Meet Sharece Sellem-Hannah
Hello! My name is Sharece Sellem-Hannah and I am very excited to join Rodel’s team of passionate education advocates and leaders. I’d like to start off by sharing what drew me to Rodel: the dedication to enhancing and expanding Delaware’s education landscape along with the commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Growing up in a low-income household, I have firsthand experience facing the many challenges we now consider when discussing the many social determinants of health. I was a student in the Connecticut public school system and I learned early on that I would need to be my own advocate in order to really make the most of my education experience. I was fortunate to have educators who took the time to invest in my leadership and entrepreneurial skills. A program I will never forget, NFTE (National Foundation Teaching Entrepreneurship), was introduced to me by teachers who saw my talents and mentored me while in the program. I won second place honorable mention for a gift basket business I created in the program and this would forever inspire me to continue learning, creating, leading, and organizing. My personal education experience includes: Gateway Community College (Connecticut), Headlong Performance Institute (Philadelphia), Charter Oak State College (Connecticut) and University of Delaware Professional & Continuing Education Program.
Two organizations I attribute my education experience to are New Haven Job Corps and Clifford Beers Clinic. While working in Outreach & Admissions at New Haven Job Corps, I worked with students who were once in my shoes and I enjoyed watching them grow while they were taking advantage of what the program had to offer. I spent a lot of time developing strategies to successfully connect our students with the community – nonprofits and corporations (as networking is an important part of one’s education experience). I went on to working closely with social work and mental health leaders in New Haven, CT as a program administrator for Clifford Beers Clinic. At our monthly South Central Network of Care meetings, I learned about the many issues facing my community and education was a regular topic of discussion. Our youth faced so many obstacles due to the implications of poverty and I was honored to work for an organization that deeply cared about creating and improving systems that were designed to help.
I strongly believe it takes a village to raise a child and the value in the old parable to teach a man how to fish. By keeping education first in our state, we will only improve and excel in every area and industry. In my new role as co-investment associate, I am looking forward to helping manage some of the many functions Rodel has that supports improving our education systems in Delaware. I am honored to join the team and I look forward to supporting and organizing in every way possible.