Chrystina Russell

Educator/Teacher

At Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), Chrystina Russell is the Executive Director of SNHU’s Global Education Movement (GEM), where she spearheads innovative initiatives to bring tertiary education and employment pathways to refugees and traditionally underserved learners across 5 countries in Africa and the Middle East. Prior, she was a member of the founding team at Kepler in Rwanda, where she served as the organization’s Chief Academic Officer. Previously, she was the founding principal of Global Tech Prep, a high-performing public school in East Harlem, New York and faculty at the City College of New York. Chrystina began her career as a bilingual special education teacher in the Bronx, where she developed a passion in understanding educational challenges and using innovation and technology to find creative solutions in underserved communities.

Reversing traditional outcomes for underserved communities.

Less than 1% of refugees have access to higher ed. To tackle this, we need a higher ed model that's as mobile and flexible as refugees themselves.