Terrell Strayhorn

Dr. Terrell Strayhorn is Founding CEO and Senior Research Scientist at Do Good Work Educational Consulting LLC, a research consulting firm dedicated to conducting high-quality, rigorous research that can be effectively translated into improving practices, informing decisions, strengthening communities, and ensuring success. He serves as Provost and Senior Vice President, Academic Affairs at Virginia Union University.

Previously, Professor Strayhorn was on the faculty at The Ohio State University, where he also served as Director of the Center for Higher Education Enterprise (CHEE) and Founding Director of the Center for IDEAS within the College of Education and Human Ecology. He has also served on the faculty at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he served as Special Assistant to the Provost for Student Retention.

An internationally-recognized student success scholar, highly acclaimed public speaker, and award-winning writer, Strayhorn is author of 10 books and over 200 book chapters, journal articles, and other scholarly publications. His most popular book, College Students’ Sense of Belonging: A Key to Educational Success, has won several recognitions and sold record copies nationally. He has given hundreds of invited keynote lectures at more than 600 universities and conferences across the globe. Dr. Strayhorn maintains an active and highly visible research agenda focusing on major policy issues in education and he has had an abiding life-long commitment to equity, diversity, and social justice.

Strayhorn was named one of the country’s top diversity scholars by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education in 2011, one of Business First’s “Top 40 under 40,” one of the “Top 20 to Know in Education,” and became the youngest full professor in Ohio State University’s history in 2014. He has been quoted in major news outlets including the Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside HigherEd, Huffington Post, and newspapers across the nation. Strayhorn received a bachelor’s degree (BA) from the University of Virginia (UVA), a masters degree (MEd) in educational policy from the Curry School of Education at UVA, and doctorate (PhD) in higher education from Virginia Tech. He is currently pursuing a graduate certificate in Biblical Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, and a proud native of Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Education

BA, University of Virginia

MEd, University of Virginia

PhD, Virginia Tech

Public Service

Research Focus on Black Education Special Interest Group (SIG), Chair -

Awards / Honors

Contribution to Higher Education Award, American College Personnel Association, 2017

Outstanding Contribution to Multicultural Research and Scholarship Award, American College Personnel Association, 2020

Publications

Strayhorn, T. L. (2012). College students' sense of belonging: A key to educational success.

Hirt, J. B., Amelink, C. T., Bennett, B. R., Strayhorn, T. L. (2008). A system of othermothering: Relationships between student affairs administrators and students at historically Black colleges and universities. The NASPA Journal

Strayhorn, T. (2014). What Role Does Grit Play in the Academic Success of Black Male Collegians at Predominantly White Institutions?. Journal of African American Studies

Presentations

Strayhorn, T. L. (2012). Demythifying the importance of equity and diversity in higher and legal education. LSDPA

Strayhorn, T. L. (2015). A return on investment analysis for Black graduates of historically Black colleges and universities: Insights from three studies. Penn Center for MSIs