CARLA — Coalition for Anti-Racist Literacy
We are CARLA, the Coalition for Anti-Racist Literacy at Bryn Mawr College, where all people thrive as their authentic intellectual, spiritual, and physical selves.
Our Mission and Focus
Started with 16 members in 2018, CARLA — Coalition for Anti-Racist Literacy at Bryn Mawr College has grown to more than 80 members — consistently a mix of students, staff, and faculty. Growing out of the 2018 Posse Plus Retreat, this grassroots group’s mission is to create and sustain a shared, accountable, conceptual framework and toolkit for anti-racist literacy in classrooms and the community of the College. Anti-racist literacy refers to the knowledge and skills that enable people to interpret the dynamics of race and racism at work in a situation and to actively participate in challenging and changing them. We focus on anti-racism, equity, accountability, and inclusivity.
Our Framework
History & Impact
Since 2018, the Coalition for Anti-Racist Literacy at Bryn Mawr College has grown from a small group of members into a campus-wide community of students, staff, and faculty. Together, we’ve reflected on equity and inclusion, shared resources, and built frameworks to guide anti-racist action while always working toward lasting change across the College.
- Clearing the Air Teach-In – Organized a teach-in with Environmental Justice focused on the 2019 South Philly refinery explosion, including documentary screenings and discussion on environmental and community impact.
- Citizen George Screening & Discussion – Supported promotion and community engagement for a screening of Citizen George and a Q&A with activist George Lakey focused on nonviolent social transformation and justice work.
- Varshini Prakash Guest Speaker Event – Organized and promoted a guest speaker event featuring Sunrise Movement co-founder Varshini Prakash centered on youth climate organizing and environmental justice.
- Transformative Power Teach-In – Collaborated with SJI on a teach-in exploring courage, compassion, healing justice, and community support during inequitable and unjust times.
- Bryn Mawr College Strike Remembrance Week “Five Years Later” – Co-organized a week-long, multi-day remembrance of the 2020 Bryn Mawr strike, bringing together students, alumnae, faculty, and staff through panels, teach-ins, archival displays, oral histories, and community discussions. The program emphasized institutional memory, accountability, and the continued relevance of the strike’s demands.
- Processing Forum – Hosted a moderated processing forum for students, staff, and faculty to reflect on campus climate, share reactions in small groups and open discussion, and collectively brainstorm future teach-ins, actions, and strategies for community care and change.
- Strike Demand Teach-In - Compiled and analyzed a demand-by-demand assessment of college actions following the 2020 Bi-College strike, synthesizing updates, documentation, and student observations to evaluate transparency and accountability.
- THRIVE Working Group - tabled the working group while the THRIVE curriculum and the Dean's office were reorganized. Focused on belongingness in a diverse and intentional campus community with anti-racism as an explicit component of the first-year experience.
- Anti Racism Collective Circles were continued- 2 online circles, 2 in person
- BattenCARLA - Engaged in collective planning to support community healing, increase access to Batten House for students of color, and build sustained collaboration across student organizations and affinity groups.
- CARLA Mini-Conference Series – Developed ongoing mini-conferences that creates space for departments, faculty, staff, and students to share anti-racist practices, exchange feedback, reduce duplicated efforts, and build sustainable, campus-wide collaboration.
- Anti Racism Collective Circles- Developed and facilitated a multi-session anti-racism education program focused on racial history, racial identity development, racial literacy skills, anti-racist thought and action, and future goal setting. The circles emphasized sustained dialogue, reflection, and collective learning.
- Anti-Racist Employment Teach-In - Focused on anti-racist employment practices, including curriculum development, small-group facilitation structures, and student leadership support.
- Change Agent Fund applied for to support the first Mini-Conference (Anti-racism Works in Progress Pilot?)
- Community Reflections - Reflected on and responded to the 2021 Diversity and Inclusion Report.
- CARLA Orientation Webinar – organized and hosted a public-facing webinar introducing CARLA’s mission, history, and ongoing work, designed to orient students, staff, and faculty to available resources and initiatives.
- Student Work Teach-In - Designed and facilitated a virtual teach-in exploring student employment, labor inequities, and institutional responsibility, grounding discussion in CARLA’s anti-racist framework and student experiences.
- Growing Membership - Expanded to 84 members, consistently including students, staff, and faculty.
- Community Reflections - responded to the 2019–20 Diversity and Inclusion Report.
- Inclusion & Equity Framework - Submitted community response to the 2019–20 Inclusion and Equity Framework.
- Anti-Racist Framework - Led a participatory process with 65 campus community members to develop an Anti-Racist Framework for Bryn Mawr College.
- Envisioning a Center - Advocated for a Center for Anti-Racist Action to support all campus units in working toward anti-racist goals.
- Name Change - Changed name from Campaign for Anti-Racist Literacy at BMC to Coalition for Anti-Racist Literacy at BMC.
- CARLA Bi-College Strike Response - collected departmental solidarity statements and helped build a centralized online resource hub for students and faculty. Created action-item resources and a strike demands tracker, including proposals for ongoing administrative accountability reporting and year-to-year progress documentation.
- Community Reflections - Responded to the 2018–19 Diversity and Inclusion Report.
- Supporting Anti-Racist Efforts - Supported and pooled information about community efforts to engage anti-racist education and action.
- 2019 — Inclusion & Equity Framework - Submitted community response to the 2018–19 Inclusion and Equity Framework.
- Founding - Started with 16 members in Spring, a mix of students, staff, and faculty.
- Recommendations & Proposals - Submitted recommendations for the Flexner Lecture Series and proposed a course evaluation question on equity and inclusion (adopted as a pilot in Fall 2020).
- Community Reflections - Reflected on and responded to the 2017–18 Diversity and Inclusion Report.
Meet the Co-Conveners of CARLA
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Contact Us
CARLA, the Coalition for Anti-Racist Literacy
Diane Gentry Email: dgentry@brynmawr.edu Phone: 610-526-5124