SERENA HERMITT JOINS ANTIRACIST DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE AS EDUCATION PROGRAM COORDINATOR
It was the happiest sort of coincidence.
Serena Hermitt and her partner had been discussing moving out of Philadelphia and closer to their families when TaWanda Hunter Stallworth, the program manager for Penn State Dickinson Law’s Antiracist Development Institute (ADI), reached out. A few years earlier, Hermitt had served as program associate for Stallworth at Camp Curtin YMCA, and they had developed a strong working relationship. Stallworth asked if Hermitt knew anyone who might be interested in a new job at the ADI, which is located just a few miles from Hermitt’s hometown of Mechanicsburg. The education program coordinator position, which included supporting the development and delivery of educational programs and initiatives intended for subscribers and other external audiences, was right up Hermitt’s alley. She applied and got the job. “I had been following what TaWanda was doing with the ADI, and I knew it was very meaningful. I also knew I would love to work for her again,” said Hermitt. “I think the most important part of the job that I see so far is building relationships to find a common humanity together. We are showing people our mission, which leads them to connect with us.”
Since joining the ADI, Hermitt has attended conferences and helped host the first-ever ADI convening at Dickinson Law. In addition to taking over some administrative duties, Hermitt is helping Stallworth plan for the next ADI convening in October and ensure the first three books in the ADI series stay on track.
“Serena came in and hit the ground running less than two weeks before the ADI’s inaugural convening. There was so much that needed to be done, and Serena jumped in and got right to work,” said Stallworth. “It certainly provided her with a unique onboarding experience, but I have long admired her ability to be flexible and responsive to the demands of this most-necessary work.” Most recently, Hermitt worked as a site director for Sunrise of Philadelphia, which offers after-school programs for kids of all ages throughout the city. Earlier, the Drexel University graduate served an internship in the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Office of Health Equity, where she started just days after the COVID-19 outbreak shut down the commonwealth in 2020 (“What a time to be there,” said Hermitt). During that internship, she connected with Stallworth for the first time when they worked together on an equity response team to the pandemic. Stallworth later invited Hermitt to join her at Camp Curtin YMCA.
“We want to continue to make a space for people where they feel welcome, where their identities are recognized, and where they can feel good about their work,” said Hermitt. “I am helping provide more capacity so we can ramp up the work TaWanda has been doing for the last two years.” She has enjoyed exploring Carlisle, where she and her partner now live, and discovering the town’s many fun shops and restaurants. Outside of work, Hermitt loves practicing yoga, a passion she shares with her mother, watching baseball, playing softball and cooking. “My last apartment did not have a big kitchen, so I am rediscovering how to cook,” Hermitt said.