Russlynn Ali
XQ Institute
San Diego, CA USA
"If we can empower communities everywhere by the time they leave our high schools, then not only do we make opportunities for young people, the likes of which they’ve never had before, but we make schooling fun."
Career Roadmap
Russlynn's work combines: Education, Law, and Helping People
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
American University
Doctorate
Law
Northwestern University
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
I went to a high school where I wasn’t given the opportunity to learn higher rigor academics, which is what first inspired me to start thinking about the opportunity divide among students.
2.
I earned my bachelor’s degree from American University followed by a law degree from Northwestern University.
3.
I began my career as a white-collar criminal defense and securities fraud litigator at a big law firm.
4.
Early in my career, I realized my passion lay in equity and civil rights-oriented work.
5.
Reflecting on my life as a first-generation American, I saw education as the path to upward mobility.
6.
I transitioned from law to education, focusing on connecting law with schools to empower students.
7.
Over the past 25-30 years, I've dedicated myself to education, viewing it as the most important civil rights issue of our generation.
8.
As co-founder and CEO of the XQ Institute and managing director of education at the Emerson Collective, I work on innovating and transforming education.
