Member

Dr. Michelle Grace-Williams (She/Her) is an Assistant Professor at Northern Michigan University where she currently teaches undergraduate Teacher Candidates in Literacy Methods and Art Integration courses. Through her international and local teaching experiences in the U.S., Canada, and Jamaica she has emphasized social-emotional learning at the K-12 levels in diverse contexts. She is passionate about promoting students' well-being and views this through a social justice lens as reflected in her academic work and research. Her teaching philosophy is informed by Bell hooks’ notion of education as the practice of freedom involving a “movement beyond boundaries.” She enjoys supporting Teacher Candidates as they explore ways of creating classroom spaces that foster joy, freedom, and engaged learning. As the author of two children’s books, she believes in the use of children's literature to help create positive classroom experiences and identity affirmations to uplift all students.