Listening as Witness: How Art, Community, and Invitation Create Space for Healing with Rosa...

📝 Episodic Synopsis What does it mean to truly listen—not just hear, but witness? In this powerful panel conversation, Dr. Joey Weisler is joined by Rosa McAllister and Tieshka K Smith to explore how intentional listening can transform communities. Drawing from their work on the Listening Loom project and their contributions to Restorative Practices in Education Through the Arts, they unpack how art, storytelling, and human connection create space for healing across cultures, identities, and lived experiences. From classrooms to community spaces, this episode challenges educators and leaders to rethink participation, redefine safety, and embrace the role of witness—with boundaries. Through stories of displacement, trauma, and resilience, Rosa and Tieshka reveal how healing doesn’t happen in isolation—it happens between people, in the courage to listen, and in the spaces we intentionally create for others to be seen. 🔗 Show Links and Resources 📌 Kathryn Pannepacker's Classroom Narratives segment on creating spaces of presence 📌 Restorative Practices in Education Through the Arts (Book) 📌 ROSA MCALLISTER: networksfortraining.org Artists For Artists Global (AA4G) 📌 TIESHKA SMITH tieshkasmith.com Chapters: 0:00:00 - Segment introduction to Rosa and Tieshka 0:03:42 - Listening as a sense of healing though arts 0:06:48 - Using art to open doors of communication 0:11:43 - Gathering people/Listening Loom project 0:17:02 - Invitational language in classrooms 0:20:12 - Being a witness to the stories of others 0:29:30 - Intentional witnessing in classrooms 0:36:36 - Segment conclusion