G. T. Reyes, Ph.D. Faculty Profile

Photo of G. Reyes

G.  T.  Reyes, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Department of Educational Leadership

Dr. G.T. Reyes (Taga-Ilog & Kapampangan) is a community-engaged scholar-artist-organizer-PRAXISioner.  His work is grounded in the empowerment of young folks, teachers, school leaders, and cultural workers to radically imagine and build capacity to transform their own realities while both excavating and honoring their ancestral ways of being and becoming. As an Associate Professor in the Educational Leadership for Social Justice Ed.D. program and Preliminary Administrative Credential Services program at California State University, East Bay (CSUEB), he is an active part of cultivating programs that have liberatory potential and power.  His approaches to educational leadership development, research, and professional learning are rooted in critical, socio-cultural, & ethnic studies discourses that forefront culturally sustaining and radical healing pedagogies while also decentering whiteness and coloniality.

In addition to his work in Educational Leadership at CSUEB, he is also the critical pedagogy instructional coach for the INSPIRE program and a co-facilitator with the Anti-Racist Liberatory Pedagogy Academy.

He has worked as a teacher and school leader in K-12 schooling, as an educator and organizational leader in youth development, and as a teacher education and teacher development scholar in higher education.  Some of his work as a public intellectual and community-engaged scholar PRAXISioner investigates Critical, Humanizing, Culturally, and Politically Determined pedagogies and teacher development; Decolonial and Ethnic Studies approaches to principled, socioculturally-grounded, values-centered, higher purpose-driven educational leadership and organizational development; Participatory Action Research and problem of practice inquiry; Art, digital media, and Hip Hop as critical race counter-storytelling; Critical, anti-oppressive, and humanizing frameworks of social and emotional learning; English Language Arts as liberatory education; and Filipinx/a/o American Studies. 

In addition to his work at CSUEB, he coaches school leaders and is also a founding school designer and Board member for the forthcoming The FREEdom School of Homies Empowerment, which aims to welcome "home" formerly incarcerated, gang-impacted/involved, and school-marginalized youth to invoke and reframe the Warrior, Scholar, Hustler, and Healer within and toward a vision of emancipation and self-determination. 

He completed his Post Doctoral Fellowship from Stanford University and his Ph.D. in Language, Literacy, Society, and Culture in Education at the University of California at Berkeley.  

When not at "the Bay," you can find him training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, riding his Harley Deluxe, or kicking it in the Town with his partner, Pilar, and 2 beautiful children, Mayarí and Davao.

But at the end of the day, "Dr. G" is known for standing.  Standing up.  Standing with. Standing for.  Standing on the corner of the block professing truths and street wisdoms that don’t stop. Standing on rocks. Standing from seeds sown by those who came before.  Standing in concrete fields with new seeds in hand to plant more.  Roses.  He knows his place in standing in the pages of history is because history is not predetermined – it is a time of possibility.  Standing tall so he could see.  Standing to the side so you could be.  And become. He stands. He don’t run. He stands. But never in the back of the bus.  He stands because he must.   

 

CONTENT/CONCEPTUAL AREAS:

  • Decoloniality Studies and Pedagogies
  • Critical Race Theory
  • Ethnic Studies/Socioculturally-grounded Schooling and English/Social Studies Education
  • Critical/Humanizing/Culturally Sustaining/Politically Relevant/Ethnic Studies Pedagogies
  • Critical Sense-Making in Teacher and School Leader Development
  • Principled, Values-Centered, Socio-historically grounded, Higher Purpose-Driven, Teacher/School leader-led inquiry/Practitioner research
  • Principled, Values-Centered, Socio-historically grounded, Higher Purpose-Driven Comprehensive School Reform and School Leadership
  • Cultural Pedagogies in the TK through Higher Education classrooms
  • Critical Perspectives of Healing Justice and Social & Emotional Learning
  • Filipinx/a/o American Studies
  • Values-Centered School Culture and Climate
  • Media & Arts in Education
  • Hip Hop Education
  • Youth Development

METHODOLOGICAL AREAS:

  • Critical Race Theory & Methodology
  • Testimonio
  • Portraiture
  • Narrative Inquiry
  • Critical Ethnography
  • Collaborative and Participatory Action Research

  • Ph.D. Language, Literacy, Society, & Culture in Education | University of California, Berkeley

Not teaching this semester.

