Dr. Sirrita Darby, Youth & Education Advocate | 2024 Skillman Visionary Awardee

The Skillman Visionary Awards is a celebration of education changemakers who nurture the brilliance and power of Detroit youth.
Dr. Sirrita Darby brings a multi-pronged approach to systems change, from youth-led work to co-designing curriculum with students.
In her time as an English teacher at Detroit Collegiate High School, Dr. Darby created a space where love, academic rigor, and emotional healing flourished. Alongside ELA standards, Dr. Darby created “healing circles” for her students to unpack traumas while simultaneously strengthening their speaking, reading, and writing skills. Their collective journey resulted in a published book of student poems called Forbidden Tears.
Harnessing her insights from the classroom, Dr. Darby founded and serves as the executive director of Detroit Heals Detroit. She facilitates safe spaces for Detroit youth to authentically express themselves, heal from trauma, and work to dismantle systems of oppression. She built these practices into an educational curriculum and youth training that has been taken up by classroom teachers and afterschool providers across the country. Additionally, Dr. Darby worked alongside the young people she serves to co-found a “Healing Hub,” a community house where young Detroiters can receive free food, clothes, books, tutoring and more.
-- About the Skillman Visionary Awards --
Bestowed annually, the Skillman Visionary Awards recognize up to 10 individuals who are transforming the education system into a more equitable model for all. Visionaries represent a mix of educators, organizers, policy movers and other essential leaders working across Detroit education.
Learn more at www.skillmanvisionary.org
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