My Specialities

Speaking

Some of my speeches are to convey specific knowledge that you need. Others are to deliver customized speeches, the results of collaborations and consultation with your organization.

Customized or Topic Specific Talks

“She is a wonder to hear and see.” Elaine Eff, Founder, Painted Screen Society

Many of my talks are customized to the organization, using my skills of participatory engagement and strategy. Taking a systems approach, we work together to identify and examine the relevant challenges, the contributing factors, the appropriate participants and audiences to explore and design interventions. Clients often ask for a series of interactions—small group conversations, strategy sessions and a keynote talk. Others request a single keynote to hear my analysis of their relevant questions.

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Building Community Partnerships

Learning how to build trust, equity and lasting social change.

Sometimes clients want to learn about the community strategies for themselves. What makes for trusted and resilient partnerships? The grand challenges of our times call for innovations, collaborations, and equity, gathering partners with different cultures, assumptions and resources. Institutions, organizations and corporations are often relatively resource-rich but often do not have the professional skills to deeply engage diverse communities. Learn the skills and principles of participatory community practice, using exciting examples of actual successful projects.

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The Arts, Humanities and Social Justice

Deploying the arts and humanities for culturally consistent and deeply impactful social action.

Art creates a space for healing and for trying out otherwise dangerous ideas. Underserved communities can use art to raise their voices and to speak to and with power brokers. How does community art become a strong tool to address trauma? How can conscientious organizations come to understand chronic trauma and use their resources to be of service in ways that are equitable and mutually beneficial?
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Art and Chronic Community Trauma

Why and how art becomes a strong tool in trauma informed action.

The Baltimore Crochet Project reframes the skills of working-class female and female identified hobby crocheters into a market based collective, providing high quality materials, training, quality control, marketing and microfinance. I conceived of the project and continue to facilitate with partners, the Neighborhood Fiber Company—a Black female-owned company, Open Works and Common Seeds.

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The Past and Future of Higher Education

Surviving and Taking Hold of the Changing Roles and Uses of Higher Education.

Higher education is being rocked by internal and external forces. Is it truly a business or the last balanced holdout in civil society? How will institutions that are based on history and tradition respond to the new and powerful demands? What happens to neutrality and academic freedom when critics and donors push hard? What are the jobs that only higher education can do or will do? I am a scholar, professor, administrator and activist who has been teaching, leading and moving on the ever rockier institutional paths, who can help you find your best answers to these urgent questions.
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Fierce Angels—Black women in Myth and Social Action

Tracing the Sacred Dark Feminine and Strong Black Women through Fierce Angels

What do the Black Madonna, Michele Obama and working class Black women leading communities have in common? The Sacred Dark Feminine is the oldest archetype in the world, present in the mythologies, religion, art, literature and popular culture on every continent. Contemporary Strong Black Women lead in ways remarkably like those of the fearsome yet nurturing dark goddesses. My book was featured in national and international media. The Washington Post called it “thought provoking” and Essence Magazine named it an Editor’s Pick.

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Let's Connect

12 + 2 =

Dr. Parks brings a wealth of knowledge from her background in everyday aesthetics and her involvement with numerous high-impact interdisciplinary projects. As a speaker at our international symposium on Beauty at Work, she brought to bear insights integrating theory and practice in unique ways. The audience was left inspired by her rich examples of initiatives integrating art and justice which had transformative effects on diverse communities.

Brandon Vaidyanathan, Ph.D., Catholic University

I wanted scientists from around the world to appreciate why our research, constructed carefully in laboratories, matters to a wider world. Dr. Parks’ work with Baltimore youth and with farmers through the Natural Dye Initiative demonstrates powerfully the importance of beauty across race, gender, and social class. Many meeting attendees went out of their way to tell me how Dr. Parks’ presentation moved them and motivated them to think more explicitly about the social relevance of their work.

Anjan Chatterjee, M.D., Director, PENN Center for Neuroaesthetics

Sheri L. Parks rivets listeners with profound insights, drawing on deep knowledge, both academic and experiential, of what it means to endure and, beyond that, to create community today. Marked by remarkable generosity and a playful spirit, her work and her words inspire. It has been a special treat in my career to hear Dr. Parks speak and then to host her at my institution.

Bethany Wiggens, Ph.D., Founding Director, University of Pennsylvania Center for Environmental Humanities

Client Samples