Sharif El-Mekki
Founder and CEO, Center for Black Educator Development
Sharif El-Mekki became the Director of the Center for Black Educator Development (CBED) in 2019. Under the umbrella of the Black Male Educators for Social Justice Fellowship, a group Sharif created in 2014, CBED will expand on efforts to recruit and support Black educators both locally and nationally. Sharif’s background includes a 26-year career as a teacher and principal in three neighborhood schools in West Philadelphia. He spent 11 years as the proud principal of Mastery Charter Shoemaker Campus, which received numerous awards during his tenure, including the 2016 bronze medal on the U.S. News & World Report high school rankings. He has also been a U.S. Department of Education Principal Ambassador Fellow and an America Achieves Fellow. Sharif served on the Philadelphia Mayor’s Commission on African American Males and the board of Excellent Schools PA amongst others. Sharif blogs on Phillys7thward.org and is a member of the weekly 8 Black Hands podcast.
Imali Ariyarathne, seventh-grade teacher at Langston Hughes Academy, introduces her students to the captivating world of science.
About TNTP
TNTP is the nation’s leading research, policy, and consulting organization dedicated to transforming America’s public education system, so that every generation thrives.
Today, we work side-by-side with educators, system leaders, and communities across 39 states and over 6,000 districts nationwide to reach ambitious goals for student success.
Yet the possibilities we imagine push far beyond the walls of school and the education field alone. We are catalyzing a movement across sectors to create multiple pathways for young people to achieve academic, economic, and social mobility.