Books

Reyes, G.T. (proposal under review). Becoming Woke: Critical Race Love Letters to an Educator. Rowman & Littlefield.

 

Reyes, G. (2003). Finding the Poetic High: A guide for educators to start & sustain a community based after school spoken word poetry program. San Francisco: Institute of Social Justice and Education.

 

Book Chapters

Reyes, G.T. (2022). Fiipinx American Gangs as Forgotten Bearers of Indigenous Culture. In K. Nadal., A. Tintiangco-Cubales, & E.J.R. David (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Filipino American Studies. Sage.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2022). Filipinx Americans and the Criminal (In)Justice System. In K. Nadal., A. Tintiangco-Cubales, & E.J.R. David (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Filipino American Studies. Sage.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). A pedagogy of and for decoloniality. In M.A. Peters (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Teacher Education. New York, NY: Springer.

 

Reyes, G. (2013). It is NOT what it is: A multidisciplinary approach to critical pedagogy, cultural production, and youth development in the Youth Roots program. In Chappell, S. V. & Faltis, C. J. (Eds.), The arts and emergent bilingual youth: Building critical, creative programs in school and community contexts. New York: Taylor and Francis.

 

Journal Articles

Reyes, G.T. (Under Review). Nice for Whom?: A Dangerous, Not-So-Nice, Critical Race Love Letter. Educational Sciences.

 

Reyes, G.T., Matias, C.E., Manlove, J. (2024).Beyond being balikbayan: an examination of imposed boxes toward becoming Pin@ y educators of decolonial and racially just education. Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, 1-15.

 

Reyes, G.T., Lee, M., Haft, N., Halim, M., Almeida, A., Higby, E., & Guiton, P. (2023). The anti-racist liberatory pedagogy academy: Critical race faculty development. Philosophy and Theory in Higher Education, 5(1), 187-207.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2022). A Love Letter to Educational Leaders of Color:  Crewing Up with Critical Whiteness Studies. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education. 1-11.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Cross this out: A pedagogy of disruption and healing. Radical Teacher. 114, 51-59.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). You ain’t alone in this: Critical sense making and the process of becoming. Storytelling, Self, & Society. 13(2), 223-248.

 

Reyes, G.T., & Zermeño, B.P. (2018). Of course she will learn: A cultural pedagogy in bilingual transitional kindergarten with newcomer students. Multicultural Education, 25(3), 18-22.

 

Reyes, G. (2006). Finding the poetic high: Building a spoken word poetry community and culture of creative, caring, and critical intellectuals. Multicultural Education. Winter 2006.

 

Reyes, G. (2006). Shots fired In Oakland: Using hip hop to cultivate intellectual culture producers. California English. November 2006.

 

Book Epigraph

Reyes, G.T. (In Press). “We gon’ be alright.” In Arriaza, G. Community Owned Knowledge: The Promise of Collaborative Action Research. Peter Lang.

 

Local Publications

Reyes, G.T. (2019, March 1). Ripples from the Oakland teacher strike [Op-Ed]. San Francisco Examiner.  Retrieved from https://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/ripples-from-the-oakland-teacher-strike/.

 

Web-Based Publications

Reyes, G. (2015). Examining high leverage instructional practices that support equitable use of performance assessment at Summit Public Schools.  Stanford, CA: Stanford Center for Assessment, Learning, and Equity.

 

News Features

“Voices for Change: The Role of Allyship.” Fox KTVU, https://www.ktvu.com/video/848055, beginning at 18:31 marker, September 6, 2020.

 

“Implicit Bias Training Coming for California Teachers.” Fox KTVU, https://www.ktvu.com/news/implicit-bias-training-coming-for-california-teachers. June 4, 2020.

 

“People’s FREEdom Store.” Hard Knock Radio, May 13, 2020.

 

“Redefining Resiliency.” Cal State East Bay Magazine, https://www.ebtoday.com/stories/redefining-resiliency.  July 27, 2020.

 

 “Racism and Xenophobia in the Age of COVID-19.” The California State University, https://www2.calstate.edu/csu-system/news/Pages/racism-and-xenophobia-in-the-age-of-covid-19.aspx. May 4, 2020.

 

 “Assistant Professor G.T. Reyes’ Response to Vandalism Gains National Attention.” Cal State East Bay Magazine, Spring 2018.

 

“Cal State East Bay Professor Turns Hate into Art, Movement.” East Bay Times, December 15, 2017.

