Archaeology of Self: The Introspective Educator's Guide to Racial Literacy

Archaeology of Self: The Introspective Educator’s Guide to Racial Literacy is an invitation to dive deep into the heart of teaching and the sacred work of self-awareness. It calls educators―and professionals from all walks of life―to embark on a lifelong journey of racial literacy, healing, and the pursuit of a bias-free existence. Blending personal narrative, poetry, and guided reflection, Archaeology of Self offers both a mirror and a map that takes readers through Dr. Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz’s framework for excavating one’s racial identity, confronting internalized bias, and teaching from a place of critical love, justice, and truth.

This is more than a book. It is a living, breathing guide for transformation. Included within are:

• Lesson plans designed by educators across the country and adaptable for K-12 and beyond.
• Multimodal resources, including video suggestions, journaling prompts, mindfulness practices, and companion readings.
• A chapter-themed music playlist that sets the emotional and intellectual tone, inviting deep listening, feeling, and reflection.

At its core, Archaeology of Self: The Introspective Educator’s Guide to Racial Literacy is a blueprint for healing and for the collective reimagining of education as a liberatory and humanizing force.

Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Ph.D. is Professor of English Education at Teachers College, Columbia University and the recipient of the 2024 Dorothy Height Distinguished Alumna Award from New York University. Yolanda is co-editor of All About Black Girl Love in Education: bell hooks and Pedagogies of Love (2024), co-author of Advancing Racial Literacies in Teacher Education: Activism for Equity in Digital Spaces (2021), and author of two poetry books: Love from the Vortex & Other Poems and The Peace Chronicles. She is founder of the Racial Literacy Project @TC. Yolanda has been featured in documentaries by Spike Lee and CWK Network.