Abeer Ramadan-Shinnawi, is a visionary Palestinian-American educator and equity advocate with over 20 years of experience as a social studies teacher. Her work extends into the heart of student advocacy, having created and overseen affinity groups for Muslim female students in four middle schools, fostering spaces of support and empowerment. Abeer is the founder and CEO of Altair Education Consulting, where she creates culturally responsive curricula and equity initiatives for large school districts, including Baltimore County Public Schools. Abeer is also a respected thought leader—delivering webinars, leading workshops, and serving as an adjunct professor at Loyola University, Maryland. where she teaches elementary social studies methods to pre-service teachers, continuing her commitment to preparing the next generation of educators.

David Spellmon Jr graduated with his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Virginia Union University in Richmond, VA in 2010. He has spent his professional career uplifting the youth through Social Emotional Learning and Culturally Responsive Teaching in the Mental Health, K-12, and Higher Education sectors.

David specializes in Hip Hop Pedagogy and building Social Capital. He is the author of the book Just Like Music: Social Emotional Learning Inspired by Hip Hop and the corresponding student workbook.

Lana is a vocalist, conductor, composer, educator, and co-founder of the Musical Arts Institute, where she works alongside her husband, Michael. Lana also grew up in Harvey and is a graduate of Fisk University and Northwestern. While at Fisk she was a member of the legendary Fisk Jubilee Singers and has coached and composed for many of Chicago’s top gospel artists. She’s taught music for over 17 years and leads music ministries at two churches in Chicago.

Michael Manson is an acclaimed bassist, composer, producer, and educator. He’s the co-founder and Executive Director of the Musical Arts Institute in Chicago, a nonprofit providing high-quality music education to underserved youth. Michael has released multiple Billboard Top 10 jazz recordings and is also the CEO of Manson Music Productions. In full disclosure for our listeners, Michael is my first cousin — our mothers were sisters, and he and I grew up just a mile apart in Harvey, Illinois. I remember Michael’s musical talent stood out.