The Team
S. Khalilah Brann received her Masters of Education in Secondary English and her Masters of Educational Leadership from Long Island University. She is the Founder of CREAD: Culturally Responsive Educators of the African Diaspora with the mission of supporting teachers, educators and community members in ensuring the positive racial identity development through education of young people of the Diaspora. She is also the Co-Founder of Decolonizing Education Publishing, which produces and publishes literary work that is deliberate in centering Black and Brown experiences, narratives, history and cultural contributions.
She spent a decade as an educator in the NYC Dept of Ed as an English and History teacher. Khalilah believes that in order to ensure that diverse students receive the education that they are entitled to and are able to function fully in this ever changing, ever growing global world, we must use the principles of critical pedagogy and critical race theory, culturally responsive and relevant education and education for liberation ideology so that we can decolonize our educational system, decenter whiteness and develop and sustain equitable practices, policies and beliefs for the classroom, school building and beyond.
Khalilah is as authentic as it get’s bringing her unapologetic Blackness and PRIDE for the diaspora to every space she sets foot in. A daughter of the Caribbean Island Antigua, a child of the Bronx, a writer, a lover of her people. She’s an educator, curriculum developer consultant, coach, a self proclaimed Cultural Ambassador, Researcher and Producer. She is dedicated to eradicating the ways that race, power, privilege and gender negatively affects the lives of people of the Diaspora. She lives by the Kenyan proverb, If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.
You can get her receipts here!
Nakeeba Wauchope
CUNY –Brooklyn College, Education MS
Adelphi University, Sports Management MA
William Paterson University, Radio, TV Production, and Media Studies BA
CUNY –Brooklyn College, Education MS
Adelphi University, Sports Management MA
William Paterson University, Radio, TV Production, and Media Studies BA
Educator, Artist, Researcher, and Activist
Nakeeba A. Wauchope is an Educational and Cultural Enrichment consultant who utilizes her passion for youth/communal development as a platform for creating and implementing comprehensive educational programming. She has designed and created curricula and multifaceted assessments for numerous organizations in New York City and throughout the United States.
Ms.Wauchope’s experience includes a concentration in the areas of curriculum research and professional development regarding culturally responsive pedagogy, restorative justice practices, social emotional competencies, music and movements (soundtrack for social justice), sports and ethics in American culture, and hip-hop pedagogy for general & special education students. She has designed and created curricula, scope and sequence, and multifaceted assessments for numerous for profit and non-profit organizations in New York City and throughout the United States. Nakeeba has also served as a director, coordinator, and facilitator of socially responsive women’s groups, Rites of Passage, Arts and Education outlets, and Sports & Leadership Development programs. Ms. Wauchope worked as an educator with the New York City Department of Education for over 10 years.
As a musician, Nakeeba Amaniyea, provides audiences with healing music for the soul, stimulation for the mind, and melodies for the heart. Nakeeba has entertained audiences throughout the United States and internationally in France, Spain, and Thailand. She has also collaborated with her mother, Sister Carol, and numerous other artists – most notably, Fat Man Scoop and Cappadonna from the Wu Tang Clan. She is featured on 2 songs from Cappadonna’s “Hook Off” album including the lead single “Feed My Folks” and “Spiritual Love”. Her multi-genre musical expression speaks to her various influences from Studio One Jamaica, Sister Carol, Peter Tosh, Bob Marley, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, Harry Belafonte, Mariam Makeba, Nina Simone, Public Enemy, The Roots, and Lauryn Hill to name a few. She infuses roots reggae, R & B, and hip-hop into an eclectic blend for every listener. Nakeeba Amaniyea’s artistry illustrates her passion for using music as a tool for unification and perpetuates the legacy of ‘edutainment’ established by her predecessors.
Chemay Morales James
Chemay Morales-James is a Nuyorican, by birth, raised in CT by her Puerto Rican born parents, Maybeth and Jose Morales. Chemay is a woke mami who enjoys spending quality time with her kids, especially after leaving her job of almost 10 years at NYU as a social justice coach for educators. As a highly involved parent and advocate for Black and Brown youth, Chemay founded My Reflection Matters (MRM), an online organization that curates educational resources and products that affirm, empower, and reflect Black and Brown brilliance. In August 2017, MRM launched their first line of Black to School Products, which you can purchase directly from their site. In addition to providing this resource to local and abroad communities, Chemay also offers consulting services for organizations looking for support around cultivating environments that nurture the development of healthy racial identities of kids of color. Chemay keeps her instructional skills sharp by continuing to teach at the collegiate level as well as unschooling her 3 and 5 year old boys. She is involved in her local and state community through her membership on Waterbury’s Equity Matterz work group, the Waterbury LGBTQ Task Force, and serving on the CT Commissioner’s Round Table for Family & Community Engagement.
