Play-in-Action in the Public Sphere:
Play, Development and Social Justice
A Webinar with Antoine Joyce, Danielle Marshall, and Don Waisanen, moderated by Carrie Lobman

In June, the Play, Development and Social Justice series will feature the work of practitioners and activists in the areas of afterschool development, civic engagement, and equity of access to the benefits of play. The conversation will explore how play is successfully creating grassroots cultures of creativity, inclusion and democracy.
International play scholar and activist Carrie Lobman will be joined by Antoine Joyce, who creates environments for wealthy business people, elected officials, inner city youth and police officers to play together in Dallas; Don Waisanen who is pioneering the use of improvisation and play at the university and in the political arena; and Danielle Marshall who uses play as a vehicle to drive social-emotional learning, teach conflict negotiation, and build community in schools for 27,000 children in Maryland.
Sunday, June 9, 12:00-1:30 p.m. Eastern U.S.
Registration $45; Student/Low Income $25
Antoine Joyce grew up in Bedford-Stuyvesant Brooklyn during the height of the crack epidemic in a single-parent home with three brothers. He was introduced to Hip-Hop dance through his cousin which led to joining the All Stars Talent Show Network in 1991. He joined the staff of the All Stars in 1997 and rose to the position of National Producer of the All Stars Talent Show Network. Antoine became instrumental in the developing of new All Stars programs in Newark, Chicago and San Francisco. In 2013 he was selected to lead the expansion of the All Stars Project into Dallas. Today, he oversees a team of six, three core programs reaching 5,000 youth and families a year, and raising $1.3 million annually in Dallas. He has been an invited speaker at high schools all over Dallas and was presenter for Illuminate, TEDxSMU 2016. Mr. Joyce is also a founding Steering Committee member of Dallas Truth Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT).
Danielle Marshall is the Executive Director of Playworks Maryland . Previously she served as the director of community engagement programs at KaBOOM! , overseeing initiatives that support communities' ability to increase children’s access to play and recreation through advocacy, education, and community building. Danielle draws on her background in developmental and organizational psychology to create innovative solutions for both communities and organizations. She has authored articles on increasing children’s access to play. She recently helped to curated the Play- Based Experiential Learning (PBEL) Toolkit in conjunction with the Alliance for Childhood , aimed at reinstating child-directed and teacher-supported play opportunities into early childhood learning environments. Being a lover of all things playful Danielle also serves on the Steering Committee for the US Play Coalition . 
Don Waisanen is an Associate Professor in the Baruch College, CUNY Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, where he teaches courses and workshops in public communication—including seminars on leadership, storytelling, and improvisation. His forthcoming book, Improv for Democracy: How to Bridge Differences and Develop the Communication and Leadership Skills Our World Needs highlights how improvisation can provide a foundational education in democratic practices. Previously, Don worked in broadcast journalism, as a speechwriter, and on political campaigns. He’s been an improvisational comedian in theaters from Los Angeles to New York for nearly two decades. He received a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School.
For more information contact mmeyer@eastsideinstitute.org or go to: eastsideinstitute.org/events.