Our Team
Corrie Claiborne, PhD
Director
Dr. Corrie Claiborne is an Associate Professor of English and American Literature at Morehouse College and Director of the Movement, Memory, and Justice Project. As an educator of over 24 years, she specializes in teaching and writing about the American South and the Civil Rights Movement. Her work with CWI is closely tied to the work that she does with and in Gullah Geechee communities, particularly in terms of how the stories of Gullah Geechee people help illuminate key parts of the African American story. Her essay, “‘Decorating the Decorations': Daughters of the Dust and the Aesthetics of the Quilt,” was published in 2020 by Peter Lang Press in a collection commemorating the 25th anniversary of Julie Dash’s Daughters of the Dust. She is also a writer and the executive director for a documentary on Johnnetta Betsch Cole.
Tendaji Bailey
Associate Director
Tendaji Bailey is a Gullah Geechee native of Port Royal and St. Helena Island, SC. A 2015 graduate of Morehouse College, he is a former middle school math teacher and community organizer turned artist and founder of the Gullah Geechee Futures Project. Through the Mellon Morehouse Movement, Memory, & Justice Project, Tendaji developed the summer internship and events to educate the public about the rich history and culture of Gullah Geechee communities throughout the coastal Southeast. He serves as the Harriet Tubman Exhibition Program Manager at Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park, offering tours and workshops, and is a Certified Interpretive Guide.
As an emerging artist, Tendaji embraces the role of a Griot, a traditional storyteller, by singing, songwriting, and curating immersive experiences through his recent work, "SEEKING|SOARING: Gullah Resilience Songs."