Shantel E. Meek, PhD

Shantel E. Meek, PhD, is a professor of practice and the founding director of the Children’s Equity Project (CEP) in the T. Denny School for Social and Family Dynamics at Arizona State University. She manages a budget of over $1 million; oversees strategic partnerships with CEP partners at 17 universities and nonprofit organizations, policymakers, and national organizations; and sets the strategic vision and direction of the CEP. Shantel previously served as a consultant in early childhood policy and strategy at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, DC, where she advised senior staff on a range of federal and state equity and early childhood policy issues. 

Prior to founding the CEP, Shantel served in the Obama Administration as a senior policy advisor for early childhood development at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and as a senior policy advisor for education in the Domestic Policy Council at the White House. Shantel holds a BA in psychology and an MS and PhD in family and human development from Arizona State University. She is the granddaughter of Mexican immigrants, and her personal experiences as a Latina and first-generation college graduate from a small border town inform her work and contribute to her drive to improve the learning conditions of children from historically marginalized communities.