Last Friday, during our In-Service Day, faculty and staff participated in the zoom
workshop “Capoeira as Cultural Competence Builder” with the Brazilian Capoeira
Mestre, Fuá Nascimento. Mestre Fuá and the Hilltop staff discussed the history and
physical movement of capoeira, considered one of the largest Black resistance
movements. Capoeira is a cultural ritual practice that involves fighting, dancing, singing,
rhythm, and other skills developed by enslaved people in Brazil during the colonial
period. Through a multidisciplinary approach, Fuá worked with us to confront our own
biases and at the same time embrace the possibilities for transformation. This
experience released many emotions, some more difficult than others, but at the same
time allowed us to recognize the importance and urgency for doing this work and
reaffirming our vulnerability and resilience as a community.
A special thanks to the Vermont Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts
for the support and funding of these programs.
Fábio Pereira Nascimento, aka Professor Fuá, is from the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Fabio
began formal capoeira training in1988 and graduated to Professor in 2008 under the
tutelage of Mestre Aberrê. During all these years Fuá trained 4 to 5 days a week, taught
and performed in a variety of venues, including Aberrê’s academia, theatres, clubs,
public and private schools, prisons, colleges, and NGOs. Through capoeira, Fuá had the
opportunity to experience the transformative power of capoeira, the different realities of
other socio-economic classes, and capoeira’s ability to empower individuals and unify
and communities.Fuá studied Physical Education at the University Cruzeiro do Sul,
Brazil; and Has a BA in Early Childhood Education and Capoeira Studies from Goddard
College, VT. Fuá is the creator of the Jagube Capoeira Method: Capoeira as Cultural
Competence Builder. Currently, he is a Lead Teacher at the Edge Kids & Fitness
pre-school, a lecturer at the University of Vermont, and a speaker at the Global
Leadership Program at Dartmouth College.
Sandra Lamouche, visited the CH Birch room this Friday 20th in the morning and she
will be visiting the Willow Room on Monday for story telling and hoop dancing
presentation. A Zoom link will be shared with the families of students at home.
Sandra Lamouche is a Nehiyaw Iskwew (Cree Woman) from the Bigstone Cree Nation in
Northern Alberta and married into the Piikani Nation in Southern Alberta. She is a wife,
mother, award-winning educator, and champion Hoop dancer. In January 2020 she did
a TEDx Talk sharing some of her knowledge and experiences with Indigenous dance
and education.
We’ve been thrilled to be able to engage authentically with Indigenous people in recent
weeks. If your family would like to further this work, here is information about an event
to participate in next week! Please read about a journey Kegan has been going on for
many years. The 50th Anniversary of the National Day of Mourning.