I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Baylor Center for School Leadership in Baylor University’s School of Education. I manage a federally funded research project to design, implement, and evaluate an adolescent substance use prevention program in 11 schools across five school districts in Mississippi. I specialize in establishing cross-sector strategic partnerships that accelerate innovation. My thought leadership has led to speaking invitations at the White House, the U.S. Department of Education, Harvard Leadership Institute for Faith and Education, Yale University, the American Enterprise Institute, and two TEDx conferences. As an entrepreneur, I have provided strategic and editorial consulting to clients, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Cardus, the Illinois State Charter School Commission, and the Leadership Institute of Nevada. Having completed my Ph.D. in Education Policy at the University of Arkansas in August 2023, my mixed-methods research interests intersect religious faith and race in K-12 public education. I am the founder of the national nonprofit Teachers Who Pray and the author of The Master Teacher: 12 Spiritual Lessons That Can Transform Schools and Revolutionize Public Education. While teaching in Chicago Public Schools for 14 years, I authored blogs for Education Week and Education Post. I have published over 400 articles, including commentaries in The New York Times, Huffington Post, Black Enterprise, and Education Next. Named the 2013 Blogger/Commentator of the Year by the Bammy Awards, I have been featured in media outlets such as CBS, CBN, TLN, World Magazine, Christianity Today, and Moody Radio. Prior to my education career, I earned a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University and reported for People, Time, Newsday, and The Journal News in New York City. My most significant assignment was covering the 9/11 terrorist attacks.