Meet the Team

Director

As the Director of the Center for Social Justice and Inclusion (CSJI) for almost three years at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, Shareia is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of the center, including programs, events and the budget.  Prior to this role, Shareia served as Director and  Senior Program Manager in the Women’s Resource Center for over ten years.  She works collaboratively with internal and external constituents to support the women students, faculty, and staff.  

Her previous career focused on ending domestic and sexual violence at a local non-profit organization, where she held numerous positions, including volunteer coordinator, assault response coordinator, and victim advocate working in the local courts and police departments.  Now she is dedicated to retention efforts and supporting marginalized and underrepresented students as well as continuing the efforts to end violence against women.  

Shareia has served on several committees on campus and in the community, including the ECEC Board, MI-ACE Women of Color Collaborative, Bring Your Child To Work Day, and the Wayne County Counsel Against Family Violence.

She is an active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Inkster Alumnae Chapter and is currently on the advisory council for campus chapter, the National Women’s Studies Association (NWSA), National Organization for Women (NOW), the American Association of University of Women (AAUW), and Students Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (NASPA).

Shareia loves traveling and spending time with her family.

Race, Ethnicity, and Intersectional Identities Program Manager

Jerrard Wheeler is the Intercultural Program Manager in the Center for Social Justice and Inclusion at UM-Dearborn. In this role he works to support students from marginalized and underrepresented communities in navigating the collegiate experience. Support can look a lot of different ways, you should ask him about it. 

Jerrard holds a Bachelor's of Science in Environmental Biology from Western Michigan University. After university, he served as an AmeriCorps volunteer in the Public Allies Metro Detroit program hosted by the Office of Metropolitan Impact at UM-Dearborn. In the program he served two years at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History executing educational programs that celebrated and elucidated the African American experience. He continued working at the museum beyond the terms of the program until he left to serve as a volunteer in Peace Corps Zambia.

In the Peace Corps, Jerrard served as an environment volunteer. He learned from, lived with, and worked with subsistent rural farmers in the Luapula Province in the Mansa district. Jerrard's primary activities included: integrating into his community, planting trees and promoting agroforestry, farming rice and tilapia, facilitating youth empowerment camps and art clubs, and eliminating stigma concerning people living positively with HIV. Jerrard was a leader in the internal Peace Corps community. He served as peer supporter and led multiple workshops promoting diversity and inclusion.

After completing his service in Peace Corps Zambia Jerrard traveled for 4 months, visiting Tanzania and Zanzibar, Egypt, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. Upon returning to the US, Jerrard returned to Public Allies Metro Detroit, and UM-Dearborn to serve as the Recruitment and Outreach Coordinator. IN this role he recruited over 200 local leaders to serve 10 months at non-profits in the Metro Detroit region. 

Jerrard loves music. He plays several different instruments including guitar and bass, among others. He's obsessed with techno and house music. He can be found at the beach and generally being active!

LGBTQ+ and Intersectional Identities Program Manager

Bee joined the CSJI team in the summer of 2022 as the LGBTQ+ Program Manager, having previously served as the Coordinator of Diversity & Inclusion at Daemen University in Buffalo, NY. At Daemen, Bee created innovative programming such as the first university-wide Undocumented Students Awareness Day and the campus’ first Lavender Graduation.

Bee graduated with their Masters in Higher Education from UM-Ann Arbor in December 2019 with a focus in diversity and social justice, where they interned with the UM Global Scholars Program, Spectrum Center, and College of Engineering Office of Student Affairs. During their time in graduate school they advised over 35 student organizations across campus on diversity, equity, and inclusion topics and created events to support a wide range of underrepresented communities.

Prior to graduate school Bee attended Western Michigan University and received their Bachelors in Gender and Women's Studies and Nonprofit Leadership. During their time at WMU they worked at the WMU Office of LBGT Student Services, the Red Cross of Southwest Michigan, and ArtPrize Grand Rapids. 

Bee’s ongoing research addresses the discrepancies between higher education institutions’ recruitment of LGBTQ+ students and their lack of data collection on LGBTQ+ students’ identities or experiences, leading to gaps in resources and campus support. They have presented this research at the 2020 MBLGTACC Conference and the 2022 Daemen University Equity Summit. 

In their free time Bee can be found singing, making music, checking out local coffee shops in Detroit, studying astrology, or hanging out with their cat Salem.

Student Program Assistant

Alia is a Health and Human Services major with a concentration in Public Health and has worked at CSJI since Fall 2021. They've been active on campus, having been involved with PRIDE, Public Health Society, and working at CAPS as a Mental Health and Wellness Peer Educator. As a first gen student Alia likes to be a resource for other students about the college experience. In their free time they like to read, paint, and destress with video games and playing with their cat.