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Zenzile, thank you so much for your thoughtfulness, warmth, and constant enthusiasm in our Thursday evening classes. I feel so grateful to have had you as a TF and really appreciate all of your feedback. Wishing you the best! Big, big hugs! - CL

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I am so happy to have been part of the Thursday night crew! You made this amazing class even more amazing with your presence! I can't even begin to imagine how lit the class would be if it was in person. You are an inspiration to me and I want to tell you that I admire you. I cannot wait to see what more you accomplish in your career! Thank you for your commitment to this class and to ethnic studies. Thank you for being YOU!

With Love <3,
Karla

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Thursday Night Crew 004-Ever! Thank you for making this Ethnic Studies journey unforgettable. Thank you for trusting us with your stories and for modeling what vulnerageousness looks like, daily. For pushing through when you had every reason to rest and retreat. We don't take your presence lightly. I am personally grateful for your consistent personification of "Know history; Know self". I cannot wait to see how you continue to influence this world as Dr. Z. You'll hear me somewhere yelling, that's my T.F.! Love you tons. In Lak'ech ~Vanna

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Zenzile,
You got the gift! You got the love!
Thank you for sharing your whole self with us and exemplifying what it means to be in Lak'ech. I will carry your spirit and the things I've learned from you with me. You in this world makes it a hopeful, warm, and bright place. Thank you for these gifts! I hope you have a warm, peaceful, loving end to the year.
Peace, love, and gratitude,
Carmen

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Zenzile (Dr. Z)--you are such an inspiring educator!

Thank you for all of the love this semester. I have NEVER felt that hyped up about my work. The in-class and out-of-class feedback you gave me was always so thoughtful. Thank you for sharing your story with us as well; your vulnerageousness is an honor to witness. You are such a badass, and I can’t wait to see how your beautiful spirit is going to continue to impact our world.

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Zenzile,
Your warmth, thoughtfulness, and open sharing of your life and story provided the right ingredients to foster a caring Ethnic Studies community. Thank you for your guidance, your directionality, and your supportive care.  You helped to co-create a safe space full of risk-taking, story-telling, and love.  Best wishes as you embark on this next chapter of your life.  Thank you for touching our lives in the process.
With love and light,
Kathryn

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Dr. Z!!!! Thank you for sharing your joy and peace with us. I feel extra blessed that I got to have you in both Ethnic Studies AND Healing Centered Engagement! I got a double dose of your absolute magic. I have learned so much from you in these 2 semesters, but especially in how to lead a class in a way that makes all students feel heard, validated, supported, and challenged! I am already a better educator because of you. ❤️❤️❤️ ALSO! My students were so obsessed with you, and ✨magic✨ knows ✨magic✨ when they see it! Thank you for loving on them!

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Chrameep sua, sok sa bai! ("hello, hope you are well" -Khmer)

Zenzile aka Dr. Z aka Zendaddy, I feel hella privileged and fortunate to have you as one of our co-pilots for our Thursday nite crew. You always bring so much joy, knowledge, love, compassion and wisdom into our Ethnic Studies class —and I have no doubt this is the same energy you bring to every space you enter and the people you meet. Thank you for holding it down for the people of East Oakland as you navigate through the world and making sure our voices and experiences are always heard and seen. Hella appreciate and love you!

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Zenzile, thank you so much for being a main influence in creating our home in class this semester. I have never encountered a class that enacts the values it preaches so well, and all the love you put into our resonant connections, your story, and our class discussions, among so many other things, really made that happen. I can't wait to brag to everyone I know about Dr. Z and how I was fortunate enough to be in a class she was instrumental in making happen!

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Dr.Z,
You were an amazing TF and I was so lucky to have you this semester. The life story you shared with us will stay with me and encourage me to open my heart to my students as well. Your openness, incredible energy, and love for the Thursday section made this semester for me!
Sending you lots of love from the other side of the world, Jaynee

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You are an amazing, caring, and compassionate TF, Zenzile. Thank you for creating a safe, inviting, and powerful intellectual and community building space for all of us each and every Thursday night... and bringing your vulnerageous self to each of us. WE <3 you and appreciate you! -Manaf

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Zenzile, thank you so much for all the love, wisdom and realness you brought to our Thursday night class. You are a blessing to all that have the privilege to share space with you. I can't wait to see/hear/read all of the amazing things you continue to do in the future.

love&light,
Imani

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Zenzile, you brought such light and warmth to our group every Thursday! I am so appreciative of your kindness and openness. The stories and knowledge you shared have meant so much and I'll carry them with me in my thinking and work. Thank you for being our TF!

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Zenzile,
Thank you for making Ethnic Studies a safe place to look again at what we think we know. Thank you for giving voice to your experience and for your listening with curiosity to the experience of others. Thank you for being kind, loving, and true.
With thanks and love,
Jere

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Thank you, Zenzile, for all the ways in which you gently pushed us to open our hearts & minds. Your pedagogy, your life story, and your contributions, were all palpable signs of the ways in which you deeply care about us and about this work. Thank you <3
- Anabella

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Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o Portrait by John McCann

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Zenzile,

As a [recently hired] college English instructor, I offer my sincerest thanks for our rich discussions on the use of the English language as a tool for good, which will continue to shape my approach to pedagogy.  Cheers to English as a tool for the decolonization of minds!  I’m raising my red cup to you, Zenzile!

“The real language of humankind [is] the language of struggle. It is the universal language underlying all speech and words of our history. Struggle. Struggle makes history. Struggle makes us. In struggle is our history, our language and our being.”

― Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, Decolonising the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature

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Dearest Zenzele (DR Z.),
It is with the deepest gratitude for all you are and all you do that I am enormously thankful for you. Your grace and compassion for your 'sunflowers' was unwavering. You watered us every Thursday night with your vulnerageousnness and intellect, and fed us with your brilliant light and humanity. I could not imagine having a better TF than you for this course. How did we get so lucky? Also, thank you for always reppin hard for your Thursday night crew. As an online student who often feels neglected, you put us front and center and held us with love.
I expect big things from you, Doctor Z!
And, I look forward to how you will shine your light on everyone soon enough. This world needs more people like you.
Ubuntu,
Georgia