Shaquille Dunbar

Shaquille was born and raised in New York and graduated from SUNY Binghamton with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. After graduating, he became a paraprofessional for the Association for Metroarea Autistic Children, Inc. This experience prompted him to join Teach For America as a 2015 Greater New Orleans corps member. Shaquille taught mathematics at a Title I high school for four years. It was through teaching where he discovered

His students’ potential, coupled with the reality of obstacles they faced, compelled him to devote himself to being an outstanding educator and advocate. His desire to understand the structures that shape the disparities his students face compelled him to study education policy. In January 2018, he was accepted into American University’s (AU) School of Education graduate program for Education Policy & Leadership. During his time at AU, Shaquille served as a consultant for the Opportunity Institute in Washington, D.C, to address pension reform and resource equity for classroom teachers across the United States.

In 2019, Shaquille was selected as an Urban Leaders Fellow, spending the summer working with Orleans Parish School Board. He worked on developing ways to improve college persistence and post-secondary outcomes for New Orleans youth by increasing access to financial literacy curriculum and partnering with a bank to open student savings accounts. The 8-week program left him with a desire to continue learning more about policy so he can continue to make system-level changes for students. In the fall of 2020, Shaquille was accepted into the Leadership for Education Equity (LEE) Public Policy Fellowship, where he was placed at the Office of Councilmember Zeke Cohen in Baltimore, Maryland. In this role, Shaquille focused on three main issues: the digital divide, supporting the coordination of Healing City Baltimore & the Elijah Cummings Healing City Act, and Baltimore Neighbors Network. It was through this fellowship that Shaquille was able to get a clear understanding of how local and state government can be change-makers in the lives of their constituents

By drawing upon his previous experiences, Shaquille’s long-term goal is to use his background in education, public policy, and relationship-building to create a pathway to success for underserved youth and communities across the nation.