A native of Chicago, Illinois, by way of Mississippi, my research and teaching broadly focus on culture, power, education, particularly, urban school closures, Black education, Black intellectualism, and Black identity. In my research I examine how the political economy continues to impact the education of African American communities. I ask the following questions: 1) What are the educational experiences of African American communities and 2) How do they make sense of their educational experiences? To answer these questions, I engage in interdisciplinary conceptual frameworks and methodologies, including critical, cultural, Black feminist theories, oral history, historiography, and ethnography. To name a few, I have drawn on the work of Eve Ewing, Pauline Lipman, Rose Brewer, Cedric Robinson, Robin D.G. Kelley, W.E.B Du Bois, Carter G. Woodson, bell hooks, Cynthia Dillard, Christina Sharpe, and Shauna Sweeney to document, explicate, critique, and reimagine the education of African American communities, the work of educators, and the role of critical ethnic studies in the work of educating all students.
