"We've got a responsibility to live up to the legacy of those who came before us by doing all that we can to help those who come after us."
First Lady Michelle Obama
Terah Venzant Chambers: Rooted in Reform:
Growing up in a predominantly white suburb outside St. Paul, Minnesota, I struggled to fit in as a smart, Black girl. In all of my thirteen years of K-12 schooling, I never once had a teacher of color. In high school, I don’t recall there ever being another Black student in my advanced classes. I attended excellent public schools and had wonderful friends, but I could never shake the feeling that I did not quite belong.
After getting accepted to Carleton College, an elite college outside the Twin Cities, a sense of Imposter Syndrome set in. Sitting among my classmates at the opening convocation ceremony, I felt like a fraud. Irrational thoughts that my admission was somehow a mistake would haunt me. Although I worked hard in my classes and never received a grade lower than a B-, I was plagued by the feeling that I didn’t belong. I found myself changing majors and, eventually, universities, transferring in my second year to the University of Minnesota. I felt like a complete failure.
RESEARCH TOPICS
Racial Opportunity Cost (The price of school success for Black and Latinx students)
Post-Brown K-12 Education Policy/School Desegregation
Supporting School Leaders to Foster Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
