Personal profile
Research interests
Civic engagement and public participation; nonprofit and NGO management; public management; race and diversity; race and ethnicity; social justice
Personal profile
Brandi Blessett, PhD is an associate professor in the leadership and management area in the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.
Dr. Blessett has developed a reputation as a socially conscious researcher, administrator, teacher, and community partner. Her personal ethic has always been to center the lived experience to offer more robust insights by those directly impacted by administrative decisions.
She earned a bachelor of science from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and a master's degree in Educational Leadership from Wayne State University in Detroit.
After teaching as a high school health and life skills teacher at Highland Park Community High School, she decided to pursue her doctorate at Old Dominion University. Her dissertation was titled “Dispersion or Re-segregation: A Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Public Policies and their Impact on Urban African American Mobility.” This work serves as the foundation for her research interests.
Education/Academic qualification
PhD, Public Administration and Urban Policy, Old Dominion University
… → 2011
Master of Education Leadership, Wayne State University
… → 2005
BS, University of Michigan
… → 2003
Research Interest Keywords
- civic engagement
- public participation
- non-profit management
- race and diversity
- race and ethnicity
- social justice
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being -
SDG 4 Quality Education -
SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities -
SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities -
SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Decolonial processes to support youth mental health: Participatory research with Bhutanese refugee youth and families
Blessett, B., Dutt, A. & Wright, B., 2026, (Accepted/In press) In: Feminism and Psychology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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A Black Feminist response to a retrenching administrative state
Wilson, M. E., Gaynor, T. S. & Blessett, B., 2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Administrative Theory and Praxis.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review
Open Access -
The attack on the transgender community: a public administration response
Blessett, B. & Meyer, S. J., 2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Administrative Theory and Praxis.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
1 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations -
Critical race theory and nonprofits: Rethinking leadership and governance
Blessett, B. & Danley, S., Aug 22 2024, Handbook of Critical Perspectives on Nonprofit Organizing and Voluntary Action: Concepts, Applications and Future Directions. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd., p. 279-294 16 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
2 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations -
Relationships, Reflection, and Response: An Iterative Collaborative Research Process to Address Mental Health inequities
Dutt, A., Blessett, B. & Wright, B., 2024, In: Journal of Participatory Research Methods. 5, 2Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access1 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations