passionate about developing and delivering services that impact students and communities.
loyal to providing effective services that ultimately create opportunities and a better future for under-served students and communities.
respectful of the evolving needs and challenges of clients and the diverse communities they serve.
Pamela Leggett-Robinson, PhD, CAPM
Founder & Executive director, PLR Consulting
Pamela Leggett-Robinson has more than 15 years of higher education experience which includes STEM academic and student success/support programming, institutional strategic planning, data analytics, educational programming (start-ups), and program evaluation. Her diverse skill set is a result of serving as an academic administrator, project manager, principal investigator/project director for STEM student and community initiatives, high school teacher, and lobbyist for K-20 science funding on Capitol Hill. She is a Certified Associate in Project Management and brings and exceptional level of enthusiasm, dedication, and nuanced perspective to each STEM program she serves.
Dr. Leggett-Robinson’s research and scientific presentations focus on natural product chemistry, surface chemistry, student support programs in STEM education and support programming for women of color in STEM professions. She has received multiple awards for her STEM service to students and garnered funds from both NIH and NSF in program funding. Her distinguished record of STEM programmatic success is well documented in publications and presentations.
Dr. Leggett-Robinson holds a B.S. in chemistry from Georgia State University, M.S. in Bio-Organic Chemistry from Tennessee Technological University, and a Ph.D. in Physical Organic Chemistry from Georgia State University. Dr. Leggett-Robinson’s latest publications — Demystifying Promotion & Tenure, Overcoming Barriers for Women of Color in STEM Fields — are resources to assist Black women along their STEM journey.
Brandi Campbell, PhD
Director, Belay Consulting
Dr. Brandi Villa would say that she has been a researcher since childhood, gradually honing her skills through formal and informal education. By the time she finished her undergraduate studies, she had also become an educator. Brandi did her graduate research on two fronts – in the field of applied and environmental microbiology as well as in program evaluation.
With more than a decade of teaching experience, Brandi brings an educator and researcher’s perspective to the design and implementation of our projects. Her evaluation and non-profit work has taken her around the globe to contribute to national and international projects, including bilingual programs in English and Spanish. She excels at working with people from different backgrounds, cultures, and even different languages.
She has taught scientific writing for years, and has collaborated with many of our clients to write and edit successful grant proposals, conference presentations, and journal publications. In addition to her passion for all aspects of STEM education and health, Brandi particularly enjoys challenges related to evaluation design, scientific communication for the lay audience, reporting and data visualization, and meeting facilitation.
Jacqueline Leonard, PhD
DIRECTOR, JL Education Associates LLC
Dr. Leonard has 40 years of experience as an elementary school teacher and teacher educator. As the recipient of $7.6 million dollars in research grants from the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education, she has extensive experience in managing,
facilitating, and evaluating research in STEM. The company is currently licensed and operating in Collierville, Tennessee. Recent research and evaluation projects focused on improving STEM access for historically excluded middle, high school, and college students in Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Tennessee, and Wyoming.
Selected Publications
Demystifying Promotion & Tenure: A Resource For Black Women
Demystifying Promotion & Tenure: A Resource for Black Women provides a jumpstart for Black women in the academy to uncover a deeper purpose of their legacy within the discipline, profession, and institution inside and outside of the tenure and promotion journey.
https://www.amazon.com/Demystifying-Promotion-Tenure-Resource-Black/dp/B09MYVXHV1
Leggett-Robinson, P. and Villa, B. (2020) Overcoming Barriers for Women of Color in STEM Fields: Emerging Research and Opportunities. IGI Global Publishing, Copyright: 2020, Pages:199.
https://www.igi-global.com/book/overcoming-barriers-women-color-stem/244597
Leggett-Robinson, P. and Villa, B. (2019) Navigating the Landscape of the STEM Professoriate: Reflections and Insights From Women of Color. Women's Influence on Inclusion, Equity, and Diversity in STEM Fields. IGI Global Publishing, Copyright: 2019, Pages: 44.
https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/navigating-the-landscape-of-the-stem-professoriate/228417
Despite a plethora of initiatives, policies, and procedures to increase their representation in STEM, women of color still remain largely underrepresented. In the face of institutional and societal bias, it is important to understand the various methods women of color use to navigate the STEM landscape as well as the role of their personal and professional identities in overcoming the systemic (intentional or unintentional) barriers placed before them.
Both the review and the reflections focus on the areas of STEM belonging, self-presentation, stereotyping, institutional racism, discrimination, and tokenism as challenges faced by women of color in the STEM professoriate. Additionally, mechanisms used by women of color to navigate and succeed despite these barriers, such as mentoring, are explored throughout.