MAECC

2027

Against The Current:

Restore, Strategize, & Rise in a Time of Resistance

There are other conferences... this is not like them.

Mid-Atlantic Educators of Color Conference

Against The Current:
Restore, Strategize, & Rise in a Time of Resistance

April 2-3 | Baltimore, MD

MAECC is a space by and for educators of color — rooted in community, built on shared experience, and designed to center the voices, leadership, and brilliance that too often go unrecognized in our institutions.

We invite educators from across the region to join two days of learning, connection, and restoration. Whether you are deepening your own practice, finding your people, or stepping into leadership, this conference meets you where you are — and calls you further.

All who are committed to this work are welcome here. We ask every attendee to enter with intention, to honor the purpose of this space, and to let that purpose shape how you show up.

Opening Keynote:

Dr. Chrissy M. Thornton

President & CEO, Associated Black Charities

A dynamic leader, advocate, and strategist, Dr. Thornton has dedicated her career to advancing equity, expanding opportunity, and strengthening economic empowerment for Black communities across Maryland. Through her visionary leadership at ABC, she has elevated critical conversations around wealth equity, health disparities, and systemic change, mobilizing partnerships that generate meaningful and measurable impact.

Dr. Thornton’s keynote will both challenge and inspire attendees to reflect on the role of educators and institutions in creating pathways to equity that reach beyond the classroom and into the heart of our communities.

Closing Keynote:

Dr. Liza Talusan

Educator | Speaker | Author | Coach

Dr. Talusan is an award-winning educator, author of The Identity-Conscious Educator: Building Habits and Skills for More Inclusive Schools, and a nationally recognized expert in leadership, diversity, equity, and inclusion. With over 25 years of experience guiding individuals and institutions through transformative learning, Dr. Talusan invites educators to engage in courageous self-reflection and develop the skills necessary to create inclusive and thriving school communities.

Her keynote will inspire attendees to examine the power of identity-conscious practice and how we can all lead with intentionality, compassion, and accountability.

Locations

Day 1:
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
830 E Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21202

Day 2:
Bryn Mawr School
109 W Melrose Ave, Baltimore, MD 21210

Parking

Park at PMI — the garage directly across the street from the Reginald F. Lewis Museum.

Hotels

Courtyard by Marriott Baltimore Downtown/Inner Harbor
1000 Aliceanna St, Baltimore, MD 21202
(443) 923-4000

Hyatt Place Baltimore/Inner Harbor
511 S Central Ave, Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 558-1840

Baltimore Marriott Waterfront
700 Aliceanna St, Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 385-3000

Taking the metro?

Plan your trip here.

MAECC 2027 Call for Proposals

Conference Theme:
Against the Current: Restore, Strategize, & Rise in a Time of Resistance

In the face of real and sustained attacks on DEI, honest history, and educators and students of color, this theme holds three things at once: restoration, strategy, and rise. We gather to restore — to fill back up, to be seen, to remember why we chose this work. We gather to strategize — to be subversive in the quiet, deliberate way educators of color have always been subversive: by staying, by teaching truth, by building community that institutions cannot dismantle. And we gather to rise — to leave more prepared, more connected, and more committed to carrying this work forward. Restoration without strategy is retreat. Strategy without restoration is burnout. MAECC 2027 holds all three.

COP Key Dates:
Open Date: July 1, 2026
Close Date: November 1, 2026

Who Should Attend?

Educators and Administrators of Color in Independent Schools

MAECC is designed for educators and administrators of color — classroom teachers, department heads, counselors, deans, division heads, and senior leaders — in independent schools across the Mid-Atlantic and beyond.

A Note for White Participants

MAECC is a space by and for educators of color. That is not incidental — it is the point. If you do not identify as an educator of color, we are glad you are here — and your presence carries responsibility.

This is a space for you to listen more than you speak. To reflect more than you react. To move with humility. To notice when you are taking up space — and choose to make space instead.