NCID-1860
Ansley Booker
Director of Diversity and Inclusion
Mercer University
Education/Degree:
1 Higher Education Higher Education (Mercer University)
About
Ansley Booker, PhD is a native of Eatonton, Georgia. She earned her bachelor of arts in biology from Georgia Southern University in 2008, where she was a Ronald E. McNair Scholar, a master of science in pharmacy from the University of Georgia in 2013, and her Ph.D. in educational leadership from Mercer University in May 2019.In addition to developing STEM curriculum for high school and collegiate students as an adjunct professor, she has served as a mentor and volunteer for numerous programs in the Macon community including Streets to Success and Real I. M. P. A.C. T. Center, a local non-profit to ensure young girls 3rd-8th grade are exposed to STEM disciplines. Dr. Booker was the previous Director for the Mercer University Educational Opportunity Center (TRiO Programs) and is the newly appointed Director for Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives.
Current Work
Dr. Booker's dissertation focused on African American women who had obtained STEM graduate/doctoral degrees in computer science, engineering, and physical science. Her goal was to unearth barriers and catalysts to their graduate and career success so that she could develop retention models to improve their college persistence. She has published and presented extensively on the experiences of African American women and minority students in STEM education and student affairs. Dr. booker's writings are featured in the books The Table, Gumbo Females of Color Book 2, Seeing The HiddEn Minority: Increasing the Talent Pool through Identity, Socialization, and Mentoring Constructs, Fraternal Organizations, and Mentoring: Valuable Compacts for Young Black Males, and Teaching Beautiful Brilliant Black Girls. Her passion for STEM was highlighted in her 2019 TedTalk at the University of Georgia entitled Unhidden Figures: Uncovering Our Cultural Biases in STEM.
Research Area Keyword(s)
access, bias, diversity, Equity, inclusion, STEM