My name is Aaron Hood and I am a social justice educator who empowers critically conscious learners to investigate the world around them and act to create positive change. This site is designed to serve as my blog and portfolio for my work as an educator focused on social justice education, critical masculinity, residence life, technology integration, program planning, curriculum development, and leadership development.
I began my interest in student affairs while attending Florida State University. As a first year student I got involved with my hall council and then got connected to the Inter-Residence Hall Council (IRHC). I served on the IRHC executive board for 2 years and in that time we were able to host the Florida Association of Residence Hall’s (FARH) conference in 2008 and the South Atlantic Affiliate of College and University Residence Hall’s business conference in 2009. In addition to my involvement on my campus with IRHC, I worked on the FARH State Board of Directors for two years. I balanced these responsibilities and leadership positions with coursework in my Information Technology program.
Shortly before graduation, I made the decision to attend graduate school to attain my Masters of Education in Higher Education Administration at North Carolina State University. While attending NC State, I worked as a resident director in University Housing. My courses there shaped a lot about who I have grown to be and my position as a residence director pushed that growth even further as I was able to apply my education in the classroom to the active work I was doing in Metcalf hall. I was also led to a passion about social justice through some course work and I’ve been striving to learn as much as possible since those moments by connecting with ACPA’s Commission for Social Justice Education.
My first four years full time in Higher Education were as a Resident Director at George Mason University. In that position I worked with a large variety of residential students while exploring social identities, social justice education, leadership, service learning, community development, curriculum development, assessment, and event planning. In January 2014, I was honored with the Spirit of King award which recognizes “exceptional contribution(s) to the development of an inclusive learning environment through his/her programming, advising, student leadership development or other work that involves advocacy for equality and social justice.” In addition to the Spirit of King award, which highlighted many of my individual accomplishments, I served as a facilitator for the Inclusive Learning Community, on-going training designed for professional staff and faculty at George Mason University.
After my time at Mason, I moved to The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars as a LEAD Instructor where I facilitated critical reflection with students who were serving in an internships across professional fields in the DC metro area. As a LEAD instructor, I taught professional development skills, such as aligning personal and professional values, leadership, and intercultural competence. I am also continued my work with curriculum development by creating some new workshops and infusing elements of social justice education into my work.
After working at The Washington Center, I moved on to work at the University of Maryland within Resident Life as the Coordinator for Student Leadership development. This role has brought me back to my roots in residential college student leadership as I advise the Residence Hall Association and the National Residence Hall Honorary. In addition to my role as an advisor, I also coordinate and teach our class for incoming Resident Assistants.
I am available for public speaking engagements and facilitating workshops and training seminars. I am happy to use my current workshops as a blueprint for your organization or create new training based on the needs of your organization. If you’re interested in scheduling me to speak at your campus or conference or organization please get in touch with me through my inquiry form on my Speaking & Training page.