ABOUT EMILY 

After graduating from Vanderbilt Divinity School with a Masters in Theological Studies, Emily and her husband moved to Memphis where she started working as a community organizer for a state-wide health advocacy organization. 

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Through this work she met folks from all walks of life that were empowered to work together for a common goal. Helping people realize and activate their own collective power is what inspires Emily to pursue servant-leadership opportunities.

 

Emily worked for several years at a nation-wide non-profit food security organization to help connect gardeners with their local food pantries where they could donate their excess garden produce. 

 

Emily, her husband, and their two kids (now 12 and 8) chose to make Collierville home seven years ago and quickly plugged into various community organizations and projects.

 

Emily is a founder and board member of Collierville Community Justice -- a diverse, intergenerational coalition of Collierville residents working for racial and economic justice in our community.

 

Noticing the lack of public information about the Black history of Collierville, Emily spends a lot of her free time helping to research, elevate, and preserve that history for future generations.

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With a desire to engage in social change through policy and politics, Emily went back to graduate school at the University of Memphis to study Political Science. Emily joined the United Campus Workers Union as a graduate assistant and remains a member today. Upon graduation, she was hired as a full-time instructor, and she teaches International Relations and Religion & Politics.

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Emily is a "native plant and pollinator nerd", and she enjoys working in the yard, tending to the gardens, chickens, and honeybees. She's excited to plant a fruit tree orchard in her front yard this year.

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Emily ran for Collierville Alderman in 2022 to bring attention to the need for voting districts in Collierville, and to raise awareness about the issues that matter.