SAFEatUSU Speaker: Dr. Terrell Morton

Deprogramming Whiteness to Advance Liberation: A Critical Examination of the “Self” in Social Justice Endeavors

In this talk, Dr. Morton will share his expertise in identity and justice, and invite us into a conversation about diversity & inclusion and anti-racism. We're excited to share that Shouqing Si, Ph.D. student in School of Teacher Education and Leadership at Utah State University, will moderate the talk.

Speaker Bio:

Dr. Terrell R. Morton (@DrTRMorton) is an Assistant Professor of Identity and Justice in STEM Education at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he works in the Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum Department of the College of Education.

Dr. Morton is an alumnus of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. While at NC A&T, Dr. Morton participated in a variety of organizations including the Chemistry Club, the Council of Presidents, was Drum Major of the Blue and Gold Marching Machine, and joined Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity, Inc., and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Dr. Morton obtained a Master’s of Science in Neuroscience from the University of Miami, and a Ph.D. in Education, concentration Learning Sciences and Psychological Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel-Hill.

Dr. Morton identifies as a Scholar-Activist! His research and work focus on identity as it informs the persistence and engagement of racialized and minoritized students in STEM postsecondary education. He draws from critical race theory, phenomenology, and human development to ascertain Black students’ consciousness and how it manifests in their various embodiments and actions that facilitate their STEM postsecondary engagements.

As a scholar-activist, Dr. Morton works to transform the positioning and understanding of Blackness in mainstream education, specifically STEM; seeking justice and joy for Black women, Black students, and other minoritized individuals given the social-cultural-political-historical positioning of their identities. He advocates for identity, justice, and joy to be fundamental for education. He also works to transform STEM learning environments, creating spaces that are recognized and understood as extensions of students’ identity rather than sites of oppression that perpetuate hostility and exclusion.

He is published in several academic journals including The Journal of Negro Education, Science Education, and The Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, among others; he has also presented at various national and international conferences. Dr. Morton has received $2.1 million dollars in external grant funding from Federal and Foundation agencies such as the National Science Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and the Lumina Foundation, with foci of building inclusion in the natural sciences, using CRT to cultivate the critical consciousness and dialogic action of higher education personnel, training higher education STEM faculty and professionals to embrace asset-based perspectives when teaching and engaging minoritized students, and building a national network comprised of diverse individuals to redress systems of oppression in undergraduate biology education to enhance the educational experiences and outcomes of Black students.

Dr. Morton is the Co-Founder of the Christine Avery Learning Center, Inc. (CWA), an educational nonprofit based in Asheville, NC that serves youth and their families ages 2 – 16 years old. Through every endeavor, he strives to “walk it like I talk it.”

Here is more information on the SAFE Spring 2021 Speaker Series.