Chemay Morales-James is a Nuyorican, by birth, raised in CT by her Puerto Rican born parents, Maybeth and Jose Morales. Chemay is a woke mami who enjoys spending quality time with her kids, especially after leaving her job of almost 10 years at NYU as a social justice coach for educators. As a highly involved parent and advocate for Black and Brown youth, Chemay founded My Reflection Matters (MRM), an online organization that curates educational resources and products that affirm, empower, and reflect Black and Brown brilliance. In August 2017, MRM launched their first line of Black to School Products, which you can purchase directly from their site. In addition to providing this resource to local and abroad communities, Chemay also offers consulting services for organizations looking for support around cultivating environments that nurture the development of healthy racial identities of kids of color. Chemay keeps her instructional skills sharp by continuing to teach at the collegiate level as well as unschooling her 3 and 5 year old boys. She is involved in her local and state community through her membership on Waterbury’s Equity Matterz work group, the Waterbury LGBTQ Task Force, and serving on the CT Commissioner’s Round Table for Family & Community Engagement.
Erin Dunlevy
Erin Dunlevy is a Restorative Justice Coach and Equity Consultant with over 15 years of professional experience in NYC public schools. She currently works on projects around the country training stakeholders from schools, districts, community organizations and for-profit companies who influence education. Particular areas of focus include developing a restorative model for critical consciousness, anti-bias strategies and examining the impact of race, power, and privilege in schools and professional settings. Her work has also focused on developing and implementing strategies for addressing equity issues within classrooms, specifically as an advocate for Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, Native Language Arts Education and restorative circles in core content classes. Erin has written and presented extensively about evaluative measures for restorative practices in schools cited for disproportionality and high incidences of violence. Currently Erin works as a Restorative Justice Consultant for the NYC Restorative Justice Pilot Initiative and the NYPD Warning Card Pilot Initiative and consults for various school districts throughout the country
Erin Dunlevy is a Restorative Justice Coach and Equity Consultant with over 15 years of professional experience in NYC public schools. She currently works on projects around the country training stakeholders from schools, districts, community organizations and for-profit companies who influence education. Particular areas of focus include developing a restorative model for critical consciousness, anti-bias strategies and examining the impact of race, power, and privilege in schools and professional settings. Her work has also focused on developing and implementing strategies for addressing equity issues within classrooms, specifically as an advocate for Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, Native Language Arts Education and restorative circles in core content classes. Erin has written and presented extensively about evaluative measures for restorative practices in schools cited for disproportionality and high incidences of violence. Currently Erin works as a Restorative Justice Consultant for the NYC Restorative Justice Pilot Initiative and the NYPD Warning Card Pilot Initiative and consults for various school districts throughout the country
Vincent Deas
My name is Vincent Deas. I am a proud father to a lovely little three year old girl. I am an innovator, a thinker, and a native of Brownsville Brooklyn. Central to that, I am a child of the African Diaspora.
My name is Vincent Deas. I am a proud father to a lovely little three year old girl. I am an innovator, a thinker, and a native of Brownsville Brooklyn. Central to that, I am a child of the African Diaspora.
I started this work as a Program Coordinator, within the Expanded Success Initiative, which is a public private partnership between the Department of Education, Bloomberg Philanthropic society, and The Open Fund Society. It’s a Mayoral initiative that is apart of the education wing of the Young Males Initiative, created under former mayor Bloomberg.
Most recently I am a program coordinator for NYC Men Teach, a new Mayoral initiative and the nation’s boldest effort to diversify the teaching force. We are looking to recruit into our pipeline a thousand male teachers of color in the next three years. Our aim is to create classroom leaders who are more reflective of the kids we serve.
I grew up in Brownsville Projects and attended Public Schools in the NYC school system. I attended Brooklyn College and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Interpersonal Communications and Development. While apart of the DOE the bulk of my work has been focused on the creation and development of mentoring and leadership groups for young people of color. I am an activist, a writer, and most importantly dedicated to the liberation of Black people.
Nafeza Kingston
Since leaving Smith in 2011, Nafeza has been an entrepreneurial powerhouse on a relentless pursuit to help women tap into their full potential.
Since leaving Smith in 2011, Nafeza has been an entrepreneurial powerhouse on a relentless pursuit to help women tap into their full potential.
As a trained Lean Sensi and project manager, Nafeza creates systems in every area of her client’s lives that eliminate waste, create flow, and produce results.
