Aja D. Reynolds

Aja Denise Reynolds is a healer, activist, artist and educator. She is the legacy of Linda and the late Ralph Reynolds, a testament of her family’s survival and resistance in the US. In the many roles she is positioned in, she is led by a Black feminist spirit of care, collectivism and courage to confront systems of oppression. Currently, she is a Assistant Professor of Urban Education and Critical Race Studies at Wayne State University. Aja’s research interests are inspired by her on-going relationships with Black girls to engage theories and practices in geography, youth development and social movements. Her collaborative engagement with Black girls focuses on creating ‘fugitive’ or freedom spaces through the use of art, activism and healing. Aja’s dissertation titled “Ain’t Nobody Checking for Us: Race, Fugitivity and the Urban Geographies of Black Girlhood” is her most current work that documents this labor of love. Additionally, she is part of national education networks, including the Education for Liberation Network, in which she organizes with teachers, youth and community organizations to develop justice-centered educational sites.