From Dropout to Doctorate
Coming September 2025
In From Dropout to Doctorate, Lester unveils the realities of educational injustice and the profound impact of unjust policies and systems on the Black community. He shows how poverty and trauma disrupt the lives of Black families, which could lead to instability and homelessness and perpetuate a school-to-prison pipeline.
Drawing from his personal narrative and scholarly research, Lester names the complex challenges Black children face in underresourced and socially dense environments. As a public scholar and nonprofit leader, he advocates for equitable access to advanced education and addresses the systemic barriers that limit opportunities for Black people.
Imagine Dignity Podcast
The Imagine Dignity Podcast with Dr. Terence Lester is a podcast for the people—no studios, no comfortable couches, no expensive microphones.
The studio is on the side of the road, underneath bridges, next to abandoned buildings, and in encampments where people have no address. It centers on those living on the margins of society or facing social stigma that renders them invisible.
Books
I See You
We don’t care about what we don’t see. Countless people are invisible to us. We overlook the poor and homeless, partly because we don’t share much space with them.
When We Stand
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all of the injustices that we see in the world. We don’t know what to do and might think that we don’t have anything to offer.
All God’s Children
The more you understand someone’s history, the better you can see their humanity. This is true for individuals as well as for society at large.
Zion Learns To See
Join Zion as she learns about people experiencing homelessness, and see how she is moved to respond as she recognizes that all people matter to God.
My purpose in life is to create a world where no one is invisible.
Dr. Terence Lester is a storyteller, public scholar, speaker, community activist, and author.
He is the Founder and Executive Director of Love Beyond Walls, a nonprofit organization focused on raising awareness about poverty and homelessness and on community mobilization. Additionally, he serves as the Director of Public Policy and Social Change and as a professor at Simmons College of Kentucky (HBCU). He received his PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Public Policy and Social Change from Union Institute and University.
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From Streets to Scholarship is a newsletter about dignity, compassion, justice, faith, culture, and what we can do to create change.
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Are you interested in collaborations, speaking engagements, and more?