Tsehaye Geralyn Hébert

P. O. Box 823624  PembrokePines, FL 33082-3624  (954) 670 -6610 cell  (954) 379.7510 message 
sahiabear@ameritech.net

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
• Director, Family Literacy Arts Program– demonstrating 35% applicant increase; 90% attendance;
and $40K in staff in-kind donations. Developed all public relations and marketing materials.
• Director, Annenberg Project, funded after school arts program – supporting excellence in after school arts workshops.
• Excellent written communications skills; award winning writer; instructor in traditional and non-traditional settings
• Artist-In-Residence: Valparaiso University (Valparaiso, IN); School District 65 (Evanston, IL)
• Created site and situation specific performances and workshops for local, state and national organizations.
• Founded Prison, Arts and The Humanities (PATH) – a weekly writing, reading and literacy workshop at Cook County
Jail, using the humanities as a personal development and social reintegration tool.
• Skilled public speaker (Valparaiso University, Annual King Convocation Speaker/Event; Kendall College MLK
Celebration; Today’s Black Woman Conference; various broadcast media)
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
CENTER FOR URBAN EDUCATION & INNOVATION, COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, FIU
Director, FLAP – June 2007 – August 2008
• Responsible for the overall administration of program; hiring, training, ongoing staff professional development and
supervision of core staff of 21, part time office staff, consultants and volunteers; oversight of day to day operations
to successfully implement program; community based and field based outreach; public relations and marketing of
program; research and development regarding the artistic and academic rigor of after school curricula relative to
national standards; spokesperson for and liaison between The Children’s Trust, Center for Urban Education &
Innovation/College of Education, Miami Dade Public Schools, National After School Association and other relative
local, state and national organizations.
CHICAGO PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Substitute Teacher – EXCEL Academy, Orr High School Campus (2006 – 2007)
• Assigned by principal to EXCEL (Orr High School Campus) math and language arts staff. Responsibilities
include: assisting in the instruction of high school Geometry and Survey of Literature classes; preparing innovative
curricula aimed at motivating at risk and Special Education high school students in Survey of Literature classes.
Coordinator, The Write Place – Westinghouse Career Academy (2004 – 2006)
• Selected by principal to develop and coordinate an innovative writing laboratoryfor junior and senior high school
students. Key accomplishments include: designing, creating and managing a 34 unit writing laboratory as an
inviting, academically rich environment for at risk high school students; developing training sessions for teaching
staff; and editing parent newsletter and school documents, including those detailing the final years of the Academy
before its renovation. Additional duties include managing after school supplemental activities in the writing lab.
After school activities include instructing students in research and documentation; monitoring special projects
(Black History Month performances; city and school district wide writing contests; Science Fair and Chicago Metro
History Project); assisting staff in the researching curricular projects.
CHICAGO ARTS PARTNERSHIPS IN EDUCATION
Consultant/Facilitator The Great Migration Project (2000 – 2003)
• Created, developed and team taught workshops based on The Great Migration as an arts integrated curricular
concept for teachers and teaching artists at Delta State University (Cleveland, MS); Chicago Public Schools
Continuing Education Workshops and Professional Development Workshops. Effectively managed exchange
project for team of international artists and educators traveling to Mississippi and Chicago, IL; and planned and
implemented tour for visiting Mississippi teachers, artists and students.
Teaching Artist – Chicago Fire, An Opera (2004 – 2005)
• Developed and implemented writing curricula for middle school students integrating music (lyrics), theatre and
dance with social studies and language arts. Working with co-teaching artists from the Chicago Opera Theatre,
middle school department chairs and classroom teachers, produced an opera based on the Great Chicago Fire.
Workshop Facilitator and Presenter (2000 – 2005)
• Led workshops for teachers and artists in the successful integration of the arts and core subjects.
GALLERY 37/AFTER SCHOOL MATTERS (1995 – 2001)
Lead Teaching Artist – Whitney Young Magnet School, Lakeview High School , Gallery 37 Campus; Adjudicator
• Created, developed and taught creative writing curricula for award winning summer arts and concurrently run
academic after school workshops for young adults. Produced young writers’ final performances and edited
manuscripts for publication. Developed art-repreneur concepts for bookmarks and postcards with student work.
Managed a team of artists, teachers and administrative staff. Responsible for day to day operation of workshop;
curricula oversight; purchasing, distributing and inventorying supplies; and served as liaison between sponsoring
organizations (Young Chicago Authors; the Guild Complex), the City of Chicago (After School Matters,
Department of Cultural Affairs),. Developed proposal to fund workshops.
