Gholnecsar Muhammad (“Gholdy” Muhammad) is currently an associate professor at Georgia State University teaching literacy and language in the Department of Middle and Secondary Education. She began her career as a reading, language arts and social studies middle school teacher in Cahokia, Illinois.

After teaching in the classroom, she served as a school district assistant curriculum director and was responsible for kindergarten through 12th-grade literacy instruction, grant writing, assessments and professional development.

Muhammad received her Ph.D. in literacy, language and culture at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her research interests are situated in social and historical foundations of literacy development within Black communities and the writing practices among Black women and girls. She explores 19th-century Black literary societies to understand literacy development and how the roles of literacy can be reconceptualized in classrooms today.

She became interested in this line of research when she led a summer writing institute with Black girls called, Black Girls WRITE!. She continues to hold summer literacy programs with Black and Brown youth as well as Muslim girls. She explores how historical practices among communities of color can be used with adolescent learners today.

Some of the journals she has published articles in include, Research in the Teaching of English, English Education, Urban Education, Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy and Written Communication.

Additionally, she serves as the director of the Georgia State Urban Literacy Collaborative and Clinic. She strives to shape the national conversation for educating youth who have been underserved. She also strives to support the next generation of educators who are seeking pathways to meet some of the most pressing challenges encountered in urban schools.

She works with teachers and youth across the United States and South Africa in best practices in literacy instruction. Currently, she is working in Harlem schools in conjunction with writing her forthcoming book entitled, Historically Responsive Literacy.

She is a former school board president and continues to work collaboratively with local schools across communities in the Atlanta metropolitan area.

Muhammad is the 2014 recipient of the National Council of Teachers of English, Promising New Researcher Award, the 2015 NCTE Alan C. Purves Award, the 2016 NCTE Janet Emig awardee, the 2017 Georgia State University Urban Education Research Awardee and the 2018 UIC College of Education Researcher of the Year.