Emerald teaches dozens of courses ranging in discipline from astronomy to divinity. Trained as a theologian at Union Theological Seminary, she believes that education begins with radical acceptance of the self. This process, which bell hooks refers to as self-actualization, alchemizes the students’ ability to not only learn, but leave space for the learning of others. Whether it’s teaching Black literature to teenagers in Brooklyn, or designing a micro-course on Black Expressions in Massachusetts for students in boarding school, Emerald is concerned with both the delight of the human experience, as well as, illuminating the crevices of neglect causing fissures in our bodies and our planet.