Branching out as an Antiracist School: Françoise Thenoux

This past fall, Friends Select lower school Spanish teacher Françoise Thenoux presented “Celebrating Our Differences: Unpacking Identity with a Decolonial Lens” at the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) National Convention. She also attended the NAIS virtual People of Color Conference (PoCC) and presented at the Centering Black Students in Language Education Conference hosted by the University of Pennsylvania.

Additionally, Françoise wrote a scholarly article, “Myths and Realities About Teaching for Social Justice in the Elementary World Language Classroom,” for ACTFL’s membership publication. In her piece, she examined several reasons educators avoid introducing social justice conversations with their young world language students and offered examples and resources for teachers to bring antiracist and anti-bias perspectives into their classrooms. In 2020, Françoise was nominated for the organization’s Anthony Papalia Award for Excellence in Teacher Education and Nelson Brooks Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Culture.

Françoise’s commitment to antiracist and anti-bias education extends to causes related to Latinx immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community, and she is one of the few elementary Spanish teachers in the country using nonbinary language and teaching about gender identity and inclusive pronouns.