Tunette Powell

Tunette Powell, PhD
Director of Parent and Family Partnerships and Research Assistant Professor
Children's Equity Project, Arizona State University

Dr. Tunette Powell is a powerful storyteller and educator who believes truth is a form of activism and an agent for change. As an established author and lecturer, Dr. Powell has published two nonfiction books and has spoken to groups around the country on topics including the school-to-prison pipeline, parent engagement and school-induced collective trauma. In addition, she was a 2013 TEDx speaker and has appeared on Oprah’s Lifeclass, NPR, CNN and MSNBC.

Dr. Powell recently earned her PhD in education at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Her dissertation, The Scars of School Suspension: Narratives as Testimonies of Collective Trauma, examines the wounds dealt to Black parents of children who have been suspended in early childhood education. She also serves as the interim director of the UCLA Parent Empowerment Project – a project focused on developing, nurturing and sustaining parent engagement and parent leadership in schools, especially schools serving families of color.