Explore the June Nairobi Renaissance Session

This month centers on reclaiming the power to name ourselves, define our identities, and imagine the futures we want for our families and community. Through culture, creativity, dialogue, and reflection, participants of all ages explore how self-determination shows up in daily life—and how the names we claim shape the futures we build.

Elementary Experience: Naming Our Power & Imagining Our Future Elementary participants engage in playful, creative activities that help them build confidence, self-awareness, and pride in who they are becoming.

Key Activities Include:

• Power Name Shields – Children design shields featuring a power word, a strength symbol, and something they want to learn or become.
• Future Me Story Cards – Youth draw themselves in the future and complete prompts like: “I will be… because I choose to…”
• Affirmation & Rhythm – Live drumming and a community affirmation circle help students ground themselves and speak their chosen identity aloud.

Focus: Building self-confidence, imagination, and early leadership by       helping children see themselves as powerful, capable, and full of possibility.

Teen Experience: Identity Remix & Future Visioning: Teens dive deeper into questions of identity, labels, and self-authorship—challenging how they’ve been named by others and intentionally choosing how they want to show up in the world.

Key Activities Include:

• Identity Remix Workshops – Teens unpack labels placed on them by peers, schools, and society, then remix those narratives into self-chosen identities.
• Future Introductions – Guided prompts support teens in imagining how they introduce themselves in the future: who they are, what they stand for, and what they want to be known for.
• Youth Voice & Expression – Spoken word and creative performance give teens space to publicly claim their names and visions.

Focus: Supporting self-authorship, critical reflection, confidence, and       leadership identity during a pivotal stage of development.

Adult Experience: Reclaiming Our Narrative & Building Collective Power Adults engage in reflection, dialogue, and planning that connect personal identity to advocacy, leadership, and community responsibility.

Key Activities Include:

• Reclaiming Our Narrative – Adults reflect on names shaped by family history, struggle, institutions, and workplaces—and intentionally rename themselves for the future they desire.
• Black Student Success Framework – Participants review key areas of student success and explore how self-determination shows up in advocacy and decision-making.
• Community Resource & Asset Mapping – Collective sharing helps families identify strengths, resources, and next steps for supporting youth through an Equity Accountability Plan.

Focus:
Empowering adults to see themselves as builders, advocates, and stewards of a self-determined future for their children and community.

Collective Experience: The Chosen Names Ceremony The session closes with a powerful, intergenerational moment of unity.

Shared Activities Include:

• Identity Mosaic Wall – Participants add their chosen names, symbols, or power words to a shared visual display.
• Community Charge & Commitment – Each person speaks one commitment aloud, beginning with “This month, I choose to…”
• Knowledge Board Continuity – Commitments are recorded and carried forward into March’s theme (Ujima – Collective Work & Responsibility).

Purpose:
To honor who we have been, name who we are becoming, and carry our commitments forward together.

Day/Date: Saturday, February 14, 2026

Time: 12:00 - 3:00 pm

Hosted at The Bloomhouse • 2555 Pulgas Ave • East Palo Alto, CA • 94303