District 9 Team Member Spotlight

Dr. Yaribel Mercedes, District Achievement Instructional Specialist (DAIS)

Yaribel Mercedes, Ed.D is an adjunct assistant professor of literacy at Hunter College’s School of Education. She also serves as a district instructional coach for culturally responsive and sustainable education in New York City public schools. Dr. Mercedes is also a member of the advisory board for Justice for Black Girls, a nonprofit organization committed to disrupting educational, carceral, and cultural systems that harm young Black girls while creating liberated educational spaces for Black girls ages 13–24. Her research examines race, racism, and the impact of systems of subjugation within and across educational contexts; the practices of critically race-conscious leaders, particularly Black educators; and (re)membering as a praxis and location for healing. Yaribel was inducted into the Barbara L. Jackson Scholars Network by the University Council for Educational Administration in 2023 and received the 2025 Outstanding Dissertation Award from the American Educational Research Association’s (AERA) Critical Examination of Race, Ethnicity, Class, and Gender in Education Special Interest Group for her dissertation, “I (WE) Know What’s at Stake: Critically Race-Conscious and Responsive Leadership as a Site of Resistance.” Dr. Mercedes earned her doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University.