SPICE serves as a bridge between FSI and K–12 schools and community colleges. As noted in fall 2020, the SPICE staff has agreed to do more to help move our local community, nation, and the world to achieve racial justice. SPICE works in three areas: (1) curriculum development; (2) teacher professional development; and (3) online course offerings. Below are a few recent efforts that SPICE has made with the goal of achieving racial justice.

Curriculum: SPICE launched an interactive website called “What Does It Mean to Be an American?” in 2020. It focuses on topics like civil liberties & equity, civic engagement, and justice & reconciliation and includes videos called “What Does It Mean to Be a Young Black Man in America?” and “What It Means to Be Muslim American.” Student reflections on the website continued to be featured in articles on March 16, 2021, May 18, 2021, and July 20, 2021. This article series will continue in 2021.

SPICE is collaborating with the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) to introduce underrepresented minority high school students to issues in international security and increase awareness of career opportunities available in international security.

Teacher Professional Development: Given the pandemic, SPICE has transitioned its teacher professional development seminars to online webinars.

SPICE worked with community college educators who participated in the Education Partnership for Internationalizing Curriculum (EPIC) program of Stanford Global Studies. On May 22, 2021, SGS hosted the 2021 EPIC Symposium and SPICE staff moderated two panels.

SPICE offered a webinar, “Indigenous Voices: Educational Perspectives from Navajo, Native Hawaiian, and Ainu Scholars in the Diaspora,” for teachers on June 18, 2021.

From June 28 to July 1, 2021, SPICE hosted a summer institute for middle school teachers that focused on East Asia and the Asian American experience. From July 26 to July 30, 2021, SPICE hosted a similar summer institute for high school teachers. Teachers from 20 states attended the seminars as well as teachers from China and Canada.

Online Course Offerings: SPICE currently offers three courses (on China, Japan, and Korea) for high school students in the United States and courses for students in Japan and China. SPICE seeks to broaden its offerings in the United States.

SPICE pledges to continue to do the following:

• In its recruitment of students for SPICE’s online classes, we will redouble our efforts to recruit from diverse areas throughout the United States.
• SPICE will seek to increase the diversity of the teachers who attend its teacher professional development seminars.
• SPICE will seek to expand the diversity of the students who enroll in its online course offerings.
• SPICE will continue to host webinars that focus on diversity.
• SPICE will continue to explore—with the FSI REDI Task Force—additional outreach activities that focus on enhancing diversity at FSI.