Sheba Rogers serves as the Senior Program Manager for DJC’s Divest/Invest work housed in the Just Cities Innovation Lab, following her two-year service as a member of the DJC Board of Directors. Sheba, a Detroit native, brings to the DJC team over twelve years of experience supporting and leading programs, research, and policy and advocacy projects focused on improving opportunities and outcomes for children and families across low-income communities and schools. Sheba’s work has focused primarily on research; educational programming; and capacity building of system-change leaders to help advance the well-being and success of Black youth, families, and communities. Her passion for DJC’s mission stems from the direct impact of her mother and close relatives who have been incarcerated and profoundly disadvantaged by the criminal legal system. Sheba holds a bachelor’s degree from Howard University; master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Michigan; and master’s degree in Education from Harvard University.

In a few of Sheba’s previous roles, she led the Promise of Place Initiative for the Campaign for Black Male Achievement. In this capacity Sheba led national and local convenings; co-authored the second edition of CBMA’s Promise of Place Report; and provided capacity building supports for cross-sector leaders working to impact the lives of Black men and boys. In addition to this role, Sheba worked with the Children’s Defense Fund on the national policy team and CDF Freedom Schools team. Sheba served as CDF’s sole program ambassador in Detroit, helping to lead expansion of program sites and to build strategic partnerships for the Freedom Schools program. In her role with CDF’s national policy team Sheba helped to co-lead a partnership with school superintendents to support strategic efforts to reduce school suspensions and improve discipline reform in five school districts across the nation, among other projects focused on dismantling the school to prison pipeline. In addition to her program management experience, Sheba served in several professional research capacities at Northwestern University, University of Michigan, and Harvard University.