For over a decade, Erika has been working to improve educational outcomes for students across the South. While teaching middle school math in Charlotte, NC, Erika visited her first charter school and saw first-hand what high expectations and transformational education look like in action – not just in theory. Four years later, she seized upon an opportunity to return to her home state of Mississippi, bringing those same transformational options and ultimately creating the Mississippi Charter Schools Association and later working in the Office of the Lieutenant Governor to impact education policies beyond public charter schools. These experiences eventually led her back to North Carolina where she served in the state education agency advising the superintendent’s office on various issues ranging from early literacy to innovative assessments to school discipline. Erika holds a Master of Public Policy in Education Policy from Vanderbilt University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Mississippi.