 

“Cal State East Bay Professor Responds to Campus Vandalism with Art.” NBC, December 8, 2017.

SELECTED INVITED KEYNOTE ADDRESSES

Invited keynote speaker for San Lorenzo Unified School District Professional Development Day, March 2024.

 

Invited speaker for City College San Francisco Equity Talk, February 2024.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Pittsburg Unified School District Professional Development Day, January 2024.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Association of California School Administrators Leadership Summit, November 2023.

 

Invited keynote speaker for California Community College Student Affairs Association Student Leadership Conference, October 2023.

 

Invited keynote speaker for University of California Riverside Teacher Education Restorative Justice Day, October 2023.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Association of California School Administrators Equity Symposium, February 2023.

 

Invited keynote speaker for San Jose City College & Evergreen Valley College Dean’s Academy, August 2022.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Language is Power: Alameda County Early Childhood Multilingual Learner Symposium, June 2022.

 

Invited commencement speaker for College of Alameda, May 2022.

 

Invited keynote speaker for AAPI Heritage Month at Contra Costa County Office of Education, May 2022.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Chabot College President’s Speaker Series, May 2022.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Ventura College & Oxnard College Diversity in Culture Day, April 2022.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Association of California Community College Administrators, February 2022.

 

Invited keynote speaker for Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs, February 2022.

 

The 5th R:  Pedagogies of Re. Featured speaker for Stop Waste “Soul-ution Sessions,” November 2021.

 

Love Yourz: Cultivating Teacher Solidarity through Radical Love, Restoration, and Healing. Invited featured speaker for the National Council of Teacher Residencies, October 2021.

 

Critical Race Theory for What? Community Schools Crewing Up with Critical Homies. Invited keynote speaker for Alameda County Exemplary Schools for Success Summer Institute, August 2021.

 

Ready or Not: The Journey Towards a True Anti-Oppressive Culture of Belonging. Invited keynote speaker for San Jose City College Professional Development Day, August 2021.

 

The Hope U Give: PRAXISioner Pedagogies of Re. Invited featured speaker for Trellis Education “Unconference 2021.” May 2021.

 

The Hope U Give: Transformative Solidarity as Asian American Pacific Islander PRAXISioners. Invited plenary keynote for Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education (APAHE). April 2021.

It was all a Freedom Dream. Classroom Clapback Teacher Summit.  Invited virtual keynote presentation, December 2020.

 

THUGLIFE and the Re-Education of the Filipinx/a/o. Pilipino American History Month Celebration at Miracosta College, Invited virtual keynote presentation, November 2020.

 

The Hope U GIve:  THUGLIFE into the 7th Generation. Invited virtual keynote for National First Generation Day with Office of First Generation and Peer Mentoring Programs at the University of La Verne, November 2020.

 

These are the Breaks: An Ethic of Flow, Layer, & Rupture for Hip Hop Practitioners Demanding Social Justice. Invited virtual keynote for All The Way Live annual conference, November 2020.

 

We Will Breathe: Embarking on your school year as Asian Pacific Islanders during an era of COVID. Invited virtual keynote for Asian Pacific Islander Education Association Welcome Day at Chabot College, September 2020.

 

These are the Breaks: B.R.A.V.E.R.Y. as Critical Race Pedagogy in Early Childhood. Invited webinar feature with First 5 Alameda County, July 2020.

 

Keynote speaker, 3rd Annual CSUEB Pacific Islander Recognition Ceremony, April 6, 2020 (Event cancelled due to COVID-19).

 

Reyes, G.T. (2020).  Plenary keynote presented to Hayward Unified School District African American Family Conference, Hayward, CA. [Cancelled due to COVID19]

 