• Reviewed and scored applications for both after school and summer programs; oversaw student selection process
NORTH LAWNDALE LEARNING COMMUNITY NETWORK (February 1997 – May 1999)
Director – NLCArt
• Selected to direct Annenberg funded after school program after successfully served as an arts consultant to 12
member school improvement network. Accomplishments include: effectively managing team of teachers, artists,
parent aides and volunteers. Developed and facilitated training workshops for entire team; assisted teaching artists in
the successful implementation of an integrated arts/core subject after school and in-school workshop; and served as
liaison between organization, funding community and the Chicago Public Schools. Designed and developed logos,
training materials including but not limited to reports; program guidelines, newsletters, brochures, forms, applications.
ASSOCIATED COLLEGES OF THE MIDWEST, URBAN STUDIES PROGRAM (July 1988 – December 1996)
Teaching Faculty, Preceptor
• Facilitated precept for international and domestic upper level university students in this experiential semester-in-
Chicago program. Led twice weekly student workshops; oversaw independent research projects; and planned arts
and cultural community building experiences for group. Served as student advocate with all outside agencies. Team
taught Core Course – general studies, urban neighborhood focus. Taught seminar: Culture, Context and Identity.
EVANSTON ARTS COUNCIL, CITY OF EVANSTON, (August 1988 – September 1993)
Program Coordinator
• Produced annual Evanston Ethnic Arts Festival. Accomplishments include expansion from a half day event to a full
weekend long celebration of cultural diversity attracting national media exposure; broadened funding support to
include local, state and national funding; and developed volunteer and artistic base reflective of community
demographic. Coordinated volunteer committees; designed festival marketing materials and public relations campaign
and materials. Developed, wrote and edited agency documents including reports, guidelines, business
communications and program applications; designed publications concepts.
Served as Americans with Disabilities compliance liaison.Administered Affirmative Action and Community Service
Programs for community based resident artists and organizations at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center. Monitored grant
review process and community outreach initiatives. Oversaw national art competition for award winning festival logo.
Represented agency at city council meetings; Illinois Arts Council meetings and panels; New Forms Regional NEA
Panels (Chicago, IL and San Francisco, CA).
ADDITIONAL EMPLOYMENT
RAVINIA FESTIVAL, Consultant, Editor
After successfully representing the North Lawndale Learning Community Network at community meetings, was selected to
edit newsletter highlighting community initiatives for internally acclaimed music festival; and reviewed arts in education
teaching programs.
PROLOGUE ALTERNATIVE HIGH SCHOOL, GED Instructor
Taught GED classes for highs school dropouts, court mandated students, new immigrants and senior citizens.
BRONX COURT EMPLOYMENT PROJECT, Project Assistant
Researched and wrote case histories successfully arguing for applicants’ admission into innovative anti-recidivism program
with the New York City Criminal Courts.
COMMUNITY SERVICE & VOLUNTEERISM
• Founder, Prison, Arts and The Humanities (PATH) – a weekly writing, reading and literacy workshop at Cook County
Jail and a quarterly workshop at various state prisons that uses the humanities as a personal development and social
reintegration tool.
• Creative Drama and writing instructor at Madonna/St. Joseph Center (Catholic Charities) for homeless indigent teen
mothers; and at Genesis House (half-way house for ex-offenders; retraining for sex trade workers)
• Red Cross – Candy Striper, Baton Rouge General Hospital
• Board Member – The Piven Theatre Workshop
• Chicago Historical Society – Docent
• African American Arts Alliance – President, Board Member
• The Latin School of Chicago, Loyola Jesuit Academy – Parent volunteer
AWARDS/RECOGNITION
• Native Voices and Visions Award, Playwright, Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, LA)
• First Place, New Works/New Vision Midwest Playwrights Project , Playwright
• Gwendolyn Brooks’ 80th Birthday, One of 80 literary artists selected nationally to celebrate Pulitzer Prize winner and
US Poet Laureate’s birthday
• Special Incentive Award, Northwestern University, , Department of African American Student Affairs
• Bayou Girls State, Best Politician Award
PUBLICATIONS/PRODUCTIONS
• Award winning playwright, produced
• Essayist, poet, short story writer
• Freelance writer and editor
SKILLS
• Computer literate ● Desktop publishing ● Digital media - photography, video ● American Sign language
 EDUCATION
• Northwestern University, Bachelor of Science, The School of Communication, June 1986