PROFILE

Jalisa Evans is the chief executive officer and founder of The Black Educator Advocates Network. Jalisa has committed a decade of her career in various roles impacting the education of Black and Brown students. Jalisa began her career as a middle school teacher in Charlotte, North Carolina. During her first year as a teacher, she participated in her first campaign securing $132.2 million dollars worth of county funding to support schools serving Black and Brown students. Her commitment to education led her to Los Angeles, where she continued teaching seventh-grade science. After serving in the classroom, Jalisa transitioned to lead a grassroots campaign alongside Black families across Los Angeles. This campaign resulted in the Validated Plan, which allocated funds and resources to over 14,000 Black students in LAUSD. Jalisa founded The Black Educator Advocates Network (BEAN) to transform the environment, practices, and policies impacting the teaching experience for Black educators. BEAN supports Black educators to take collective action against these barriers and collaborates with school leaders and districts to build anti-racist schools and workforce.

Jalisa earned an M.S.W from the University of Southern California and a B.A. from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.

To learn more about BEAN and its impact, visit blackeducatorsadvocate.org.