Responding to Hate in Your School

Dimitry Anselme is the Executive Program Director at Facing History and Ourselves. In this role, he is responsible for ensuring the coherence of all program delivery activities, and managing the intersection between content production and program staff development.

He joined Facing History and Ourselves in 1999 as a program associate, after having served on the Teacher Leadership Network for the New England office. In 2004, Mr. Anselme briefly left the organization to become the High School Principal at the Academy of the Pacific Rim, a high-performing public charter high school in the Boston area. He returned to Facing History in 2007.

Prior to joining the staff in 1999, Dimitry was a high school History teacher. He taught World and American History in public schools in Worcester and in Brookline Massachusetts. He is a graduate of Clark University and holds a Master in Administration and Social Policy Planning from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Mr. Anselme was born in Haiti and grew up in Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo).

Kira Simon serves ADL EDU as the Director of Curriculum and Training. As a content writer, Kira designs training materials and learning experiences to promote an anti-bias mindset among educators and a diverse, equitable, and inclusive climate in schools. Based upon the presumption that bias is universal and constructed, ADL EDU’s training materials and programs support participants’ pursuit of inclusion and equity in their classrooms and professional relationships. Previously, Kira held the position of Assistant Education Director for the New York/New Jersey region since August, 2017, delivering A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute programs at K-12 schools and on college campuses across New York and New Jersey, and designing professional development experiences on best practices for promoting inclusive learning environments for marginalized student groups of New York and New Jersey. Prior to working at ADL, Kira taught elementary school for six years in both Colorado and New York. Kira also designed curriculum across academic disciplines that empowers teachers and students to keep social justice at the forefront of a meaningful educational experience. Kira earned her undergraduate degree in Art History from Union College and holds a Masters of Education from The City College of New York.

Jessica Acee is the Student Leadership Coordinator at St. Mary's Academy in Portland, OR. She develops leadership programs for the high school and is also a co-author of the Western States Center’s “Confronting White Nationalism in Schools: A Toolkit.” Jessica believes that high school can and should be a model for inclusive and equitable democracy. Prior to joining St. Mary's Academy, Jessica spent over a decade in independent school leadership in both Chicago and NYC. Jessica has been cited in numerous media including The Washington Post, Oregon Public Broadcasting, The Guardian, In These Times and Al Jazeera America.