Dear Colleagues:

Educational research and practice focused on Hip Hop is a robust and rapidly expanding area of research. One testament to the growth of Hip Hop scholarship is the magnitude in which individual papers, symposiums, and presidential sessions are represented at American Educational Research Association (AERA), the leading educational professional organization representing educational researchers. Sessions focused on Hip Hop are well attended at AERA, and in some instances are standing room only. Many of these Hip Hop sessions reflect the most cutting edge research within larger, previously sterile academic disciplines that position Hip Hop on the margins. For these reasons, we feel it is the next logical step to create a Special Interest Group (SIG) solely focused on Hip Hop pedagogies. According to AERA rules, forming a new SIG requires 75 signatures from active members. By placing your name, email address, and AERA member number below, you are supporting the creation of the SIG, Hip Hop Theories, Praxis & Pedagogies (HTPP). The mission of the new SIG will be:

To foster, promote, and disseminate high-quality research focused on Hip Hop scholarship that addresses intellectual questions on the subject of youth culture and knowledge, using the elements of Hip Hop and its cultural underpinnings to challenge traditional academic theories and pedagogies while also demonstrating the educational foundations of Hip Hop as creative and innovative research.

Thank you in advance for your time and your commitment to Hip Hop educational research and practice. We look forward to building a strong, active, and premiere SIG with your support. Please share this petition with your colleagues.

In Solidarity,                                                                                                      Bettina L. Love, University of Georgia                                                                  Joycelyn Wilson, Virginia Tech                                                                         Christopher Emdin, Teachers College, Columbia University                                          Ruth Nicole Brown, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign