Leadership Academy Open Session

Sister IAsia Thomas

Sister IAsia Thomas is a native of South Africa who using teaching artistry to convey and represent the many truths about the benevolence of black people all throughout the Diaspora. She has worked in education as a director for the Culturally Responsive Arts Education program of Pittsburgh Public Schools where she also taught Congolese dance, artistic leadership, and creative writing to elementary, middle and high school learners. She serves the District as a project manager of Equity with an emphasis on cultural relevancies in education. As an African-centered educator she works to develop models for student uplift through African arts, holistic health practice (yoga and meditation), and self-knowledge for learners. She currently serves as the director of Children’s Windows to Africa, a creative cultural program that serves residents from public housing in their natural environments. Further, she is a member of the Council for Cultural Equity and Emancipated Education, an education justice collective that advocates for the dignity of the black child and scholar.   Sister IAsia has served the Heinz Endowments Transformative Arts Process as an advisory board member for five years where she currently leads a sub group committee entitled RACY (Race, Arts, Culture, and Youth). She is a trainer, teacher and leader for cultural equity and justice. She recently received a Master of Science in High Performance Learning from Carlow University and is a year one doctoral student. She is interested in unifying continental African and African American learners and people to uplift, strengthen, and nourish the spirit of resilience innate in people of color. Sister IAsia is married to her soul mate and is a proud mother of three amazing daughters. She is trained as a doula, loves nature, naturopathic health, swimming, diving, writing, mothering, and building with her community.