Alumni in Action: Meet Dr. Gholdy Muhammad
Dr. Gholdy Muhammad
Golden Apple Scholars Class of 2001
In 2001, the Golden Apple Scholars Program welcomed Gholnecsar (Gholdy) Muhammad. After graduating from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville in 2003, Dr. Muhammad received the National Council of Teachers of English, Promising New Researcher Award in 2014, the 2017 Georgia State University Urban Education Research Award, and the 2018 University of Illinois at Chicago College of Education Researcher of the Year. She now works with teachers and young people across the United States and South Africa in best practices in equity, anti-racism, and culturally & historically responsive instruction. She is also the author of the best-selling book, Cultivating Genius: An Equity Model for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy.
Dr. Muhammad, what role are you currently playing in the field of education?
Currently, I serve as an Associate professor of Language and Literacy at Georgia State University. I also support schools and districts across the country that have adopted my model for moving teachers & leaders forward through the use of Culturally and Historically Responsive Education.
How do you use the lessons learned from being a Golden Apple Scholar in your current role?
Golden Apple really set the foundation for everything that was to follow. I remember, even in my Scholar interview, the questions were just beautiful. Then, when I became a Scholar, I truly appreciated the attention that was taken in me by the highly educated and civically engaged leaders of Scholar Institute. They were always pushing our thinking and not letting us be afraid to speak. I was the type of Scholar that soaked in everything, so I’m still using things that I learned as a Scholar in professional development experiences that I present. I strongly believe that this should be the model for education.
When the foundation is built stronger, the house is better. My foundation, Golden Apple, has afforded me the opportunity to be seen on Good Morning America, to be a curriculum consultant in South Africa, and to earn numerous national awards. It’s all because I had a strong foundation.
What is the best thing about your current position?
There’s nothing like the joy I feel when I am able to work with people and support them in moving to the point of excellence. For this reason, I still teach and write curriculum whenever I can. Every summer I teach the Black Girls WRITE Institute. The best part is the children. One of my students who was a part of Black Girls WRITE recently wrote and published her first children’s book and sent it to me. It was a very proud moment.
What has motivated you to re-engage or remain engaged with the Golden Apple Foundation?
I have always kept up with Golden Apple. A few of my friends actually won the Golden Apple Award. I am still very close to Pat Kilduff. She was my mentor and she helped me through grad school. The people, progress of the program, and the sustainability of the work at Golden Apple have motivated me to remain engaged.
What is your fondest memory as a Scholar?
My fondest memories would be the relationships that I built with my Scholar Institute roommates and instructors. I will never forget the assignment that Dom (Dominic Belmonte, 1989 Golden Apple Fellow) gave us where we had to rewrite songs lyrics, changing the message to the topic of teaching. That was an incredible moment! I felt like if I could creatively pull that off, I could do anything.
What are your goals moving forward?
Right now, my goal would be to grow this work and bring more educators into the model of Cultivating Genius (which has now sold 62,000 copies in 14 months). My long-term goal is to write and develop my own curriculum since I already do so much curriculum development and training for other publishers. However, my ultimate goal is to become Secretary of Education to have an impact on improving schools and classrooms nationwide.
What advice would you give to those Scholars looking to move into teacher leadership?
My leadership journey was all about self-discovery. Listen to your body and learn how it feels to be in certain leadership roles to determine which one works best for you. Do not just accept what’s given to you; do your research. Know policy and teacher evaluation, history of US public schools, and the discrepancies in the structure. Then, you can work to dismantle systems that no longer serve us. These are the kinds of leaders we need for today and tomorrow, and it will take a lot of unlearning and educating. I trust that Golden Apple plants the seed for Scholars to do this work.