachers are now finding themselves in the midst of another social issue: the rise of the anti-empathy movement. Religious and political leaders have blamed empathy for the rise of the woke movement, the government’s “over-investment” in social services, and the pitfalls of the progressive agenda. | Many of the arguments are driven by conservative Christian ideology. Pastor Ben Garrett, a Protestant deacon, went viral for calling empathy a "sin" (Patheos). In his book "The Sin of Empathy: Compassion and Its Counterfeits," Joe Rigney claims emotions are being weaponized when church leaders talk about racial reconciliation or when doctors support parents of transgender children (Canon Press). He tries to separate what he calls proper "compassion" from what he sees as dangerous "untethered empathy" (Premier Christianity). Similarly, podcaster Allie Beth Stuckey wrote "Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion," making nearly identical arguments about the difference between "toxic empathy" and biblical compassion (Penguin Random House). She attacks progressive positions that frame abortion rights or welcoming immigrants as expressions of compassion (Juicy Ecumenism). Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theologi |
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