With more than 5 years of experience coaching women to break through obstacles stagnating their success (or B.O.S.S UP), Nafeza is confident she can help any woman get their business, career and personal life in sync.
Zenzile Greene-Daniel
Zenzile Greene Daniel is the Digital Editor and Producer for CREAD as well as the Co-founder, Videographer, Editor and Producer for Soul Sistah Series, a monthly discussion series for Women of the Diaspora. She also writes a culture review and self reflection blog for Urban Eve on WordPress, and is a freelance photographer for her media company, Zanography. She believes deeply in the restorative and cathartic powers of nature, spa treatments and laughter.
Zenzile Greene Daniel is the Digital Editor and Producer for CREAD as well as the Co-founder, Videographer, Editor and Producer for Soul Sistah Series, a monthly discussion series for Women of the Diaspora. She also writes a culture review and self reflection blog for Urban Eve on WordPress, and is a freelance photographer for her media company, Zanography. She believes deeply in the restorative and cathartic powers of nature, spa treatments and laughter.
Khalya Hopkins
I’m a mother, an educator, a writer, an avid reader, a forever learner and a proud black woman. I have Southern and Caribbean roots but I was born and raised in the Bronx (BX Stand up!). I’ve been an educator ever since I joined the workforce right out of college and I plan to be remembered as such. During the day, I work for the NYC Department of Education where I support Manhattan high schools in the area of Special Education. I am also an Adjunct Lecturer at Hunter College where I teach a graduate level Intro to Special Education course.
I’m a mother, an educator, a writer, an avid reader, a forever learner and a proud black woman. I have Southern and Caribbean roots but I was born and raised in the Bronx (BX Stand up!). I’ve been an educator ever since I joined the workforce right out of college and I plan to be remembered as such. During the day, I work for the NYC Department of Education where I support Manhattan high schools in the area of Special Education. I am also an Adjunct Lecturer at Hunter College where I teach a graduate level Intro to Special Education course.
My philosophy is that all educators should provide the same quality of instruction that they would want for their own children. It is of the utmost importance and urgency that students feel that they are part of a learning community that validates, respects and invites their knowledge, culture and ideas. I hope, that in my role, I can help push our teachers and students from that educational ideal to a reality.
Cathleen Antoine
My people hail from the island of Ayiti (Haiti as y’all know it). I believe education is our birthright and our civil right. I am passionate about teaching, learning, being creative (I’m a glitter, glue and scissors enthusiast) and the future of our black and brown babies. Ayibobo!
My people hail from the island of Ayiti (Haiti as y’all know it). I believe education is our birthright and our civil right. I am passionate about teaching, learning, being creative (I’m a glitter, glue and scissors enthusiast) and the future of our black and brown babies. Ayibobo!
I am a 15 year veteran of the classroom currently working as an educational consultant and community activist. I continue to work to build connections and collaborations with community and arts organizations that provide culturally relevant and empowering programming for our children and youth. In addition, I am an adjunct for Touro College in the Department Career and Applied Studies.
Story of CREAD
I was visiting the first HS I’ve ever taught in. It was a sweet walk down memory lane, though the school had changed, and not for the better. I walked into the guidance suite, to talk with one of the elders in the building. In his office was a former colleague Cathleen Antoine and this legendary elder.
The three of us began to talk about what we believed would save the school and what we needed to do to support teachers. We talked for hours, we pontificated on who was at fault for the failure of our beloved school and who was responsible for the support and development of Black teachers who were woke but unsupported. We decided to stop speaking about it and be about it. We then organized a meet up for “Culturally Responsive Educators of the African Diaspora.”
We were clear that this was going to be a meeting of educators who considered themselves being “of the diaspora” and wanting to build community with other educators of the diaspora. From that meeting CREAD was spawned. We eventually decided we wanted to create an online following while providing teachers with resources and ideas to support them as they teach in this era of #blacklivesmatter and the re-emergence of a defiant racial consciousness.
consciousness rising of young people of the diaspora.
consciousness rising of young people of the diaspora.
As Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes sang in 1975;
Wake up all the teacher time to teach a new way
Maybe then they’ll listen to whatcha have to say
‘Cause they’re the ones who’s coming up and the world is in their hands
When you teach the children teach em the very best you can
We’re heeding the call. Our desire is to help support teachers as we usher in this new way of teaching, a way of teaching that is built on the foundation of positive racial identity development through education (PRIDE) built on the West African principle of Sankofa for those of the African Diaspora.
Culturally Responsive Educators of the African Diaspora
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