Reyes, G.T. (2020).  These are the Breaks:  Break Downs, Break Ups, & Break Outs.  Plenary keynote presented to Life Academy of Health and Sciences High School "Day of Solidarity," Oakland, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). B.R.A.V.E.R.Y.: Centering Decolonial Pedagogies to Break Cycles of T.H.U.G.L.I.F.E. Ascend School Professional Development Institute, Oakland, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Model Minorities?  NAH (Not Anymore Homie). California State University, East Bay Asian Pacific Islander Graduation, Hayward, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Lifting Every Voice: Each One Uplift One. Hayward Unified School District African American Student Recognition Night, Hayward, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Increase Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into What?:  Towards Abolishing Racist, Patriarchal, Heteronormative, Ableist Systems of Schooling.  Lighthouse Public Schools Professional Development Institute, Oakland, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Being Included is NOT Enough:  Making it 100. Plenary keynote presented to Hayward Unified School District African American Family Conference, Bret Harte Middle School, Hayward, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). Getting lit(erate), getting woke, getting dangerous: Practices of disruption and reimagination. Plenary keynote presented at Leading Educators Institute, New Orleans, LA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). It’s not whatever: From stay woke to getting woke. Plenary keynote presented to Osseo School District Youth (Re)Engagement Conference, Minneapolis, MN.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). It’s not whatever: From stay woke to getting woke. Plenary keynote presented to Hayward Unified School District African American Family Conference, Bret Harte Middle School, Hayward, CA.

 

Reyes G.T. (2018). Cross this out: Community mobilizing through a pedagogy of disruption and healing.  Plenary keynote presented at Commission of Human Diversity Annual Conference, Kutztown, PA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). Make it 100: Getting lit(erate), woke, dangerous. FRED (Fresh Radical Educational Dynamic) Talk presented at United States Department of Arts and Culture Convening.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2017). Get woke, get lit(erate), get dangerous: Towards a critical, humanizing, & community-centered framework of school climate and culture.  Plenary keynote presented at the Des Moines Public Schools Summit on School Climate and Culture, Des Moines, IA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2017).  Make it One Hunit: Get woke, get lit(erate), get dangerous.  Plenary keynote presented at the Coalition of Schools Educating Boys of Color Annual Gathering, Austin, TX.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2017). It’s not whatever: Getting dangerous through writing and righting the word and the world.  Plenary keynote presented at the Bay Area Writing Project Winter Conference, Berkeley, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2013).  It is not what it is:  Fighting oppression by any medium necessary.  Keynote presented at the Arts Based Educational Research (ABER) CIG Pre-conference meeting of the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA.

 

PUBLIC SCHOLARSHIP ON ISSUES OF SOCIAL JUSTICE, RACE, & HEALING DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC

The Hope U Give: PRAXISioner Pedagogies of Re. Invited virtual keynote for Trellis Education "Unconference," May 2021.

The Hope U Give: Transformative Solidarity as AAPI PRAXISioners. Invited virtual keynote with Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education annual conference, April 2021.

The Responsibility and Intervention of Asian American Scholars, Educators, and Activists in this Historical Moment. Invited webinar feature with Kevin Kumashiro Consulting, June 2020.

THUGLIFE and the Breaks: A Critical Race, Ethnic Studies, Decolonial Mixtape. Classroom Clapback Teacher Summit: "It was all a Freedom Dream."  Invited virtual keynote presentation, December 2020.

You Are Not Alone: Cultivating Community and Healing during a Racialized Global Pandemic. Invited talk with Office of First Generation and Peer Mentoring Programs at the University of La Verne, December 2020.

Radical Healing and Transformative Solidarity during a Racialized Global Pandemic. Invited webinar feature with Critical Sense-making Sessions with Revolutionary Rika, November 2020.

Social Justice and Teaching.  Invited webinar feature with CSUEB Teacher Education Department, October 2020.

Social Justice in Graduate Education and Beyond. Invited virtual panelist with California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education, October 2020.

We Will Breathe: Embarking on your school year as Asian Pacific Islanders during an era of COVID. Invited virtual keynote for Asian Pacific Islander Education Association Welcome Day at Chabot College, September 2020.

These are the Breaks: B.R.A.V.E.R.Y. as Critical Race Pedagogy in Early Childhood. Invited webinar feature with First 5 Alameda County, July 2020.

“Voices for Change: The Role of Allyship.” Fox KTVU, https://www.ktvu.com/video/848055, beginning at 18:31 marker, September 6, 2020.

“Implicit Bias Training Coming for California Teachers.” Fox KTVU, https://www.ktvu.com/news/implicit-bias-training-coming-for-california-teachers. June 4, 2020.

“People’s FREEdom Store.” Hard Knock Radio, May 13, 2020.

“Redefining Resiliency.” Cal State East Bay Magazine, https://www.ebtoday.com/stories/redefining-resiliency.  July 27, 2020.

“Racism and Xenophobia in the Age of COVID-19.” The California State University, https://www2.calstate.edu/csu-system/news/Pages/racism-and-xenophobia-in-the-age-of-covid-19.aspx. May 4, 2020.

