Trinnette Cooper

Trinnette   Cooper  is  a  Ph.D.  candidate  focused  on  interdisciplinary leadership   studies   at   NC   A&T   with   a   desire  to  work  at  the executive-administration  level in the philanthropic sector. She grew up in a small rural town in eastern North Carolina and was raised in a working, middle-class  family.  Her  mom, Bessie, is an education consultant and her dad, Salmon, is a trucker.

“I  think  my  inspiration  comes  from  being  raised in a middle-class to lower-middle-class  home  with parents who not only worked and raised their children,  but  were  also  involved  in our church and were pillars in our community.  My  mom  represented  our community in the education system and people would relate to her because not only did they see her in the school where  she  worked, but also in the grocery store or in the church.  My dad is retired from the Army Reserves.”

She  has  a  bachelor’s  in  biology from Johnson C. Smith University and a master’s  in  public health, with a concentration in health promotion, from Northern  Illinois  University. “I’d love to have my own foundation one day in  a  minority  community  with  a  focus  on  providing  funds  to  those communities,” she said. “It’s also so important to be visible. Just being a person  of  color  and  working within those communities conveys a sense of empowerment.  I  know  this agenda can bring about change. As Marian Wright Edelman  has  said,“…  service  is the rent you pay for living and the very purpose for life.”