On March 28, 2024, the Syracuse University/SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry Student Association hosted a speaker panel titled “Highway I-81: A Conversation About Local Public Policy and Social Justice.”
The event was organized by Qiong Wu, a Syracuse University student and research assistant for Nicole Fonger, dual professor in the School of Education and the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Mathematics.
Along with Fonger, the guest speakers were Ken Keech, a teacher from Nottingham High School in the Syracuse City School District and a collaborator with Fonger on issues of mathematics and social justice, and Carrie Wood from Syracuse University’s Disability Cultural Center.
The audience learned about the history and context of the I-81 highway in Syracuse—an elevated portion of which cuts through downtown and is slated for removal and replacement with a grade-level community grid—how it has affected the local community, and why students should care about local policy issues, even if they are only temporarily living in Syracuse while they attend college.
Learn more about the Mathematics Education (Grades 7-12), B.A./B.S. and the Mathematics Education (Grades 7-12), M.S.