“Quarantine Kings & Queens,” Music video for Sacramento Area Youth Speaks.

 

 

REFERRED CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

Reyes, G.T., Burciaga, R., Nava, P. (presenter). Pedagogies of RE: Towards a Decolonial, Emancipatory Framework of Educational Leadership. Accepted virtual symposium for the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, 2021.

 

Reyes, G.T. (chair & presenter), Carreon, O., Sacramento, J. (proposed on August 14, 2020). Sacred Knowledge and Decolonial Love: Applied Principles of Ethnic Studies Pedagogy. Accepted virtual symposium for the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, 2021.

 

Burciaga, R. Reyes, G.T., Nava, P. (2020). Emancipatory Educational Leadership: Towards a Decolonial Framework of Ed.D. and School Leadership Preparation Programs. Synchronous Virtual Symposium for University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) annual conference, 2020. https://www.ucea2020.org/sync-sessions/emancipatory-educational-leadership-towards-a-decolonial-framework-of-ed-d-and-school-leadership-preparation-programs

 

Reyes, G.T. (2020, April). Precious Knowledge and Sacred Pedagogies: Centering Ethnic Studies Principles in Practice. Accepted symposium presentation at American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Reimagining the Demonized: Mixtaping Decolonial, Ethnic Studies, and Hip Hop Pedagogies to Break Down, Break Up, and Break Out. Featured Session presentation at Native American Grants School Association Annual Conference, Las Vegas, NV.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019).  Decolonizing Our Classrooms: Disrupting Dominant and Normative Practices of Language, Literacies, and Culture. Symposium presentation at National Council of Teachers of English Annual Convention, Baltimore, MD.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Getting Dangerous: Critical Professional Development as Decolonial and Transformative Educational Leadership. Symposium presentation at University Council of Education Administration Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019).  The NAH (Not Anymore Homie) Mixtape:  Mixing Ethnic Studies, Decolonial, and Hip Hop Pedagogies to Break Cycles of T.H.U.G.L.I.F.E. Featured presentation at the 19th Annual Teachers 4 Social Justice Conference, San Francisco, CA. 

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Re-education of the Filipinx: An Ethnic Studies and Decolonial Pedagogy of Remembering, Reconnecting, Rerooting, Reimagining, and Reframing.  Featured presentation at International Babaylan Indigenous Roots and Relations Conference, Wahta Kanien’Keha:Ka, Canada.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). These are the Breaks: Ruptures in Coloniality in Educational Leadership.  Symposium presentation at American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Toronto, CN.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2019). Getting Dangerous: A principled, values-centered, socio-historically grounded, higher purpose-driven approach to transforming educational leadership. Symposium presentation at Hawai’i International Conference on Education, Honolulu, HI.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). Make it 100: Getting lit(erate), woke, dangerous. TED Talk presented at United States Department of Arts and Culture Convening, Albuquerque, NM.

 

Reyes, G.T., & Lee, C (2018). Reclaiming humanity: A pedagogy of disruption and healing for teacher education and educational leadership.  Symposium panel paper presented at California Chapter – National Association for Multicultural Education, San Francisco, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). Re-education of the Filipino: Getting woke, getting lit(erate), getting dangerous.  Symposium panel paper presented at Association of Asian American Studies, San Francisco, CA.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2018). You ain’t alone in this: Critical sense-making counterstories of radical healing and transformational consciousness.  Symposium panel paper presented at the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, New York, NY.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2017).  Get dangerous: Towards the politically determined school. Symposium panel paper presented at the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2016). Reaching the summit:  Equitable use of performance assessment at Summit Public Schools.  Symposium panel paper presented at the International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) Blended & Online Learning Symposium, San Antonio, TX.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2016). It’s not whatever: Dangerous teacher development towards the “Politically Determined Pedagogue.”  Symposium panel paper presented at the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Washington D.C.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2015).  It’s not whatever:  Dangerous culturally responsive teacher development because our lives depend on it.  Symposium panel paper presented at the 36th Annual Ethnography in Education Forum, Philadelphia, PA. 

 

Reyes, G.T. (2012). By any medium necessary:  Flippin’ the script to cultivate the public artivist.  Symposium panel paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

 

Reyes, G.T. (2010).  Digging deep to reach out: Youth roots critical youth cultivation.  Symposium panel paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Denver, CO.