My Story
The thread that weaves my story together is a persistent desire to engage with people and organizations in ways that foster life and connectedness. A life-long love of learning has guided my career path in schools and educational leadership. Always dedicated to learning, yet unsure of whether I wanted to remain in education, I studied business management to prepare for future opportunities in development work in the US and abroad. While living and working in Ghana, our family built a small library and filled it with book donations from the US. While well intended, reading stories to Ghanaian children that rarely featured African people, languages, cultures, and identities raised my awareness of the need for culturally responsive teaching and leadership that ensures children are able to see themselves in the books they read. I enrolled at the University of Minnesota to study sub-saharan post-colonial education development to better understand the problematic dimensions of race, class, and power in organizational leadership and community engagement efforts.
When we returned to the US, I began working with graduate students and joined a team of people selected to be trained in Restorative Practices. I began more formal engagement with Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice initiatives through serving on various committees at work and in my community. I brought my knowledge and experiences in Restorative Practices, social justice, and intercultural understanding to my new role as the Director of Community and Belonging at a 3K-12 independent school in Atlanta. My goal at the outset was to co-create the systems and structures needed to sustain these efforts so that my dedicated position would no longer be needed. Having experienced the power of creative, collaborative, and strategic work that invites every member of the organization to get closer, see closer, and be closer, I'm prepared to partner with schools and learning organizations to provide independent tailored consulting services that empower leaders with the knowledge, skills, and tools to lead in co-creating more just and peaceful organizations.
Education, Training, and Certifications
Cornell University
I enrolled in the Diversity and Inclusion for Human Resources Certificate at Cornell University to deepen my understanding of how successful approaches to diversity, equity, and inclusion can shift organizational culture and have a demonstrated positive impact on employee well-being and organizational effectiveness, creating a competitive advantages for companies who choose to engage. Key concepts included equity, unconscious bias, psychological safety, inclusive leadership, and cross-cultural conversations. This certificate program provided a wide range of practical tools for conducting equity audits, measuring inclusion, and examining institutional policies and practices from an equity and inclusion lens.
Diversity and Inclusion for HR
IDI Qualified Administrator
Intercultural Development Inventory
Learning about the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) was a key component of my doctoral program where I had the opportunity to study under the late Professor Emertius Dr. Michael Paige. The IDI is a tool that helps assess individual and organizational intercultural competence, measured by the capability to shift cultural perspective and appropriately adapt behavior to cultural difference and commonalities. Last year, I completed the IDI training to become an IDI Qualified Administrator. This certification allows me to conduct individual and group debriefs for the IDI. I also had the opportunity to help lead the IDI roll out among 300 teachers at an international school in Atlanta.
Restorative Practices Training
Nehemiah Trinity Rising
I participated in a year-long training opportunity in Restorative Practices while working in an international student services and student development role in higher education. My first exposure to Restorative Practices was participating in circle at an educational leadership conference several years prior. The training provided me with the theoretical frameworks that help define Restorative Practices and the practical experiences to successfully lead Restorative Practices efforts. Through my experiences leading Restorative Practices in schools I have witnessed the impact on individual and communal healing ranging from interpersonal conflicts to systemic and intergenerational harm.
PhD in Organizational Leadership and Policy Development
University of Minnesota
I enrolled in the Organizational Leadership and Policy Development PhD program at the University of Minnesota in the Leadership for International and Intercultural Education track designed for international educators and educational leaders. Our cohort consisted of teachers and school administrators from around the world. We met on campus each summer for three years and learned virtually together during each school year. I was leading schools in Ghana at the time and this program provided the theoretical and conceptual foundations for leading in highly diverse organizational settings. My research interests are in sub-saharan post-colonial education development and US based anti-blackness and racial inequities in schools and society.
IB Teaching and Learning Certificate
Bethel University
I fell in love with the International Baccalaureate (IB) while teaching Visual Arts in the Diploma Program at my first IB school in Ghana. I earned an IB certificate from Bethel University where I deepened my understanding in IB approaches to curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment. What I appreciate most about the IB is its focus on equipping students to become independent learners, critical thinkers, and global citizens. My understanding of the IB provided a strong foundation for leading Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice initiatives through transdisciplinary, inquiry-based teaching and development of conceptual understanding.
Masters in Business Administration
Northern Illinois University
I enrolled in the Executive MBA Program at Northern Illinois University while working full time as an art teacher. Not sure exactly how a Masters in Business Administration and art education connect, I knew I wanted to prepare for future opportunities in development work in the US and abroad. As it turns out, connections are everywhere, and I learned a lot about leadership, financial management, coaching and mentoring, and marketing, all relevant in their own ways to a systems thinking approach to any learning environment. My MBA also provided an experiential learning opportunity to visit multinational corporations in France and the UK and learn more about organizational leadership and cross-cultural communication.
BA Art Education
Judson University
I earned a bachelor of arts degree in art education with a vision for connecting my love for visual arts and my love for young children. Throughout college, I taught art at an after school program in Chicago where I had the opportunity to help children explore creative expression, contribute to their communities, and heal from trauma. After graduating, I taught art for six years in a culturally and linguistically diverse public school in the Chicago area, and later again in Ghana. My background in art education led me into board service with an incredible organization, the Ancestor Project, Ghana, which uses art and education to bring healing from the legacies of colonialism and enslavement.