Ms. Joli McTerrell

My career has been shaped by two passions - education and storytelling. I spent 17 years in higher education, driven by the belief that everyone deserves a quality education and a path to college. I came from a private school background where quality education was at my fingertips, but when I got to college in Philadelphia, I realized that not everyone has that guarantee. I got my journalism degree because I wanted to tell the stories of people who don't have a voice, not just write about entertainment. I went into higher ed to mentor, support, and advocate for students of all different walks of life, helping them see themselves differently and have a goal and a plan. During the pandemic, I made a major pivot. Higher ed felt like fight or flight, and I knew I had this journalism degree I was proud of but hadn't fully utilized. I became my own creative director and producer, and I decided I wanted to be around people who love art. I got proactive, made connections with artists and organizations, and became a creative director for a new budding arts organization. We represented artists, put on exhibitions, and I got to write for artists and do interviews online. I became an international curator and worked with Women in the Arts out of the UK, which was a wonderful connection. One of my proudest projects was the 'I Am Women' exhibition, which came from a place of me not even feeling like a woman yet - I was a mother, a sister, someone's partner, but I hadn't claimed my own identity. I gathered many women together and we created something really empowering. I wanted life to feel more colorful, with more than just the three main colors of school, students, and me as a Black woman. I needed primary colors, pastels, watercolors, clay - I needed art. Now I'm focused on removing the boundaries that exist for me as a Black woman without a fine arts degree but with a love for storytelling and visual storytelling.