About the Fellowship
Central to our work is elevating the voices of individuals who are directly impacted by the legal system. That’s why we’ve launched the inaugural Justice Fellows Policy Program, which centers around a vibrant and nurturing community of directly impacted, formerly incarcerated individuals who have overcome the odds and attained their bachelor’s or master’s degree, created programs and organizations for the formerly incarcerated community, engaged in state legislative advocacy efforts, and more.
Throughout this fellowship, the Justice Fellows will use their lived experience to inform, review, amplify, and reflect on Ed Trust’s policy recommendations for justice-impacted students. Additionally, Justice Fellows will inform and guide Ed Trust’s structured engagements and convenings at the intersection of higher education policy and the criminal legal system.
Learn more about the inaugural Justice Fellows cohort here.
Justice Fellows
Kittrell Bernard Decator
Kittrell Bernard Decator knows the promise of a second chance. After serving 26 years of a 52-year sentence in…
Maria Garza
Maria Garza is a restorative justice practitioner, activist, and prison reform advocate, who began fighting for improvements to the…
Kareemah Hanifa
Kareemah Hanifa is a Muslim native from Charleston, South Carolina, but spent most of her life in the state…
Dolfinette Martin
Dolfinette Martin is a native New Orleanian, a strong community leader, and fierce advocate of safe, affordable housing for…
Antonio Reza
In 2012, Antonio Reza was convicted of a violent felony. Upon release from prison, he was determined not to…
Quinton Reynolds
Quinton Reynolds is a student at Georgia State University, where he is a business major with a concentration in…
Shannon Ross
Shannon Ross is the founder and executive director of The Community, which employs deep in-reach and outreach to help…
Nikcole Whipple
Nikcole Whipple is an enrolled member of the Round Valley Indian Tribes, located in Mendocino County in Northern California.…
Justice Fellows in Action
WATCH: Affirmative Action and Student Loan Forgiveness for the Justice Impacted
In many ways, justice-impacted individuals have been left out of the conversation regarding higher education and affirmative action. While incarcerated individ…
The First Cohort of Justice Policy Fellows Graduate
"History teaches us that change is often made when an organized segment of those most affected, leading in solidarity with allies, disrupt business as usual."—…
WATCH: Beyond the Ban: A Toolkit for Advocating College Opportunity for Justice-Impacted Students
Join Ed Trust Researchers and Justice Fellows for a comprehensive overview of the “Beyond the Ban” toolkits with the policy scan findings, resources, and tools…
A Toolkit for Advancing College Opportunity for Justice-Impacted Students – Texas
by Alexa Garza, Patrick Rodriguez, Kayla C. Elliott, and Satra TaylorLetter From the Fellows“Education is freedom.” — Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed“As a society, our decision to heap shame and contempt upon those who s…
About the Advisory Board
Ed Trust has convened an advisory board of individuals with expertise in advocating for issues at the nexus of higher education policy and the criminal legal system. Ed Trust will rely on these board members for high-level guidance and advice on Ed Trust’s strategy for the Fellows program.
Justice Fellows Advisory Board
Stanley Andrisse, Ph.D.
Stanley Andrisse, Ph.D. is an endocrinologist scientist at Johns Hopkins Medicine Howard University College of Medicine. But he is…
Terrell Blount
Terrell Blount is the director of the Formerly Incarcerated College Graduates Network (FICGN), a nonprofit organization that promotes equity,…
Hernan Carvante Martinez
Hernan Carvente-Martinez is the Founder and CEO of Healing Ninjas, Inc. a social enterprise seeking to expand access to…
Erin Corbett, Ed.D.
Erin Corbett, Ed.D. has spent nearly two decades in education access. Most recently, Erin was the assistant director for…
Michelle Daniel Jones
Michelle Daniel (Jones) is a fourth-year doctoral student in the American Studies program at New York University. While incarcerated,…
Dr. Zaria Davis
Dr. Zaria Davis is a senior associate with the Pretrial Justice Institute, where she advocates for safe, fair, and…
Dr. Laura Ferguson-Mimms
I am a native Nashvillian who loves my family and my hometown. My professional career includes working as a…
Jay Holder
Jay Holder is the director of the National Executive Council (NEC) at Columbia University’s Center for Justice, which supports…
Bahiyyah Muhammad, Ph.D.
Bahiyyah Muhammad, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Criminology in the Department of Sociology at Howard University. She is…
Romarilyn Ralston
Romarilyn Ralston identifies as a Black feminist abolitionist with incarceration experience. She earned a Bachelor degree in Gender and…
Noel Vest, Ph.D.
Noel Vest, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Stanford University School of Medicine. His research interests include…
Tyrone Walker
Tyrone Walker is a juvenile lifer who was released in 2018, after serving nearly 25 years of imprisonment. Today,…