Keyana Hawthorne writes about her ideas on how to keep teachers in Mississippi classrooms and how to help make teaching more effective.
Keyana Hawthorne
Keyana Hawthorne is an 11th-grade teacher at Murrah High School in Jackson, Mississippi, teaching English, literature, and composition and serving as coach of the chess and drama clubs. She is a 2025-2026 Teach Plus Mississippi Policy Fellow. Previously, Keyana was Sylvan Learning’s marketing director, an after-school program executive director, and an AmeriCorps VISTA Leader and Ambassador. She co-founded the Juneteenth on Farish Festival in Jackson, a celebrated event running for nine years that was recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of the nation’s top cultural festivals (2025). She also founded The Write Era, LLC, a literary and marketing firm that empowers storytellers and change-makers through strategic branding and creative storytelling, and co-founded Legacy Builders, Inc., a community organization dedicated to cultural empowerment and civic engagement.